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CEGL002218 Uniola paniculata - (Panicum amarum) - Croton punctatus Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Sea-oats - (Bitter Panicgrass) - Gulf Croton Grassland
Colloquial Name: Sea-oats - Bitter Panicgrass Tallgrass Prairie
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is a coastal beach or dune grassland community of the Gulf Coast of Texas. Uniola paniculata is typically dominant or codominant with Croton punctatus, Heterotheca subaxillaris, and Ipomoea imperati. Associated species that may have high cover include Chamaecrista fasciculata and Paspalum monostachyum. This vegetation occupies excessively drained sands on partially stabilized dunes of the coastal barrier islands and patches of mainland Gulf shoreline. This vegetation grades into Schizachyrium littorale - Paspalum monostachyum-dominated grasslands on the barrier flat.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: In Texas, Uniola paniculata is described as the most important component of the Sea Oats-Bitter Panicum Series, but it is "replaced along the upper coast by Panicum amarum" (Diamond 1993). The lower-energy shoreline grasslands of Louisiana which lack a substantial component of Uniola paniculata are accommodated in ~Panicum amarum - Paspalum monostachyum Grassland (CEGL004970)$$ in the ~Schizachyrium littorale - Paspalum monostachyum - Panicum amarum Texas Coastal Grassland Alliance (A1200)$$. L. Smith (pers. comm.) states that "very few if any dunes in Louisiana are dominated by, or even have, Uniola paniculata." Apparently this zone is occupied primarily by Spartina patens, Panicum amarum, Paspalum vaginatum, (Schizachyrium maritimum), and Sporobolus virginicus.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This community of the Gulf Coast of Texas occurs west of the distribution of Schizachyrium maritimum. This vegetation is dominated by Uniola paniculata, along with Croton punctatus and Ipomoea imperati (= Ipomoea stolonifera) (Barbour et al. 1987). Other important species that may at times assume codominance in this vegetation type are Chamaecrista fasciculata (= Cassia fasciculata), Heterotheca subaxillaris, Sesuvium portulacastrum, Ipomoea pes-caprae, Oenothera drummondii, Panicum amarum, Paspalum monostachyum, and Spartina patens. This vegetation grades into Schizachyrium littorale (= Schizachyrium scoparium ssp. littorale) - Paspalum monostachyum-dominated grasslands on the barrier flat.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This dune grassland community occurs almost exclusively on sandy, unstable, droughty substrates (Typic Quartzipsamments) with no soil profile development. Eolian processes cause active sand deposition and erosion. The sand substrate is usually visible, and litter accumulation from plant debris is nearly absent. This community generally occurs on foredunes that receive the force of wind and salt spray but is beyond the influence of most storm tides. The effects of nearly continuous salt spray exclude most other species and maintain the vegetation type. Barbour et al. (1987) found that soils associated with this type were finer-textured and much higher in cation exchange than related beaches in both southwest Florida and the panhandle region of Florida.
Geographic Range: This association is restricted to coastal Texas.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: TX
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689954
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3?
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.a Wax-myrtle - Sea-oats - Shore Little Bluestem Dune & Grassland Group | G494 | 2.B.4.Na.2.a |
| Alliance | A1199 Sea-oats - Bitter Panicgrass Dune Grassland Alliance | A1199 | 2.B.4.Na.2.a |
| Association | CEGL002218 Sea-oats - (Bitter Panicgrass) - Gulf Croton Grassland | CEGL002218 | 2.B.4.Na.2.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Sea Oats-Bitter Panicum Series (Diamond 1993)
- Barbour, M. G., M. Rejmanek, A. F. Johnson, and B. M. Pavlik. 1987. Beach vegetation and plant distribution patterns along the northern Gulf of Mexico. Phytocoenologia 15:201-234.
- Carls, E. G., R. I. Lonard, and D. B. Fenn. 1991. Notes on the vegetation and flora of North Padre Island, Texas. The Southwestern Naturalist 36(1):121-125.
- Diamond, D. D. 1993. Classification of the plant communities of Texas (series level). Unpublished document. Texas Natural Heritage Program, Austin. 25 pp.
- 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.