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CEGL006622 Gaylussacia baccata - Vaccinium pallidum - Vaccinium corymbosum Shrubland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Black Huckleberry - Blue Ridge Blueberry - Highbush Blueberry Shrubland
Colloquial Name: Successional Heath Shrubland
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This native successional ericaceous shrub community occurs in woodland and forest openings on acidic, coarse-textured soils that have been burned or cleared in the Northeast. Shrub height ranges from less than 0.5 m to 5 m in height. Species composition varies based on geography and moisture regime, but dominant shrubs typically include Gaylussacia baccata, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium corymbosum, Kalmia angustifolia, and/or Kalmia latifolia. Associate shrubs may include some combination of the following species: Photinia melanocarpa, Amelanchier canadensis, Eubotrys racemosa, Gaylussacia frondosa (in southern examples), Vaccinium myrtilloides, Vaccinium stamineum, Lyonia mariana, Ilex glabra, Quercus ilicifolia, Morella pensylvanica, and Clethra alnifolia. Smilax rotundifolia and Smilax glauca may also be present. Scattered regeneration trees are typical with less than 10% cover; Pinus rigida is the most common tree associate. Herbs are uncommon due to the dense shrub cover and may include Pteridium aquilinum, Carex pensylvanica, Gaultheria procumbens, Comptonia peregrina, Epigaea repens, Danthonia spicata, and Deschampsia flexuosa. Mosses and lichens can be present in abundance in some examples. Non-native plants are uncommon in this community.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Described from quick point data collected in New Jersey. Although this association is placed in a dwarf-shrubland alliance, this community is a taller shrubland.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Species composition varies based on geography and moisture regime, but dominant shrubs typically include Gaylussacia baccata, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium corymbosum, Kalmia angustifolia, and/or Kalmia latifolia. Associate shrubs may include some combination of the following species: Photinia melanocarpa, Amelanchier canadensis, Eubotrys racemosa, Gaylussacia frondosa (in southern examples), Vaccinium myrtilloides, Vaccinium stamineum, Lyonia mariana, Ilex glabra, Quercus ilicifolia, Morella pensylvanica, and Clethra alnifolia. Smilax rotundifolia and Smilax glauca may also be present. Scattered regeneration trees are typical with less than 10% cover, and tree species vary from north to south (i.e., Pinus rigida in New Jersey and Picea mariana in Maine). Herbs are uncommon due to the dense shrub cover and may include Pteridium aquilinum, Carex pensylvanica, Gaultheria procumbens, Comptonia peregrina, Epigaea repens, Danthonia spicata, and Deschampsia flexuosa. Mosses and lichens can be present in abundance in some examples. Non-native plants are uncommon in this community.
Dynamics: This successional community regenerates from fire, clearing, or cutting. The dense cover of shrubs can limit the establishment of herbs and small tree seedlings. However, this community may be relatively short-lived as it gradually succeeds to forest over time unless managed. These barrens provide habitat for the upland sandpiper, whimbrel, and short-eared owl.
Environmental Description: This native successional ericaceous shrub community occurs in woodland and forest openings on acidic, coarse-textured soils that have been burned or cleared in the Northeast. Shrub height ranges from less than 0.5 m to 5 m in height.
Geographic Range: This shrubland has been documented from southern Maine to Pennsylvania and west to New York.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: MA, ME, NJ, NY, PA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.834051
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G4
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.B Temperate & Boreal Grassland & Shrubland Subclass | S18 | 2.B |
| Formation | 2.B.4 Temperate to Polar Scrub & Herb Coastal Vegetation Formation | F005 | 2.B.4 |
| Division | 2.B.4.Na Eastern North American Coastal Scrub & Herb Vegetation Division | D026 | 2.B.4.Na |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.4.Na.2 American Beachgrass - Sea-oats - Seaside Goldenrod Dune & Grassland Macrogroup | M057 | 2.B.4.Na.2 |
| Group | 2.B.4.Na.2.e Bear Oak - Sheep Laurel - Kinnikinnick Sand Barrens Group | G063 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
| Alliance | A3913 Lowbush Blueberry - Blue Ridge Blueberry Sandy Heath Alliance | A3913 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
| Association | CEGL006622 Black Huckleberry - Blue Ridge Blueberry - Highbush Blueberry Shrubland | CEGL006622 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Gaylussacia baccata - Vaccinium pallidum - Vaccinium corymbosum Dwarf-shrubland (Sneddon 2010)
- 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.
- NatureServe. 2009. Vegetation of the E.B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. International Ecological Classification Standard: Terrestrial Ecological Classifications. NatureServe Central Databases. Arlington, VA. U.S.A. Data current as of 1 December 2009.
- Sneddon, L. A. 2010. Unpublished field notes of Nomans Land Island and Monomoy National Wildlife Refuges. July 2010. NatureServe, Boston, MA.