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CEGL006618 North Atlantic Maritime Erosional Bluff Sparse Vegetation
Type Concept Sentence: This community includes steep erosional bluffs with sparse vegetation on the North Atlantic Coast.
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: North Atlantic Maritime Erosional Bluff Sparse Vegetation
Colloquial Name: North Atlantic Maritime Erosional Bluff
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This community includes steep erosional bluffs (also called cliffs) with sparse vegetation occurring on the North Atlantic Coast of the United States and probably into Canada. The coarse sand and gravel substrate is unconsolidated. This community is currently described for Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, but is known to occur on Block Island, Rhode Island, and other Massachusetts islands including Martha''s Vineyard and Nomans Land Island.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: ~Smilax glauca - Toxicodendron radicans Vine-Shrubland (CEGL003886)$$ may occur as inclusions within this cliff community. The term "bluff" is used for unconsolidated cliffs. This community is equivalent to maritime bluff in New York (Edinger et al. 2014) with examples documented from the north shore and South Fork of Long Island and the south shore of Plum Island.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: Vegetation is open and sparse, with scattered herbs, shrubs and small trees.
Floristics: Plants that occur on bluff faces, such as Achillea millefolium, Artemisia vulgaris, Bromus tectorum, Cirsium arvense, Linaria vulgaris, Poa compressa, Verbascum thapsus, Hieracium caespitosum (= Hieracium pratense), Conyza canadensis, and Solidago rugosa, are typically weedy species that are also common in old fields. Native species may include Solidago sempervirens and Ammophila breviligulata, Atriplex patula, and Equisetum arvense. Scattered shrubs and small trees may be present, including Rhus typhina, Toxicodendron radicans, Prunus serotina, Elaeagnus umbellata, Rosa multiflora, Rubus allegheniensis, Celastrus orbiculatus, and Morella pensylvanica. The bases of the erosional bluffs are often seepy, and moisture-tolerant species are frequently found there. Species found in moist soils at the foot of bluffs include Amelanchier canadensis, Salix bebbiana, Equisetum arvense, Impatiens capensis, Lespedeza capitata, Scutellaria galericulata, Teucrium canadense, and Tussilago farfara. Scattered individuals of Phragmites australis occur in some examples of this community.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: Eroding bluffs are common features on Boston Harbor Islands with steep-sided drumlins. These sheer bluffs consist of unconsolidated sand, gravel and stone. Most have little vegetation and are exposed to salt spray and coastal storms. The soils are poorly developed. Landslides and erosional blowouts are common features on the faces of the bluffs.
Geographic Range: This community occurs along the North Atlantic Coast, from New York to Maine, and probably into Maritime Canada.
Nations: CA?,US
States/Provinces: CT, MA, ME, NH, NS?, NY, RI
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.800985
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 6 Open Rock Vegetation Class | C06 | 6 |
| Subclass | 6.B Temperate & Boreal Open Rock Vegetation Subclass | S04 | 6.B |
| Formation | 6.B.1 Temperate & Boreal Cliff, Scree & Other Rock Vegetation Formation | F034 | 6.B.1 |
| Division | 6.B.1.Na Eastern North American Temperate Cliff, Scree & Rock Vegetation Division | D051 | 6.B.1.Na |
| Macrogroup | 6.B.1.Na.1 Shrubby Fivefingers - Rock Polypody / Cup Lichen species Eastern North American Cliff & Rock Vegetation Macrogroup | M111 | 6.B.1.Na.1 |
| Group | 6.B.1.Na.1.a Polypody species - Rocktripe Lichen species - Poverty Oatgrass Talus, Bluff & Rock Vegetation Group | G340 | 6.B.1.Na.1.a |
| Alliance | A3992 Eastern North American Erosional Bluff Alliance | A3992 | 6.B.1.Na.1.a |
| Association | CEGL006618 North Atlantic Maritime Erosional Bluff Sparse Vegetation | CEGL006618 | 6.B.1.Na.1.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: No Data Available
- Eastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boston, MA.
- Edinger, G. J., D. J. Evans, S. Gebauer, T. G. Howard, D. M. Hunt, and A. M. Olivero, editors. 2014a. Ecological communities of New York state. Second edition. A revised and expanded edition of Carol Reschke''s ecological communities of New York state. New York Natural Heritage Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, NY.
- Elliman, T. 2003. Boston Harbor Islands plant communities. Report submitted to Massachusetts Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife, Westborough.
- Enser, R. W., and J. A. Lundgren. 2006. Natural communities of Rhode Island. A joint project of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management Natural Heritage Program and The Nature Conservancy of Rhode Island. Rhode Island Natural History Survey, Kingston. 40 pp. [www.rinhs.org]
- Largay, E. F., and L. A. Sneddon. 2017. Vegetation mapping and classification of Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area. Technical Report NPS/NER/NRTR--2017/1529. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO.
- Swain, P. C., and J. B. Kearsley. 2014. Classification of the natural communities of Massachusetts. Version 2.0. Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. Westborough, MA. [http://www.mass.gov/nhesp/http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/natural-heritage/natural-communities/classification-of-natural-communities.html]