Print Report

CEGL005126 Pinus banksiana - Thuja occidentalis - Picea glauca / Juniperus communis Woodland

Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available


Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Jack Pine - Northern White-cedar - White Spruce / Common Juniper Woodland

Colloquial Name: Mixed Conifer / Common Juniper Limestone Woodland

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: The mixed conifer / common juniper alvar woodland type occurs scattered through the Great Lakes region in the United States and Canada, from southern Ontario and northern Michigan, to northern New York. Stands occur on shallow soils over flat limestone or dolostone outcrops (pavements). The trees form a partial canopy with 25-60% cover. The tree canopy consists of a variable mixture of Picea glauca, Thuja occidentalis, Pinus banksiana, Abies balsamea, and Pinus strobus. The understory of this woodland is a mosaic of shrubby patches, exposed pavement, and grassy patches. The most abundant shrub is Juniperus communis; other characteristic shrubs include Juniperus horizontalis, Shepherdia canadensis, and Arctostaphylos uva-ursi. Characteristic herbs include Trichostema brachiatum, Carex crawei, Packera paupercula, Carex eburnea, Carex richardsonii, and Sporobolus vaginiflorus. Areas of exposed limestone or dolostone pavement are common, usually with a cover of mosses such as Tortella spp. and Schistidium spp., lichens such as Cladonia rangiferina and Peltigera canina, and rock surface algae such as Gloeocapsa alpina. This community is closely related to juniper alvar shrubland, and may represent a later successional stage of that community. The main difference between mixed conifer / common juniper alvar woodland and juniper alvar grassland is the higher cover of trees (over 5 m tall) in the mixed conifer / common juniper alvar woodland.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: This type is not as well documented as other alvars and its distribution may be broader than indicated here. This community is closely related to the Juniper Alvar Shrubland, ~Juniperus communis - (Juniperus virginiana) - Rhus aromatica - Viburnum rafinesqueanum / Oligoneuron album Shrubland (CEGL005212)$$, and may represent a later successional stage of that community. The main difference between this type and the Juniper Alvar Shrubland is the higher cover of trees (over 5 m tall) in this type (Reschke et al. 1998).

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available

Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available

Floristics: The trees form a partial canopy with 25-60% cover. The tree canopy consists of a variable mixture of Picea glauca, Thuja occidentalis, Pinus banksiana, Abies balsamea, and Pinus strobus. The understory of this woodland is a mosaic of shrubby patches, exposed pavement, and grassy patches. The most abundant shrub is Juniperus communis; other characteristic shrubs include Juniperus horizontalis, Shepherdia canadensis, and Arctostaphylos uva-ursi. Characteristic herbs include Trichostema brachiatum, Carex crawei, Packera paupercula (= Senecio pauperculus), Carex eburnea, Carex richardsonii, and Sporobolus vaginiflorus. Areas of exposed limestone or dolostone pavement are common, usually with a cover of mosses such as Tortella spp. and Schistidium spp., lichens such as Cladonia rangiferina and Peltigera canina, and rock surface algae such as Gloeocapsa alpina (Reschke et al. 1998).

Dynamics:  No Data Available

Environmental Description:  Stands occur on shallow soils over flat limestone or dolostone outcrops (pavements) (Reschke et al. 1998).

Geographic Range: This mixed conifer / common juniper alvar woodland type is scattered throughout the Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada, from southern Ontario and northern Michigan to northern New York.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  MI, NY, ON, QC?, WI




Confidence Level: Moderate

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available

Grank: G2?

Greasons: No Data Available


Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available

Synonomy: = Pinus banksiana - Thuja occidentalis - Picea glauca / Juniperus communis Woodland (Reschke et al. 1998)
= Pinus banksiana - Thuja occidentalis - Picea glauca / Juniperus communis Woodland (Faber-Langendoen 2001)

Concept Author(s): C. Reschke et al. (1998)

Author of Description: C. Reschke

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 04-22-99

  • CDPNQ [Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec]. No date. Unpublished data. Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec, Québec.
  • 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.
  • 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.).
  • 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]
  • 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.
  • Reschke, C., R. Reid, J. Jones, T. Feeney, and H. Potter, on behalf of the Alvar Working Group. 1998. Conserving Great Lakes Alvars. Final Technical Report of the International Alvar Conservation Initiative. The Nature Conservancy, Great Lakes Program, Chicago, IL. 119 pp. plus 4 appendices.