Print Report

CEGL005064 Juniperus horizontalis - Arctostaphylos uva-ursi - Juniperus communis Dune Dwarf-shrubland

Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Creeping Juniper - Kinnikinnick - Common Juniper Dune Dwarf-shrubland

Colloquial Name: Great Lakes Juniper Dune Dwarf-shrubland

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This dwarf-shrub dune community is found throughout the western Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada. Stands are found on flat-topped, windswept, stabilized dunes. The dwarf-shrubs form an open to closed mat layer. Dominant shrubs include Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Juniperus communis, and Juniperus horizontalis. Hudsonia tomentosa may also be present, along with a variety of other deciduous shrubs. Ammophila breviligulata and Schizachyrium scoparium are among the herbaceous species found here.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Type is dominated by evergreen shrubs. Deciduous stands dominated by willows are placed in ~Prunus pumila - (Ptelea trifoliata) Dune Shrubland (CEGL005075)$$. This type may be a minor component of other vegetation types, such as ~Ammophila breviligulata - (Schizachyrium scoparium) Grassland (CEGL005098)$$, or the Great Lakes Pine Barrens, ~Pinus banksiana - (Pinus resinosa) - Pinus strobus / Juniperus horizontalis Wooded Grassland (CEGL005125)$$, and it could conceivably be treated as a phase of CEGL005098.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available

Floristics: The dwarf-shrubs form an open to closed mat layer. Dominant shrubs include Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Juniperus communis, and Juniperus horizontalis. Hudsonia tomentosa may also be present, along with a variety of other deciduous shrubs. Ammophila breviligulata and Schizachyrium scoparium are among the herbaceous species found here (Curtis 1959, especially plates 61 and 62, White and Madany 1978, Bakowsky and Lee 1996).

Dynamics:  The open dunes are exposed to high winds that may prevent tree establishment. The dynamics driving the establishment of dwarf-shrubs in dunes is not entirely clear.
Environmental Description:  Stands are found on flat-topped, windswept, stabilized dunes.
Geographic Range: This dwarf-shrub dune community is found throughout dune areas of the western Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada, ranging from the shores of southern Michigan in Illinois, Indiana and Michigan northward to the shores of other Great Lakes, such as Lake Superior in Wisconsin.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  IL, IN?, MI, MN, ON, WI


Confidence Level: Moderate

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3G4

Greasons: No Data Available
Type Name Database Code Classification Code
Class 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class C02 2
Subclass 2.B Temperate & Boreal Grassland & Shrubland Subclass S18 2.B
Formation 2.B.4 Temperate to Polar Scrub & Herb Coastal Vegetation Formation F005 2.B.4
Division 2.B.4.Na Eastern North American Coastal Scrub & Herb Vegetation Division D026 2.B.4.Na
Macrogroup 2.B.4.Na.2 American Beachgrass - Sea-oats - Seaside Goldenrod Dune & Grassland Macrogroup M057 2.B.4.Na.2
Group 2.B.4.Na.2.d Creeping Juniper - American Beachgrass Coastal Dune & Grassland Group G089 2.B.4.Na.2.d
Alliance A3719 American Beachgrass - Juniper species Great Lakes Dune Grassland Alliance A3719 2.B.4.Na.2.d
Association CEGL005064 Creeping Juniper - Kinnikinnick - Common Juniper Dune Dwarf-shrubland CEGL005064 2.B.4.Na.2.d
Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Juniperus horizontalis - Arctostaphylos uva-ursi - Juniperus communis Dune Dwarf-shrubland (Faber-Langendoen 2001) [Lake Dune Juniper Shrub Subtype]
Concept Author(s): D. Faber-Langendoen (2001)

Author of Description: D. Faber-Langendoen

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 11-26-97
  • Bakowsky, W. D., and H. T. Lee. 1996. Vegetation communities of southern Ontario (draft). Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre and Southern Region STTU, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Peterborough, Ontario. 87 pp.
  • Curtis, J. T. 1959. The vegetation of Wisconsin: An ordination of plant communities. Reprinted in 1987. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 657 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.
  • Homoya, M. A., J. Aldrich, J. Bacone, L. Casebere, and T. Post. 1988. Indiana natural community classification. Indiana Natural Heritage Program, Indianapolis, IN. Unpublished manuscript.
  • Hop, K., S. Menard, J. Drake, S. Lubinski, and J. Dieck. 2010a. National Park Service Vegetation Inventory Program: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin. Natural Resource Report NPS/GLKN/NRR-2010/199. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO. 310 pp.
  • 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]
  • 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.
  • Minnesota DNR [Minnesota Department of Natural Resources]. 2003-2005a. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota. Three volumes: The Laurentian Mixed Forest Province (2003), The Eastern Broadleaf Forest Province (2005c), The Prairie Parkland and Tallgrass Aspen Parklands provinces (2005b). Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul.
  • Minnesota DNR [Minnesota Department of Natural Resources]. 2003. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota: The Laurentian Mixed Forest Province. Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul.
  • ONHIC [Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Unpublished data. Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre, Ministry of Natural Resources, Ontario, Canada.
  • 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]
  • White, J., and M. Madany. 1978. Classification of natural communities in Illinois. Pages 311-405 in: Natural Areas Inventory technical report: Volume I, survey methods and results. Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, Urbana, IL.