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CEGL004289 Taxodium ascendens / Fraxinus caroliniana - Cephalanthus occidentalis - (Planera aquatica) Floodplain Woodland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Pond-cypress / Carolina Ash - Common Buttonbush - (Planertree) Floodplain Woodland
Colloquial Name: Atlantic Coastal Plain Blackwater Cove Woodland
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association occurs in distinctive, deeply flooded abandoned channel segments along sandy blackwater rivers. Vegetation is depauperate because of the extremely long flooding and acidic soils. The canopy is dominated by Taxodium ascendens and is often open. It may have a woodland structure rather than forest. The trees characteristically have very large buttresses and small trunks. A dense subcanopy or low canopy is present in at least part of the community. It is generally dominated by Fraxinus caroliniana or Planera aquatica, with Cephalanthus occidentalis abundant. Ilex amelanchier may also be present. There is little shrub layer. In times of low water, a dense herb layer of Eleocharis baldwinii, Juncus repens, and Eragrostis hypnoides is often present.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This community was previously treated as part of the more extensive cypress-gum swamp ~Taxodium distichum - Nyssa biflora / Fraxinus caroliniana / Lyonia lucida Floodplain Forest (CEGL004733)$$. It is a distinctive wetter community of a very specific environment.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Vegetation is depauperate because of the extremely long flooding and acidic soils. The canopy is dominated by Taxodium ascendens and is often open. It may have a woodland structure rather than forest. The trees characteristically have very large buttresses and small trunks. A dense subcanopy or low canopy is present in at least part of the community. It is generally dominated by Fraxinus caroliniana or Planera aquatica, with Cephalanthus occidentalis abundant. Ilex amelanchier may also be present. There is little shrub layer. In times of low water, a dense herb layer of Eleocharis baldwinii, Juncus repens, and Eragrostis hypnoides is often present.
Dynamics: This community experiences long hydroperiods, with standing water absent only in the driest conditions. These habitats are generally directly connected to the river, but in backwater settings where substantial current does not flow through them. Riverine aquatic fauna are an important part of ecosystem dynamics.
Environmental Description: This association is occurs in distinctive small patches of deeply flooded swamp, along small backwaters ("coves") of sandy blackwater rivers. The coves are abandoned channel segments that remain connected to the river. They are long-lived because of the limited sediment deposition in these rivers. They may remain flooded most of the growing season, with the ground exposed only in periods of very low water.
Geographic Range: This association occurs in southern North Carolina, South Carolina, and likely in Georgia and Florida.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: FL?, GA?, NC, SC
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.820688
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2G3
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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation | F026 | 1.B.3 |
| Division | 1.B.3.Nb Southeastern North American Flooded & Swamp Forest Division | D062 | 1.B.3.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.3.Nb.4 Swamp Chestnut Oak - Bald-cypress - Pecan Southern Floodplain Forest Macrogroup | M031 | 1.B.3.Nb.4 |
| Group | 1.B.3.Nb.4.c Bald-cypress - Water Tupelo Floodplain Forest Group | G033 | 1.B.3.Nb.4.c |
| Alliance | A3594 Bald-cypress - Water Tupelo - Swamp Tupelo Floodplain Forest Alliance | A3594 | 1.B.3.Nb.4.c |
| Association | CEGL004289 Pond-cypress / Carolina Ash - Common Buttonbush - (Planertree) Floodplain Woodland | CEGL004289 | 1.B.3.Nb.4.c |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Backwater Streams (Wharton 1978)
< Baldcypress - Tupelo: 102 (Eyre 1980)
= Cypress--Gum Swamp (Blackwater Cove Subtype) (Schafale 2012)
< Baldcypress - Tupelo: 102 (Eyre 1980)
= Cypress--Gum Swamp (Blackwater Cove Subtype) (Schafale 2012)
- Eyre, F. H., editor. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Society of American Foresters, Washington, DC. 148 pp.
- Nelson, J. B. 1986. The natural communities of South Carolina: Initial classification and description. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Columbia, SC. 55 pp.
- Schafale, M. P. 2012. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina, 4th Approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Wharton, C. H. 1978. The natural environments of Georgia. Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Atlanta. 227 pp.