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CEGL002778 Tsuga heterophylla - Thuja plicata / Vaccinium (alaskaense, ovalifolium) / Hylocomium splendens Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Western Hemlock - Western Red-cedar / (Alaska Blueberry, Oval-leaf Blueberry) / Splendid Feathermoss Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This low-productivity coniferous community is predominantly on shedding upper slope and crest positions. It has a potentially wide environmental distribution: from sea level to 850 m elevation or higher in the montane (lower in the north along the mainland coast); from western to northern Vancouver Island, and along the windward Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward to Portland Canal in association with the Very Wet Maritime Coastal Western Hemlock Subzone (CWHvm). The mostly well-drained soils are poor-quality thin veneers of freely draining organic materials, as well as thin veneers of colluvial or morainal materials directly over ridged or hummocky bedrock. Tsuga heterophylla and Thuja plicata, or Tsuga heterophylla and Callitropsis nootkatensis at higher montane elevations, dominate the relatively open poor-productivity canopy. The moderately developed shrub layer is, at least at lower elevations, dominated by Gaultheria shallon, with variable coverage of Tsuga heterophylla and Thuja plicata regeneration. The poorly developed herb layer includes scattered Cornus canadensis, Blechnum spicant, Goodyera oblongifolia, Linnaea borealis, and Listera cordata. Hylocomium splendens and Rhytidiadelphus loreus dominate the moderately developed moss layer. These sites are distinguished by their upper slope or crest position, poor tree growth with a general absence of Pinus contorta var. contorta, poor nutrient status, and a normally good coverage of Gaultheria shallon. This community is differentiated from an even drier and poorer site by the absence, or only very low coverage, of the driest site indicators such as Cladina spp. and Cladonia spp.
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: This open, and sometimes scrubby, coniferous community occurs widely in association with the windward and northern Vancouver Island Ranges and the western slopes of the Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward into southeastern Alaska. Tsuga heterophylla and Thuja plicata, or Tsuga heterophylla and Callitropsis nootkatensis at higher montane elevations, dominate the relatively open poor-productivity canopy. Increasing amounts of Pseudotsuga menziesii appear in more southerly latitudes where fire or open exposure have encouraged it. The moderately developed shrub layer is, at least at lower elevations, dominated by Gaultheria shallon and variable coverage of Tsuga heterophylla and Thuja plicata regeneration. Other shrub species present include Vaccinium alaskaense, Vaccinium parvifolium, and Menziesia ferruginea. The poorly developed herb layer includes scattered Cornus canadensis, Blechnum spicant, Goodyera oblongifolia, Linnaea borealis, and Listera cordata. The ever-present Hylocomium splendens and Rhytidiadelphus loreus dominate the moderately developed moss layer.
Dynamics: Unless growing in wind-protected conditions, windthrow and breakage tend to keep these forests from becoming or remaining very old. Tsuga heterophylla, the leading tree species, is vulnerable to wind breakage and also to uprooting given the shallow soils. If wind exposure is limited, then stand replacement is more gradual, through the process of the mortality of individual or small numbers of canopy trees. Where windthrow is not pervasive, the age composition of these potentially old edaphic climax forests is uneven. With the exception of those geographic areas in the rainshadow of the Vancouver Island Ranges or the Olympic Mountains, where summer-dry conditions prevail, fire is not a viable disturbance factor. Although fire is by no means common or frequent, those sites in locations most vulnerable to fire tend to have a major component of Pseudotsuga menziesii in their canopies. Hemlock dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium tsugense) is a moderate threat to Tsuga heterophylla.
Environmental Description: This low-productivity coniferous community is predominantly on shedding upper slope and crest positions from sea level to 850 m elevation or higher in the montane (lower in the north along the mainland coast); from western to northern Vancouver Island, and along the windward Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward to Portland Canal. The mostly well-drained soils are poor-quality thin veneers of freely draining organic materials, as well as thin veneers of colluvial or morainal materials directly over ridged or hummocky bedrock.
