Print Report

A0795 Arundinaria gigantea Wet Canebrake Alliance

Type Concept Sentence: This floodplain wetland vegetation of the southeastern United States is dominated by monospecific or nearly monospecific stands of Arundinaria gigantea, without an overstory, or with widely scattered trees, occurring on alluvial or loess substrates, including streamside flats and bottomlands.

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Giant Cane Wet Canebrake Alliance

Colloquial Name: Giant Cane Wet Canebrake

Hierarchy Level:  Alliance

Type Concept: This alliance encompasses vegetation of various wet to moist floodplain wetlands, occurring on alluvial or loess substrates, including streamside flats and bottomlands, dominated by Arundinaria gigantea, without an overstory, or with widely scattered trees. These are frequently monospecific or near-monospecific stands. Canebrakes are successional communities and may have originated following abandonment of aboriginal agricultural fields or catastrophic disturbances such as windstorms. They are thought to have been maintained in part by fires set by Native Americans. Evidence suggests that this alliance was widespread historically, covering large areas of many floodplains and streamsides in the Southeastern Coastal Plain from North Carolina to Texas, the Mississippi River Alluvial Plain north to Illinois and Missouri, Interior Highlands, Interior Low Plateau, Southern Blue Ridge, Cumberland Mountains, and Western Allegheny Plateau of the southeastern United States. It now occupies very little of its former acreage, and high-quality examples are extremely rare. It was also reported historically along the Red and Mississippi rivers in Louisiana, Coastal Prairie rivers in Texas, and the Black, Washita, Arkansas, Pearl, Tombigbee, Yazoo, Savannah, and St. Mary''s rivers. Large, extant canebrakes still exist and have been documented from the Ocmulgee Basin, south of Macon, Georgia.

Diagnostic Characteristics: These are typically monospecific or near-monospecific stands of Arundinaria gigantea.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: The description is based on the old alliance Arundinaria gigantea Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance (A.795). The only association in this alliance (CEGL003836) has a range that is not confined to the coastal plains. It is possible that this association should be split into biogeographic components with some of those non-coastal plain components needing to be placed in different groups. One reviewer has commented that "Why is a grassland community in a forest group? Is it simply because of their small size and thus constituency in a landscape matrix? If so, probably not an alliance concept." Even though Arundinaria is technically a grass, in terms of stature it is a shrub, and is therefore placed in a "woody" group. This placement should be reviewed and clarified.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: These are typically monospecific or near-monospecific stands of Arundinaria gigantea without an overstory, or with widely scattered trees. Arundinaria gigantea is a "woody" grass, a North American member of the bamboo tribe (Bambuseae) of grasses.

Floristics: Vegetation of this alliance is dominated by Arundinaria gigantea (= ssp. gigantea). These are frequently monospecific or near-monospecific stands. Widely scattered trees may be present and the cane thicket may also include various briars (Smilax spp.) and other vines.

Dynamics:  Evidence suggests that this alliance was widespread historically, covering large areas of many wet to moist floodplains and streamsides in the Southeastern Coastal Plain from North Carolina to Texas, the Mississippi River Alluvial Plain north to Illinois and Missouri, Interior Highlands, Interior Low Plateau, Southern Blue Ridge, Cumberland Mountains, and Western Allegheny Plateau of the southeastern United States. It now occupies very little of its former acreage. Canebrakes are successional communities and may have originated following abandonment of aboriginal agricultural fields or catastrophic disturbances such as windstorms. They are thought to have been maintained in part by fires set by Native Americans. Today, high-quality examples of this alliance are extremely rare.
Environmental Description:  This alliance is found in wetlands on wet to moist alluvial or loess substrates. Dense monospecific stands of Arundinaria gigantea were historically found in bottomlands and streamsides in the southeastern United States. In presettlement times, a single river valley grove could be 2 or 3 miles wide and 100 miles long.
Geographic Range: This alliance was widespread historically but now occupies very little acreage. It may be found along rivers and streamsides in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and possibly Florida and Virginia.

Nations: US

States/Provinces:  AL, AR, FL?, GA, IL, KY, LA, MO, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX, VA?, WV


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.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass S44 2.C
Formation 2.C.4 Temperate to Polar Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Formation F013 2.C.4
Division 2.C.4.Nd Eastern North American Temperate Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Division D323 2.C.4.Nd
Macrogroup 2.C.4.Nd.2 Broadleaf Cattail - White Snakeroot - Rush species Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Macrogroup M069 2.C.4.Nd.2
Group 2.C.4.Nd.2.b Common Buttonbush / Sedge species Central Interior Wet Meadow & Shrubland Group G599 2.C.4.Nd.2.b
Alliance A0795 Giant Cane Wet Canebrake Alliance A0795 2.C.4.Nd.2.b
Association CEGL003836 Giant Cane Wet Canebrake CEGL003836 2.C.4.Nd.2.b
Concept Lineage: A.795

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Arundinaria gigantea shrubland alliance (Hoagland 1998a)
? P5A4bIII4a. Arundinaria gigantea (Foti et al. 1994)
Concept Author(s): A.S. Weakley and J. Teague, in Faber-Langendoen et al. (2013)

Author of Description: M. Pyne

Acknowledgements: We have incorporated significant descriptive information previously compiled by Alan Weakley and Judy Teague.

Version Date: 01-16-19
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