Print Report
CEGL007363 Quercus phellos - Quercus similis / Crataegus marshallii - Crataegus spathulata / Chasmanthium laxum Wet Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Willow Oak - Bottomland Post Oak / Parsley Hawthorn - Littlehip Hawthorn / Slender Woodoats Wet Forest
Colloquial Name: West Gulf Coastal Plain Saline Flatwoods Oak Forest
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This West Gulf Coastal Plain flatwoods forest is dominated by Quercus phellos and Quercus similis. It occurs over somewhat poorly drained, predominantly acidic, silt loams overlying clays on secondary or "high" stream terraces deposited during the Pleistocene. These sites are periodically flooded and ponded with standing water, but overbank flooding occurs only rarely. This type is known from Louisiana and Texas, and may occur in southwestern Arkansas. Pinus taeda often occurs along the periphery of most examples and may be a significant component of the canopy in disturbed examples. Several species of Crataegus, including Crataegus viridis, Crataegus opaca, Crataegus marshallii, Crataegus spathulata, and Crataegus brachyacantha, are characteristic of both the subcanopy and understory. The understory of this community is typically patchy, with large open spaces occurring between dense patches of shrubs. The short-shrub stratum is often characterized by Sabal minor. The cover of the ground layer is typically sparse but ranges from 50-75% cover in areas with shorter hydroperiods. It is often characterized and dominated by Chasmanthium laxum. Some of the soils on which this community occurs, including the Guyton, Diboll, and Fuller series, are Natraqualfs (i.e., soils with high salt content).
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Examples are also found on the Pleistocene terraces on the Sabine, Davy Crockett, and Angelina national forests in eastern Texas (R. Turner pers. comm.). In eastern Texas this association often co-occurs with ~(Quercus laurifolia) / Crataegus opaca - Crataegus viridis Swamp Forest (CEGL007386)$$. This community is known from examples at Devils Swamp (Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana), the Angelina National Forest (Cook Mountain Geologic Formation, San Augustine County), and on the southern portion of the Kisatchie District of the Kisatchie National Forest.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This forest is dominated by Quercus phellos and Quercus similis. Other canopy components may include Quercus pagoda and Quercus nigra. Pinus taeda often occurs along the periphery of most examples and may be a significant component of the canopy in disturbed examples. The subcanopy may include Quercus similis, Nyssa biflora, Ulmus alata, and several species of Crataegus, including Crataegus viridis, Crataegus opaca, Crataegus marshallii, Crataegus spathulata, and Crataegus brachyacantha, which are also characteristic of the shrub stratum. The patchy understory may also include Ilex decidua, Diospyros virginiana, Gleditsia triacanthos, Ilex vomitoria, and is sometimes dominated by Sabal minor. Other components of the sparse to dense ground cover include Carex louisianica, Dichanthelium boscii, Panicum rigidulum var. rigidulum, and Sphagnum lescurii.
Dynamics: Periodic flooding, insect and pathogen outbreaks, and infrequent blowdowns are likely the most important/only natural disturbance vectors in this community. This forest probably represents a topographic/edaphic climax. When it is disturbed or cut, species such as Pinus taeda and Acer rubrum become much more abundant or dominant.
Environmental Description: This forest occurs over somewhat poorly drained, predominantly acidic, silt loams overlying clays. Soils include the Anacoco series in Louisiana, where the community occurs on secondary stream terrace flats which receive periodic flooding and ponding. In eastern Texas, this association typically occurs on Pleistocene terraces that have been reworked by wind into mounds and depressions occurring at very localized scales. Some of these soils, including the Guyton, Diboll, and Fuller series, are Natraqualfs (with high salt content). Periodic flooding occurs in these areas but is not typically related to overbank flooding.
Geographic Range: This forest association is known from western Louisiana and eastern Texas; it may also occur in adjacent southwestern Arkansas.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: AR, LA, TX
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689433
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3?
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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation | F026 | 1.B.3 |
| Division | 1.B.3.Nb Southeastern North American Flooded & Swamp Forest Division | D062 | 1.B.3.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.3.Nb.2 Swamp Tupelo - Swamp Chestnut Oak - Bald-cypress Basin Swamp & Flatwoods Macrogroup | M033 | 1.B.3.Nb.2 |
| Group | 1.B.3.Nb.2.b Laurel Oak - Willow Oak - Loblolly Pine Wet Flatwoods Group | G130 | 1.B.3.Nb.2.b |
| Alliance | A4190 Loblolly Pine - Laurel Oak - Willow Oak West Gulf Coastal Plain Wet Flatwoods Forest Alliance | A4190 | 1.B.3.Nb.2.b |
| Association | CEGL007363 Willow Oak - Bottomland Post Oak / Parsley Hawthorn - Littlehip Hawthorn / Slender Woodoats Wet Forest | CEGL007363 | 1.B.3.Nb.2.b |
Concept Lineage: merged
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? IIA6a. Willow Oak Forest (Allard 1990)
? Laurel Oak - Willow Oak (64) (USFS 1988)
? Willow Oak - Water Oak - Diamondleaf (Laurel) Oak: 88 (Eyre 1980)
< Willow Oak / Justicia Clayey Wet Upland Depressions (Turner et al. 1999)
? Laurel Oak - Willow Oak (64) (USFS 1988)
? Willow Oak - Water Oak - Diamondleaf (Laurel) Oak: 88 (Eyre 1980)
< Willow Oak / Justicia Clayey Wet Upland Depressions (Turner et al. 1999)
- Allard, D. J. 1990. Southeastern United States ecological community classification. Interim report, Version 1.2. The Nature Conservancy, Southeast Regional Office, Chapel Hill, NC. 96 pp.
- Eyre, F. H., editor. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Society of American Foresters, Washington, DC. 148 pp.
- Kerr, A., Jr., B. J. Griffis, J. W. Powell, J. P. Edwards, R. L Venson, J. K. Long, and W. W. Kilpatrick. 1980. Soil survey of Rapides Parish, Louisiana. USDA Soil Conservation Service and Forest Service, and Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station. 87 pp. plus maps.
- LNHP [Louisiana Natural Heritage Program]. 2009. Natural communities of Louisiana. Louisiana Natural Heritage Program, Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries, Baton Rouge. 46 pp. [http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/page_wildlife/6776-Rare%20Natural%20Communities/LA_NAT_COM.pdf]
- NatureServe Ecology - Southeastern United States. No date. Unpublished data. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Thomas, R. D., and C. M. Allen. 1993. Atlas of the vascular flora of Louisiana. Volume I: Ferns & fern allies, conifers, & monocotyledons. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Natural Heritage Program and The Nature Conservancy, Louisiana Field Office, Baton Rouge. 218 pp.
- Turner, R. L., J. E. Van Kley, L. S. Smith, and R. E. Evans. 1999. Ecological classification system for the national forests and adjacent areas of the West Gulf Coastal Plain. The Nature Conservancy, Nacogdoches, TX. 95 pp. plus appendices.
- USFS [U.S. Forest Service]. 1988. Silvicultural examination and prescription field book. USDA Forest Service, Southern Region. Atlanta, GA. 35 pp.