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CEGL003523 Quercus virginiana - (Juniperus virginiana) - Zanthoxylum clava-herculis / Sideroxylon lanuginosum Woodland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Live Oak - (Eastern Red-cedar) - Hercules''-club / Gum Bully Woodland
Colloquial Name: Gulf Coast Shell Midden Woodland
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: These are supratidal communities occurring on shell middens of Gulf Coast maritime areas; they receive storm tides and are often surrounded by marsh. The plants often form a dense, almost impenetrable shrub thicket or woodland. Little zonation is evident, except at the periphery of the midden area. Saline marsh edge species (Baccharis halimifolia, Borrichia frutescens, Morella cerifera, Iva frutescens) rim the shell middens. Some plants are sculpted and damaged by the prevailing southeasterly winds and coastal storms. The shell midden vegetation stands above and contrasts with the surrounding saline marsh. The most common trees are Quercus virginiana and Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana. Other trees include Celtis laevigata var. laevigata, Diospyros virginiana, Morus rubra, and Zanthoxylum clava-herculis. The understory is shrub-dominated and contains calciphilic species such as Aesculus pavia, Sideroxylon lanuginosum ssp. lanuginosum, Erythrina herbacea, Sabal minor, and Yucca aloifolia. A diverse collection of herbs is present, sometimes including grasses associated with adjacent marshes.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Sideroxylon lanuginosum is included in the name as a geographic indicator of the Gulf Coast and distinguishing the type from temperate shell middens on the south Atlantic Coast. Zanthoxylum clava-herculis is an environmental indicator of the high calcium substrate. In Louisiana, this association is likely restricted to eastern Louisiana (L. Smith pers. comm.). There is controversy over the identity of the Juniperus in maritime situations of the East Gulf Coastal Plain; it has traditionally been treated as Juniperus virginiana var. silicicola, but recent monographic studies state that Gulf Coast Juniperus virginiana west of Panhandle Florida is var. virginiana. Some examples may exhibit canopy closure that exceeds 60%. Canopy can be evergreen or mixed. Hydrology is near the conceptual boundary between tidally flooded, saturated, and upland.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The plants often form a dense, almost impenetrable shrub thicket or woodland. Little zonation is evident, except at the periphery of the midden area. Saline marsh edge species (Baccharis halimifolia, Borrichia frutescens, Morella cerifera (= Myrica cerifera), Iva frutescens, and Lycium carolinianum) rim the shell middens. Some plants are sculpted and damaged by the prevailing southeasterly winds and coastal storms. The shell midden vegetation stands above and contrasts with the surrounding saline marsh. The most common trees are Quercus virginiana, Celtis laevigata var. laevigata, and Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana. Other trees include Diospyros virginiana, Morus rubra, and Zanthoxylum clava-herculis. The understory is shrub-dominated and contains calciphilic species, such as Aesculus pavia, Sideroxylon lanuginosum ssp. lanuginosum, Lycium carolinianum, Erythrina herbacea, Morella cerifera, Sabal minor, and Yucca aloifolia. Woody vines may be prominent, including Nekemias arborea (= Ampelopsis arborea), Cissus trifoliata, and Toxicodendron radicans ssp. radicans. A diverse collection of herbs is present, some of which behave in a weedy fashion. These include Chaerophyllum tainturieri, Elymus virginicus, Erigeron philadelphicus, Eupatorium serotinum, Gaura angustifolia, Panicum virgatum, Solidago sempervirens var. mexicana, Spartina patens, Teucrium canadense, and Vicia ludoviciana (Eleuterius and Otvos 1979, NatureServe Ecology unpubl. data 1999, R. Wieland pers. comm.).
Dynamics: This community is altered or destroyed by hurricanes and extreme storm events.
Environmental Description: These are supratidal communities occurring on shell middens of Gulf Coast maritime areas; they receive storm tides (R. Wieland pers. comm.) and are often surrounded by marsh.
Geographic Range: This community is known from the Gulf Coast of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. It or similar vegetation may also occur in Texas.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: AL, FL, LA, MS, TX?
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689777
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2G3
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.1 Warm Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F018 | 1.B.1 |
| Division | 1.B.1.Na Southeastern North American Forest & Woodland Division | D006 | 1.B.1.Na |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.1.Na.2 Live Oak - Texas Live Oak - Darlington Oak Forest Macrogroup | M885 | 1.B.1.Na.2 |
| Group | 1.B.1.Na.2.a Live Oak - Pignut Hickory - Cabbage Palmetto Coastal Forest Group | G798 | 1.B.1.Na.2.a |
| Alliance | A3192 Live Oak - Cabbage Palmetto Coastal Evergreen Forest Alliance | A3192 | 1.B.1.Na.2.a |
| Association | CEGL003523 Live Oak - (Eastern Red-cedar) - Hercules''-club / Gum Bully Woodland | CEGL003523 | 1.B.1.Na.2.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: < IB8b. Temperate Shell Midden Woodland (Allard 1990) [one of two parts]
? Indian Shell Mounds (Dorroh 1971)
? Indian Shell Mounds (Dorroh 1971)
- ALNHP [Alabama Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data on file. Alabama Natural Heritage Program, Auburn University.
- 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.
- Dorroh, R. J. 1971. The vegetation of Indian shell mounds and rings of the South Carolina coast. M.S. thesis, University of South Carolina, Columbia. 68 pp.
- Eleuterius, L. N., and E. G. Otvos, Jr. 1979. Floristic and geologic aspects of Indian middens in salt marshes of Hancock County, Mississippi. Sida 8:102-112.
- MSNHP [Mississippi Natural Heritage Program]. 2006. Ecological communities of Mississippi. Museum of Natural Science, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, Jackson, MS. 9 pp.
- NatureServe Ecology - Southeastern United States. No date. Unpublished data. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Smith, Latimore M. Personal communication. Natural Heritage Program Ecologist. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Natural Heritage Program, Baton Rouge.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Wieland, Ron G. Personal communication. Ecologist, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, Mississippi Natural Heritage Program, Jackson.