Print Report

G660 North Atlantic Coastal Beach Group

Type Concept Sentence: This group covers non-forested, sparsely to moderately vegetated boulder, cobble, and gravel shores characterized by Cakile edentula, above the normal high-tide line along the immediate Atlantic coast, from northern North Carolina to the Canadian Maritimes.

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: North Atlantic Coastal Beach Group

Colloquial Name: North Atlantic Coastal Beach

Hierarchy Level:  Group

Type Concept: This group covers mostly non-forested, sparsely to moderately vegetated boulder, cobble, and gravel shores, above the normal high-tide line along the immediate Atlantic coast, from northern North Carolina to the Canadian Maritimes. On the mainland, it is often a narrow zone between the high-tide line and the upland forest; this zone becomes wider with increasing maritime influence, e.g., on some islands. The substrate is sand flats and beaches, or sandy with broken rock, ranging from cobbles to gravels, sometimes with a shallow soil layer. Tree growth is prevented by extreme exposure to wind, salt spray, and fog. Cover is patchy herbs with an occasional shrub. On cobble beaches, where storm waves create an unstable substrate, vascular plant cover is low, with typical species including Cakile edentula ssp. edentula, Calystegia sepium, Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Chenopodium album, Elymus repens, Galeopsis bifida, Honckenya peploides ssp. diffusa, Lathyrus japonicus, Raphanus raphanistrum, Rumex crispus, Salsola kali, Sisymbrium altissimum, Solanum dulcamara, and Solidago sempervirens. Mertensia maritima is an infrequent but diagnostic species of cobble beaches. Open rocky shore habitats are characterized by sparse (<25%) cover of salt-tolerant herbs such as Argentina egedii ssp. groenlandica, Atriplex prostrata, Glaux maritima, Limonium carolinianum, Puccinellia maritima, Salicornia depressa, Spergularia salina, and Suaeda maritima. Detritus washed in by the tides may be prominent. In Atlantic Canada, an unusual treed cobble beach can occur.

Diagnostic Characteristics: Atlantic maritime ocean beach comprising sand, gravel, or cobbles; ranging north from central Virginia; Cakile edentula is characteristic.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Initial split between North Atlantic versus South Atlantic is based on the Acadian versus Virginian marine zones, which meets in central Virginia (L. Sneddon pers. comm. 2012). However, this leaves two groups and two alliances, with one association each, and little floristic difference.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: This group is characterized by sparse and patchy vegetation dominated primarily by succulent annual plants not generally exceeding 0.5 m in height. Trees are absent, and shrubs, if present, are very sparsely distributed and stressed.

Floristics: Cakile edentula is the most frequently occurring species across the range. Other associates may include Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Honckenya peploides ssp. diffusa (= Arenaria peploides), Salsola kali ssp. kali, Xanthium strumarium, as well as wave-deposited wrack comprising marine alga. On cobble beaches, where storm waves create an unstable substrate, vascular plant cover is low, with typical species including Cakile edentula ssp. edentula, Calystegia sepium, Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Chenopodium album, Elymus repens, Galeopsis bifida, Honckenya peploides ssp. diffusa (= Arenaria peploides), Lathyrus japonicus, Raphanus raphanistrum, Rumex crispus, Salsola kali, Sisymbrium altissimum, Solanum dulcamara, and Solidago sempervirens. Mertensia maritima is an infrequent but diagnostic species of cobble beaches. Open rocky shore habitats are characterized by sparse (<25%) cover of salt-tolerant herbs such as Argentina egedii ssp. groenlandica, Atriplex prostrata, Glaux maritima, Limonium carolinianum, Puccinellia maritima, Salicornia depressa, Spergularia salina (= Spergularia marina), and Suaeda maritima. Detritus washed in by the tides may be prominent. In Atlantic Canada, an unusual treed cobble beach can occur.

Dynamics:  This group is influenced by irregular tidal flooding, wave action, and storm tides. Its position between the regularly flooded, unvegetated beach, and the base of dunes or upland shores is not fixed. Intense storms often disturb or completely remove the habitat, but the easily dispersed annual plants comprising this group re-establish on newly formed habitat where the new wrack line develops.
Environmental Description:  This group occurs on Atlantic beaches above the limit of mean high tide, but is inundated by wave action during spring tides and storm tides. It occurs on ocean-fronting beaches of barrier islands, and the mainland coast, as well as on the more protected beaches of bay beaches. The substrate is sand, cobble, gravel, or a mixture of these.
Geographic Range: This group is found along the immediate Atlantic coast, from northern North Carolina to the Canadian Maritimes.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  CT, DE, LB, MA, MD, ME, NB?, NF, NH, NJ, NS, NY, ON, PE, QC?, RI, VA


Confidence Level: Moderate

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR

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.1 Eastern North American Coastal Beach & Rocky Shore Macrogroup M060 2.B.4.Na.1
Group 2.B.4.Na.1.b North Atlantic Coastal Beach Group G660 2.B.4.Na.1.b
Alliance A3639 American Searocket Atlantic Beach Alliance A3639 2.B.4.Na.1.b
Concept Lineage: G124 split into G660 & G661 (DFL 7-24-12)

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Cakile edentula - Chenopodium album community (Metzler and Barrett 1996)
= Cakiletum edentula (Conard 1935)
= Beach community (Hill 1986)
= Beach community (Johnson 1985b)
= Marine intertidal gravel/sand beach community (Breden 1989)
= Maritime beach (Reschke 1990)
= beach (Fender 1937)
= beach (McDonnell 1979)
= beach (Higgins et al. 1971)
= beach community (Baumann 1978b)
= beach vegetation (Moul 1973)
? embryo dune (Klotz 1986)
? middle beach (Shreve et al. 1910)
? middle beach (Nichols 1920)
= pioneer beach community (Boule 1979)
= sea-strand vegetation, beach formation (Harshberger 1900)
Concept Author(s): L.A. Sneddon, in Faber-Langendoen et al. (2012)

Author of Description: L.A. Sneddon

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 05-05-15
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