Print Report
CEGL006079 Pinus rigida / Gaylussacia baccata Scrub
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Pitch Pine / Black Huckleberry Scrub
Colloquial Name: Dwarf Pine Ridge
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This dwarf pitch pine community is restricted to a single occurrence in New York on a flat-topped summit with thin soils over a white quartzite conglomerate. The flat topography and impermeable substrate at times fosters a seasonally high water table, although this community is not a wetland. The physiognomy is a dense, compact and short (2 m) canopy of pines and huckleberry. This community is dominated by dwarf individuals of Pinus rigida and by Gaylussacia baccata. Other characteristic woody plants associated with the dwarf pine are Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides, Aronia melanocarpa, and Betula populifolia. A low-shrub stratum is composed of Vaccinium angustifolium, Vaccinium pallidum, Comptonia peregrina, and Kalmia angustifolia. Other associated species in the ground layer include Gaultheria procumbens, Cornus canadensis, Maianthemum canadense, Cypripedium acaule and Melampyrum lineare.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This community is related to other ridgetop pitch pine barrens, but it is distinguished both by its physiognomy and composition. The shrub canopy is made up of a nearly closed canopy of stunted Pinus rigida trees that are typically 1 to 3 m tall, and Gaylussacia baccata shrubs that are 0.5 to 1 m tall. Scrub oak (Quercus ilicifolia) is usually absent from or rare in this community, and species diversity is low.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This mixed shrubland community is dominated by dwarfed individuals of Pinus rigida and by Gaylussacia baccata. Other characteristic woody plants associated with the dwarf pine are Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides, Aronia melanocarpa, and Betula populifolia. There is a low-shrub stratum composed of Vaccinium angustifolium, Vaccinium pallidum, Comptonia peregrina, and Kalmia angustifolia. Other associated species in the ground layer include Gaultheria procumbens, Cornus canadensis, Maianthemum canadense, Cypripedium acaule, and Melampyrum lineare.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: The only known site for this community occurs on a flat-topped summit with thin soils over a white quartzite conglomerate. Soils are rich in organic matter that has accumulated on the bedrock.
Geographic Range: This type occurs only in the Shawangunk Mountains of southeastern New York in the Hudson Valley region.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: NY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689237
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G1
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.2 Appalachian-Northeastern Oak - Hardwood - Pine Forest & Woodland Macrogroup | M502 | 1.B.2.Na.2 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Na.2.h Pitch Pine - Virginia Pine - Bear Oak Woodland & Barrens Group | G906 | 1.B.2.Na.2.h |
| Alliance | A4372 Pitch Pine Rocky Woodland Alliance | A4372 | 1.B.2.Na.2.h |
| Association | CEGL006079 Pitch Pine / Black Huckleberry Scrub | CEGL006079 | 1.B.2.Na.2.h |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Dwarf Pine Ridges (Reschke 1990)
- Eastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boston, MA.
- Edinger, G. J., D. J. Evans, S. Gebauer, T. G. Howard, D. M. Hunt, and A. M. Olivero, editors. 2014a. Ecological communities of New York state. Second edition. A revised and expanded edition of Carol Reschke''s ecological communities of New York state. New York Natural Heritage Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, NY.
- Grossman, D. H., K. Lemon Goodin, and C. L. Reuss, editors. 1994. Rare plant communities of the conterminous United States: An initial survey. The Nature Conservancy. Arlington, VA. 620 pp.
- Olsvig, L. S. 1980. A comparative study of northeastern Pine Barrens vegetation. Ph.D. dissertation, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. 479 pp.
- Reschke, C. 1990. Ecological communities of New York State. New York Natural Heritage Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Latham, NY. 96 pp.