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CEGL005887 Betula glandulosa / Carex spp. Wet Shrubland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Resin Birch / Sedge species Wet Shrubland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association is found on the west side of Glacier National Park in Montana, and is also known from several low-elevation sites in Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta. This association is found at 1135 to 1540 m (3720-5049 feet) elevation on basin floors. Sites are flat to gently inclined peatlands. Soils are organic (sedge peat), seasonally flooded to saturated, and very poorly drained. Betula glandulosa dominates the shrub canopy in all stands, with up to 70% cover. Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda and Salix serissima occur less frequently with less than 10% cover. Salix drummondiana, along with several other tall shrubs and short Picea engelmannii, occur with very low constancy. Carex species characterize the herbaceous understory, individually having between 20 and 60% constancy. The Carex species with the highest average cover are Carex interior, Carex lasiocarpa, Carex limosa, and Carex aquatilis. Stands can contain a moisture gradient with Betula glandulosa on slightly higher and better drained ground, with a Carex lasiocarpa-dominated fen or other Carex species in the lowest and wettest area. Trichophorum cespitosum is infrequent but can have high cover (55%). Forbs common in peatlands are usually present, such as Menyanthes trifoliata, Comarum palustre, and Petasites frigidus var. sagittatus. Most stands are shallowly flooded with an average moss and lichen cover of only 20%, while the drier stands have high ground cover of moss and lichens.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: No Data Available
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Betula glandulosa dominates the shrub canopy in all stands, with up to 70% cover. Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda and Salix serissima occur less frequently with less than 10% cover. Salix drummondiana, along with several other tall shrubs and short Picea engelmannii, occur with very low constancy. Carex species characterize the herbaceous understory, individually having between 20 and 60% constancy. The Carex species with the highest average cover are Carex interior, Carex lasiocarpa, Carex limosa, and Carex aquatilis. Stands can contain a moisture gradient with Betula glandulosa on slightly higher and better drained ground, with a Carex lasiocarpa-dominated fen or other Carex species in the lowest and wettest area. Trichophorum cespitosum is infrequent but can have high cover (55%). Forbs common in peatlands are usually present, such as Menyanthes trifoliata, Comarum palustre, and Petasites frigidus var. sagittatus (= Petasites sagittatus). Most stands are shallowly flooded with an average moss and lichen cover of only 20%, while the drier stands have high ground cover of moss and lichens.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association is found at 1135 to 1540 m (3720-5049 feet) elevation on basin floors. Sites are flat to gently inclined peatlands. Soils are organic (sedge peat), seasonally flooded to saturated, and very poorly drained.
Geographic Range: This association is found on the west side of Glacier National Park in Montana, and is also known from several low-elevation sites in Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: AB, MT
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.728694
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass | S44 | 2.C |
| Formation | 2.C.4 Temperate to Polar Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Formation | F013 | 2.C.4 |
| Division | 2.C.4.Nb Western North American Temperate Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Division | D031 | 2.C.4.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 2.C.4.Nb.5 Sitka Alder - Booth''s Willow / Northwest Territory Sedge Montane Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Macrogroup | M893 | 2.C.4.Nb.5 |
| Group | 2.C.4.Nb.5.d Willow species - Alder species - Water Birch Riparian & Seep Shrubland Group | G527 | 2.C.4.Nb.5.d |
| Alliance | A3770 Wolf''s Willow - Short-fruit Willow - Resin Birch Wet Shrubland Alliance | A3770 | 2.C.4.Nb.5.d |
| Association | CEGL005887 Resin Birch / Sedge species Wet Shrubland | CEGL005887 | 2.C.4.Nb.5.d |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Betula nana / (Carex aquatilis var. dives) (Murray 2000)
= Betula nana / Carex spp. Shrubland (Hop et al. 2007)
= Betula nana / Carex spp. Shrubland (Hop et al. 2007)
- ANHIC [Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Community database files. Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Parks and Protected Areas Division, Alberta Community Development, Edmonton.
- Hop, K., M. Reid, J. Dieck, S. Lubinski, and S. Cooper. 2007. U.S. Geological Survey-National Park Service Vegetation Mapping Program: Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. U.S. Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, La Crosse, WI. 131 pp. plus Appendices A-L.
- Murray, M. P. 2000. Wetland plant associations of the western hemlock zone in the central coastal and westslope Cascade Mountains. Unpublished report, Oregon Natural Heritage Program, Portland, OR. 82 pp. [http://www.natureserve.org/nhp/us/or/nw_or_wetlands.pdf]
- Reid, M. S., S. V. Cooper, and G. Kittel. 2004. Vegetation classification of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. Final report for USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program, International Peace Park Mapping Project. NatureServe, Arlington VA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.