Geographic Range: This community occurs in British Columbia within variants of the Very Wet Maritime subzone of the Coastal Western Hemlock zone (CWHvm1 and CWHvm2), which occupy a total of 34976 km2. It has a potentially wide range from western to northern Vancouver Island and along the windward Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward to Portland Canal.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: BC, WA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.777940
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3
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.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Nd Vancouverian Forest & Woodland Division | D192 | 1.B.2.Nd |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nd.3 Western Hemlock - Sitka Spruce - Redwood Rainforest Macrogroup | M024 | 1.B.2.Nd.3 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nd.3.f Western Hemlock - Sitka Spruce North-Central Pacific Rainforest Group | G751 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.f |
| Alliance | A3610 Western Hemlock - Western Red-cedar / Deer Fern Rich Mesic Forest Alliance | A3610 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.f |
| Association | CEGL002778 Western Hemlock - Western Red-cedar / (Alaska Blueberry, Oval-leaf Blueberry) / Splendid Feathermoss Forest | CEGL002778 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.f |
Concept Lineage: This broad type (CEGL000100 ) is being split into many new types.
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Tsuga heterophylla / Gaultheria shallon (Topik et al. 1986)
? Tsuga heterophylla / Gaultheria shallon (Henderson et al. 1989)
= Tsuga heterophylla-Thuja plicata/Vaccinium (alaskaense and ovalifolium)-Gaultheria shallon/Hylocomium splendens (Meidinger et al. 2005) [PNWCOAST_272]
> CWH vm 1 /03 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 1 /03 (Banner et al. 1993)
> CWH vm 2 /03 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /03 (Banner et al. 1993)
? Western hemlock / salal (TSHE/GASH) (Hemstrom and Logan 1986)
? Tsuga heterophylla / Gaultheria shallon (Henderson et al. 1989)
= Tsuga heterophylla-Thuja plicata/Vaccinium (alaskaense and ovalifolium)-Gaultheria shallon/Hylocomium splendens (Meidinger et al. 2005) [PNWCOAST_272]
> CWH vm 1 /03 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 1 /03 (Banner et al. 1993)
> CWH vm 2 /03 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /03 (Banner et al. 1993)
? Western hemlock / salal (TSHE/GASH) (Hemstrom and Logan 1986)
- BCCDC [British Columbia Conservation Data Centre]. 2018. Unpublished data on file at British Columbia Conservation Data Center. Ministry of Environment, Victoria.
- BCMFRB [British Columbia Ministry of Forests Research Branch]. 2003a. Vegetation classification hierarchy: BECMaster May 2003. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Victoria, BC.
- BCMFRB [British Columbia Ministry of Forests Research Branch]. 2005a. Vegetation classification hierarchy: BECMaster 2005. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Victoria, BC.
- BCMFRB [British Columbia Ministry of Forests Research Branch]. 2005b. Vegetation and environment plot data: BECMaster January 2005. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Victoria, BC.
- Banner, A., W. MacKenzie, S. Haeussler, S. Thomson, J. Pojar, and R. Trowbridge. 1993. A field guide to site identification and interpretation for the Prince Rupert Forest Region. Ministry of Forests Research Program. Victoria, BC. Parts 1 and 2. Land Management Handbook Number 26.
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- Hemstrom, M. A., and S. E. Logan. 1986. Plant association and management guide Siuslaw National Forest. Report R6-Ecol 220-1986a. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland, OR. 121 pp.
- Henderson, J. A., D. A. Peter, R. Lesher, and D. C. Shaw. 1989. Forested plant associations of the Olympic National Forest. R6-ECOL-TP-001-88. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland, OR. 502 pp.
- Lewis, T. 2003. The ecosystems of Block 6, Tree-Farm License 25, Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia. Internal Report for Western Forest Products, Inc. 137 pp.
- Lewis, T. 2005. The ecosystems of northern Vancouver Island. Internal Report for Western Forest Products, Inc. [in preparation]
- Lewis, T., and A. Inselberg. 2005. The ecosystems of Block 5, Tree-Farm License 25, British Columbia. Internal Report for Western Forest Products, Inc.
- Meidinger, D., C. Chappell, C. Cadrin, G. Kittel, C. McCain, K. Boggs, J. Kagan, G. Cushon, A. Banner, and T. DeMeo. 2005. International Vegetation Classification of the Pacific Northwest: International correlation of temperate coastal forest plant associations of Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska. Contributors: B.C. Ministry of Forests, USDA Forest Service, B.C. Conservation Data Centre, Alaska Natural Heritage Program, Washington Natural Heritage Program, and Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center.
- Topik, C., N. M. Halverson, and D. G. Brockway. 1986. Plant associations and management guide for the western hemlock zone. R6-ECOL-230a-1986. USDA Forest Service, Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland, OR. 137 pp.
- WNHP [Washington Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data files. Washington Natural Heritage Program, Department of Natural Resources, Olympia, WA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.