Print Report
CEGL002850 Tsuga heterophylla - Abies amabilis - (Callitropsis nootkatensis) / Vaccinium alaskaense Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Western Hemlock - Pacific Silver Fir - (Alaska-cedar) / Alaska Blueberry Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This widely distributed montane coniferous community, which when very old can develop complex vertical structure, is found from the windward and leeward Vancouver Island Ranges to the mainland western slopes of the Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward into southeastern Alaska. It probably also is found in the northwestern Cascade Range and possibly the Olympic Mountains of Washington. The slope position is variable, from upper to lower. The moderately to imperfectly drained soils are developed on colluvial and morainal materials, as well as on organic veneers over these materials and over bedrock. Tsuga heterophylla and Abies amabilis dominate the canopy, with lesser amounts of Callitropsis nootkatensis, Thuja plicata, and Tsuga mertensiana. The well-developed shrub layer tends to be dominated by Vaccinium alaskaense and regenerating Tsuga heterophylla and Abies amabilis. Other shrub species present include Vaccinium parvifolium, Vaccinium ovalifolium, and Menziesia ferruginea. The moderately developed herb layer often features Rubus pedatus, Blechnum spicant, and Cornus canadensis. Rhytidiadelphus loreus, Hylocomium splendens, and Rhytidiopsis robusta dominate the moss layer. These sites are distinguished by their intermediate soil moisture and medium to poor nutrient status, as suggested by the absence or low coverage of fresh-to-moist and rich-site indicator species such as Rubus spectabilis, Oplopanax horridus, Polystichum munitum, Tiarella trifoliata, and Athyrium filix-femina. Heavy snow compacts both the moss layer and upper soil layers and is a distinctive feature of this association. Sites are close to the gradation into the higher subalpine Mountain Hemlock zone forest as signified by the transition from leading Tsuga heterophylla into leading Tsuga mertensiana, as well as the increasing prominence of Elliottia pyroliflora. It is distinguished from the similar Tsuga heterophylla - Abies amabilis / Vaccinium ovalifolium / Rubus pedatus Forest (not in USNVC) by the prominence of Callitropsis nootkatensis or Tsuga mertensiana or >1% cover of Coptis aspleniifolia.
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: Tsuga heterophylla and Abies amabilis dominate the canopy of this moderately productive montane coniferous community, with lower coverage mixes of Callitropsis nootkatensis, Thuja plicata, and Tsuga mertensiana. Thuja plicata is more common in the lower elevations. In the southern mainland regions and leeward Vancouver Island, where there is some fire history, Pseudotsuga menziesii can be a minor component in the canopy. The well-developed shrub layer tends to be dominated by Vaccinium alaskaense and regenerating Tsuga heterophylla and Abies amabilis. Accompanying species in the shrub layer include Vaccinium parvifolium, Vaccinium ovalifolium, and Menziesia ferruginea. Common species in the moderately developed herb layer are Rubus pedatus, Blechnum spicant, Cornus canadensis, Listera cordata, Listera caurina, and Coptis aspleniifolia. The well-developed moss layer, which tends to be flattened into a relatively thin mat by the same heavy snow loads that make the forest floor distinctly compact, features Rhytidiadelphus loreus, Hylocomium splendens, and Rhytidiopsis robusta, with variable lesser amounts of Plagiothecium undulatum, Rhizomnium glabrescens, and Scapania bolanderi.
Dynamics: Unless growing in wind-protected conditions, windthrow and breakage tend to keep these forests from becoming or remaining very old. 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. These potentially tall forests can have considerable vertical structure variability, especially where windthrow history is not extensive. Unless windthrow is pervasive, the age composition of these potentially old forests is often uneven. Hemlock dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium tsugense) is a moderate threat to Tsuga heterophylla. Balsam woolly adelgid (Adelges piceae) is a moderate threat to the health of Abies amabilis in the southern regions, mainly in association with areas around the Strait of Georgia. Fire is of potential concern, primarily in the same southern areas around the Strait of Georgia, because the forests here are more subject to drying in the summer.
Environmental Description: This relatively widespread community has an elevational range of approximately 650 to 1000 m above sea level in the southern coastal regions and 450 to 800 m in the north. Some sites have been located at elevations as low as 250 m, where topographic conditions bring the montane influence lower. The slope position is variable, from upper to lower. The moderately to imperfectly drained soils are developed on colluvial and morainal materials, as well as on organic veneers over these materials and over bedrock. Forest floors are compacted mors 5-75 cm deep. Due to the compaction from extra heavy snow loads, the montane forest floor is distinctly more firm under foot than the equivalent forest floor in submontane elevations.
Geographic Range: This community occurs in British Columbia within variants of the Moist Maritime and Very Wet Maritime subzones of the Coastal Western Hemlock zone (CWHmm2 and CWHvm2), which occupy a total of 16,163 square km. It is located on the windward mountain slopes of Vancouver Island from the Jordan River area northward, both sides of Vancouver Island from north of Kelsey Bay, and the windward slopes of the Coast Mountains from the Fraser River valley northward to Portland Canal. It also occurs in the northwestern Cascade Range of Washington and possibly in the Olympic Mountains.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: AK, BC, WA?
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.788005
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.d Pacific Silver Fir - Western Hemlock Rainforest Group | G241 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.d |
| Alliance | A3387 Pacific Silver Fir - Western Hemlock / Thinleaf Huckleberry Cold Forest Alliance | A3387 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.d |
| Association | CEGL002850 Western Hemlock - Pacific Silver Fir - (Alaska-cedar) / Alaska Blueberry Forest | CEGL002850 | 1.B.2.Nd.3.d |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Tsuga heterophylla-Abies amabilis-Chamaecyparis nootkatensis/Vaccinium alaskaense (Meidinger et al. 2005) [PNWCOAST_242]
> CWH mm 2 /06 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /01 (Banner et al. 1993)
> CWH vm 2 /01 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /06 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /06 (Banner et al. 1993)
> CWH mm 2 /06 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /01 (Banner et al. 1993)
> CWH vm 2 /01 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /06 (Green and Klinka 1994)
> CWH vm 2 /06 (Banner et al. 1993)
- 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., P. LePage, J. Moran, and A. deGroot, editors. 2005. The HyP3 Project: Pattern, process, and productivity in hypermaritime forests of coastal British Columbia - A synthesis of 7-year results. Special Report 10. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Research Branch, Victoria, BC. [http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Docs/Srs/Srs10.htm]
- 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.
- Cadrin, C. M., and M. Wolowicz. 2005. Application of terrestrial ecosystem mapping on coastal British Columbia to conservation status assessments of ecological communities. British Columbia Conservation Data Centre, Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management, Victoria, BC.
- Dorner, B., and C. Wong. 2003. Natural disturbance dynamics on the North Coast. Background report for North Coast LRMP, British Columbia. 51 pp.
- Green, R. N., and K. Klinka. 1994. A field guide to site interpretation for the Vancouver Forest Region. British Columbia Ministry of Forests. ISSN 0229-1622 Land Management Handbook 28. 285 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., 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.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.