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CEGL004283 Selaginella tortipila - Krigia montana - Houstonia longifolia Rocky Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Twisted-hair Spikemoss - Mountain Dwarf-dandelion - Longleaf Summer Bluet Rocky Grassland
Colloquial Name: Southern Appalachian Spikemoss Granitic Dome
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association is found on granitic exfoliation domes and rock faces at intermediate to high elevations in the Southern Blue Ridge of the Carolinas and Georgia. This association occurs on exposed, often south-facing sites, with smooth, exfoliation surfaces and few cracks or crevices for soil accumulation. These rock surfaces are typically steep to vertical but may include flat areas. This association typically occurs at elevations from 1067 to 1372 m (3500-4500 feet) but may be found at slightly higher or lower elevations. This community occurs in large patches, ranging in size from 10 to over 100 acres, with vegetation strongly dominated by shallow-soil herb mats over solid rock. These shallow mats can have 10-90% coverage and are interspersed with areas of bare rock, patches of lichens (e.g., Cladonia spp., Cladonia furcata), and mosses (e.g., Grimmia laevigata). Woody species from adjacent woodlands and shrublands may be scattered components, rooted in deeper soil pockets, older stable vegetation mats, and around the outcrop margins. Selaginella tortipila is almost always a major dominant of the vegetation mats. Other characteristic herbaceous species are Hypericum buckleii, Packera millefolium, Carex biltmoreana, Carex umbellata, Solidago simulans, Danthonia epilis, Danthonia compressa, Deschampsia flexuosa, Schizachyrium scoparium, Krigia montana, Trichophorum cespitosum, Houstonia longifolia, and Saxifraga michauxii. Woody species can include Leiophyllum buxifolium, Quercus rubra, Pinus virginiana, Pinus rigida, Kalmia latifolia, Vaccinium spp., Gaylussacia baccata, Rhododendron catawbiense, Kalmia latifolia, and Rhododendron carolinianum.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Granitic dome communities are also known from the Piedmont of North Carolina and Georgia. The Piedmont communities are more xeric and differ floristically from those described here, lacking species characteristic of the mountains such as Carex misera, Carex biltmoreana, Trichophorum cespitosum, Hypericum buckleii, Packera millefolium, and Leiophyllum buxifolium. Occurrences of this community may have structural and floristic similarities to ~Selaginella rupestris - Schizachyrium scoparium - Hypericum gentianoides - Bulbostylis capillaris Rocky Grassland (CEGL007690)$$ which typically occurs at lower elevations (below 915 m [3000 feet]) and contains a suite of species not found at higher elevations. ~Carex biltmoreana - Pycnanthemum spp. - Krigia montana Grassland (CEGL004523)$$ may be compositionally similar to this association but is more vegetated and occurs as small patches (less than 10 acres) within a forested matrix.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This community occurs in large patches, ranging in size from 10 to over 100 acres, with vegetation strongly dominated by shallow-soil herb mats over solid rock. These shallow mats can have 10-90% coverage and are interspersed with areas of bare rock, patches of lichens (e.g., Cladonia spp. (= Cladina spp.), Cladonia furcata), and mosses (e.g., Grimmia laevigata). Woody species from adjacent woodlands and shrublands may be scattered components, rooted in deeper soil pockets, older stable vegetation mats, and around the outcrop margins. Selaginella tortipila is almost always a major dominant of the vegetation mats. Other characteristic herbaceous species are Hypericum buckleii, Packera millefolium (= Senecio millefolium), Carex biltmoreana, Carex umbellata, Solidago simulans, Danthonia epilis (= Danthonia sericea var. epilis), Danthonia compressa, Deschampsia flexuosa, Schizachyrium scoparium, Krigia montana, Trichophorum cespitosum (= Scirpus cespitosus), Houstonia longifolia (= var. glabra), and Saxifraga michauxii. Woody species can include Leiophyllum buxifolium, Quercus rubra, Pinus virginiana, Pinus rigida, Kalmia latifolia, Vaccinium spp., Gaylussacia baccata, Rhododendron catawbiense, Kalmia latifolia, and Rhododendron carolinianum.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association is found on granitic exfoliation domes and rock faces at intermediate to high elevations in the Southern Blue Ridge of the Carolinas and Georgia. This association occurs on exposed, often south-facing sites, with smooth, exfoliation surfaces and few cracks or crevices for soil accumulation. These rock surfaces are typically steep to vertical but may include flat areas. This association typically occurs at elevations from 1067 to 1372 m (3500-4500 feet) but may be found at slightly higher or lower elevations.
Geographic Range: This community occurs at intermediate to high elevations in the Southern Blue Ridge of the Carolinas and Georgia.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: GA, NC, SC, TN?
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689832
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2G3
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.2 Temperate Grassland & Shrubland Formation | F012 | 2.B.2 |
| Division | 2.B.2.Nc Eastern North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D024 | 2.B.2.Nc |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nc.1 Catawba Rosebay / Michaux''s Saxifrage - Flattened Oatgrass Felsic & Mafic Scrub & Grassland Macrogroup | M506 | 2.B.2.Nc.1 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nc.1.d Wretched Sedge - Michaux''s Saxifrage - Highbush Blueberry Appalachian Rocky Outcrop Group | G670 | 2.B.2.Nc.1.d |
| Alliance | A3961 Rock Spikemoss - Twisted-hair Spikemoss - Little Bluestem Rocky Grassland Alliance | A3961 | 2.B.2.Nc.1.d |
| Association | CEGL004283 Twisted-hair Spikemoss - Mountain Dwarf-dandelion - Longleaf Summer Bluet Rocky Grassland | CEGL004283 | 2.B.2.Nc.1.d |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Selaginella tortipila / Carex umbellata outcrop community (Wiser 1993)
= Selaginella tortipila / Carex umbellata outcrop community (Wiser et al. 1996)
< IE4c. Southern Appalachian High Elevation Granitic Dome (Allard 1990)
= Selaginella tortipila / Carex umbellata outcrop community (Wiser et al. 1996)
< IE4c. Southern Appalachian High Elevation Granitic Dome (Allard 1990)
- 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.
- GNHP [Georgia Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data. Georgia Natural Heritage Program, Wildlife Resources Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Social Circle.
- NatureServe Ecology - Southeastern United States. No date. Unpublished data. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Nelson, J. B. 1986. The natural communities of South Carolina: Initial classification and description. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Columbia, SC. 55 pp.
- Peet, R. K., T. R. Wentworth, M. P. Schafale, and A.S. Weakley. No date. Unpublished data of the North Carolina Vegetation Survey. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
- Schafale, M. P. 2012. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina, 4th Approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.
- Schafale, M. P., and A. S. Weakley. 1990. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina. Third approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh. 325 pp.
- Schafale, Mike P. Personal communication. Ecologist, North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Wiser, S. K. 1993. Vegetation of high-elevation rock outcrops of the Southern Appalachians: Composition, environmental relationships, and biogeography of communities and rare species. Ph.D. dissertation, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 271 pp.
- Wiser, S. K., R. K. Peet, and P. S. White. 1996. High-elevation rock outcrop vegetation of the southern Appalachian Mountains. Journal of Vegetation Science 7:703-722.