Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Mohr Oak - Bastard Oak - Pinchot''s Juniper Scrub Group

Colloquial Name: Comanchian Oak - Juniper Scrub

Hierarchy Level:  Group

Type Concept: The range of this scrub woodland group is centered on the Rolling and Red Bed plains of Texas and Oklahoma and the Edwards and Stockton plateaus of Texas. It may also range into the High Plains, Chihuahuan Desert and Southwestern Tablelands. It occupies dry, rocky sites on mesas and escarpment breaks over a variety of geologic strata including sandstones, shales, limestone and basalt. Soils are variable and this vegetation can occur where there is little soil development. The canopy is less than 6 m in height, and may be open with a grassy or rocky understory, or may form dense low patches or mottes interspersed with grasslands, rock outcrops and woodlands. Characteristic and dominant woody species include evergreen oaks and junipers such as Quercus mohriana, Quercus sinuata, Juniperus pinchotii, and Juniperus ashei. Other woody species that may be present include Buddleja racemosa, Cercocarpus montanus, Diospyros texana, Eysenhardtia texana, Gutierrezia sarothrae, Juniperus monosperma, Quercus havardii, Rhus trilobata, and Rhus virens. Bare ground is often conspicuous, and herbaceous cover, where present, is usually dominated by mid- to short grasses. Characteristic graminoids include Aristida purpurea, Bouteloua curtipendula, Bouteloua gracilis, Bouteloua hirsuta, Pleuraphis mutica, and Schizachyrium scoparium. Forbs, including species such as Artemisia ludoviciana, Calylophus sp., Chaetopappa ericoides, Krameria lanceolata, and Melampodium leucanthum, may also be present.

Diagnostic Characteristics: This scrub woodland group occurs on dry, rocky sites on mesas and escarpment breaks in the High Plains, Rolling Plains, Red Bed Plains, Edwards Plateau and Stockton Plateau regions of the south-central U.S. It is characterized by evergreen shrubs and scrubby short-statured trees such as Buddleja racemosa, Juniperus ashei, Juniperus monosperma, Juniperus pinchotii, Quercus mohriana, and Quercus sinuata.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: This group represents oak and juniper scrub woodlands and shrublands in the southwestern Great Plains and adjacent areas. Its separation from ~Comanchian Mesquite - Mixed Scrub Group (G192)$$ is based on the dominance of evergreen versus deciduous shrubs and short-statured trees, a distinction that may be better made at the alliance level. Classification of this group is hindered by the paucity of USNVC classification information for the association level. It overlaps some with ~Madrean Pinyon - Juniper Woodland Group (G200)$$ and ~Balconian Dry Forest & Woodland Group (G126)$$, and this vegetation may be better classified there. The classification distinction between low-statured woodlands and shrublands with some scattered scrubby trees is difficult in this region with shallow soils and limited rainfall. Due to the reproductive nature of some of the dominant species, it often exhibits patch dominance by a single species. Classification of this group is further complicated because it may be difficult to distinguish from compositionally and structurally similar ruderal vegetation.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available

note: No Data Available