Print Report
CEGL005042 Tsuga canadensis - Fagus grandifolia - (Acer saccharum) Great Lakes Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Eastern Hemlock - American Beech - (Sugar Maple) Great Lakes Forest
Colloquial Name: Great Lakes Hemlock - Beech - Hardwood Forest
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This hemlock - beech hardwood forest is found in the central Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada. Stands may be found on flat to moderately steep slopes of any aspect. Soils are primarily dry-mesic to mesic loams and sands and sometimes loamy silt. The overstory is typically a closed canopy dominated by Tsuga canadensis and either Acer saccharum or Fagus grandifolia. Acer rubrum, Betula alleghaniensis, Fraxinus americana, Pinus strobus, Quercus rubra, and Ulmus americana also can be found in the canopy. Along with smaller individuals of the canopy species, Abies balsamea, Ostrya virginiana, and Picea glauca can often be found in the undergrowth in Upper Michigan. The shrub layer is usually not well-developed and includes such species as Corylus cornuta, Diervilla lonicera, Hamamelis virginiana, and Lonicera canadensis. The herbaceous layer may contain few to many species. Herbaceous species, such as Anemone quinquefolia, Cornus canadensis, Dryopteris carthusiana, Maianthemum canadense, Maianthemum racemosum, Medeola virginiana, Trientalis borealis, Trillium grandiflorum, and Viola spp., can be moderately abundant.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: The type may be limited eastward by the main range of Picea rubens, whose presence may indicate a transition to ~Tsuga canadensis - (Betula alleghaniensis) - Picea rubens / Cornus canadensis Forest (CEGL006129)$$ in the region of the Ontario/Quebec border. Other more eastern species include Acer pensylvanicum, Viburnum lantanoides, and Trillium undulatum (Rogers 1980). The data by Rogers (1980), who examined pure hemlock stands (many of them less than 2 ha in size) from Wisconsin to Nova Scotia, make clear that there are few species strictly associated with a pure hemlock versus a mixed hemlock-hardwood type, and also indicate that some distinction between a Great Lakes versus northeastern United States/eastern Canada has some merit. Southward this type probably does not extend below Lake Erie or Lake Ontario, though stands in western New York need to be reviewed. Presence of some boreal species, such as Clintonia borealis, Coptis trifolia, and Cornus canadensis separate this type from ~Tsuga canadensis - Fagus grandifolia - Acer saccharum / (Hamamelis virginiana, Kalmia latifolia) Forest (CEGL005043)$$ (Black and Mack 1976), but this needs further study. In Michigan this type is mostly on the lakeplain/outwash throughout the Michigan range of beech. Compare with ~Tsuga canadensis - Acer saccharum - Betula alleghaniensis Forest (CEGL005044)$$.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The overstory is typically a closed canopy dominated by Tsuga canadensis and either Acer saccharum or Fagus grandifolia. Fagus grandifolia is rare or not present in stands west of eastern Wisconsin. Betula alleghaniensis, Fraxinus americana, and Ulmus americana are common associates, and occasionally Acer rubrum, Pinus strobus, and Quercus rubra can be found in the canopy. Along with smaller individuals of the canopy species, Abies balsamea, Ostrya virginiana, and Picea glauca can often be found in the undergrowth in Upper Michigan (Braun 1950). The shrub layer is usually not well-developed. Corylus cornuta, Diervilla lonicera, Hamamelis virginiana, and Lonicera canadensis can be found scattered in this community. The herbaceous layer may contain few to many species. In some stands, the shade from the overstory and a carpet of Acer saccharum seedlings do not allow other species to flourish (Braun 1950). In other places, herbaceous species such as Anemone quinquefolia, Cornus canadensis, Dryopteris carthusiana (= Dryopteris spinulosa), Maianthemum canadense, Medeola virginiana, Maianthemum racemosum (= Smilacina racemosa), Trientalis borealis, Trillium grandiflorum, and Viola spp. can be moderately abundant.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This community is found primarily on dry-mesic to mesic loams and sands and sometimes on loamy silts (Kotar et al. 1988). Stands may be found on flat to moderately steep slopes of any aspect.
Geographic Range: This hemlock - beech hardwoods forest type is found in the central Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada, ranging from northeastern Wisconsin east to Michigan and southern Ontario.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: MI, ON, WI
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689188
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G4G5
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.B Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass | S15 | 1.B |
| Formation | 1.B.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Na Eastern North American Forest & Woodland Division | D008 | 1.B.2.Na |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Na.7 Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch - Eastern Hemlock Forest Macrogroup | M014 | 1.B.2.Na.7 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Na.7.f Eastern Hemlock - Eastern White Pine - Yellow Birch Forest Group | G919 | 1.B.2.Na.7.f |
| Alliance | A4452 Eastern Hemlock - Yellow Birch - Sugar Maple Laurentian Forest Alliance | A4452 | 1.B.2.Na.7.f |
| Association | CEGL005042 Eastern Hemlock - American Beech - (Sugar Maple) Great Lakes Forest | CEGL005042 | 1.B.2.Na.7.f |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: > Acer - Fagus / Dryopteris (Kotar et al. 1988)
>< Acer - Tsuga / Dryopteris spinulosa (Kotar et al. 1988)
= Tsuga canadensis - Fagus grandifolia - (Acer saccharum) Great Lakes Forest (Faber-Langendoen 2001) [Northern Mesic Forest Hemlock-Beech Subtype]
< Hardwood and Hemlock-Hardwood Forests (Braun 1950)
>< Acer - Tsuga / Dryopteris spinulosa (Kotar et al. 1988)
= Tsuga canadensis - Fagus grandifolia - (Acer saccharum) Great Lakes Forest (Faber-Langendoen 2001) [Northern Mesic Forest Hemlock-Beech Subtype]
< Hardwood and Hemlock-Hardwood Forests (Braun 1950)
- Black, R. A., and R. N. Mack. 1976. Tsuga canadensis in Ohio: Synecological and phytogeographical relationships. Vegetatio 32(1):11-19.
- Braun, E. L. 1950. Deciduous forests of eastern North America. Hafner Press, New York. 596 pp.
- Faber-Langendoen, D., editor. 2001. Plant communities of the Midwest: Classification in an ecological context. Association for Biodiversity Information, Arlington, VA. 61 pp. plus appendix (705 pp.).
- Farrand, W. R., and D. L. Bell. 1982. Quaternary geology of northern Michigan. University of Michigan, Lansing.
- Hop, K., S. Menard, J. Drake, S. Lubinski, and J. Dieck. 2010c. National Park Service Vegetation Inventory Program: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan. Natural Resource Report NPS/GLKN/NRR-2010/201. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. 358 pp.
- Kost, M. A., D. A. Albert, J. G. Cohen, B. S. Slaughter, R. K. Schillo, C. R. Weber, and K. A. Chapman. 2007. Natural communities of Michigan: Classification and description. Report No. 2007-21, Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Lansing. 314 pp. [http://web4.msue.msu.edu/mnfi/reports/2007-21_Natural_Communites_of_Michigan_Classification_and_Description.pdf]
- Kotar, J., J. A. Kovach, and C. T. Locey. 1988. Field guide to forest habitat types of northern Wisconsin. Department of Forestry, University of Wisconsin and Department of Natural Resources.
- Lee, H., W. Bakowsky, J. Riley, J. Bowles, M. Puddister, P. Uhlig, and S. McMurray. 1998. Ecological land classification for southern Ontario: First approximation and its application. Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Southcentral Science Section, Science Development and Transfer Branch. SCSS Field Guide FG-02.
- Midwestern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Minneapolis, MN.
- ONHIC [Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Unpublished data. Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre, Ministry of Natural Resources, Ontario, Canada.
- Rogers, R. S. 1980. Hemlock stands from Wisconsin to Nova Scotia: Transitions in understory composition along a floristic gradient. Ecology 61(1):178-193.
- WDNR [Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources]. 2015. The ecological landscapes of Wisconsin: An assessment of ecological resources and a guide to planning sustainable management. PUB-SS-1131 2015. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Madison. [http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/landscapes/Book.html]