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A3210 Juniperus scopulorum - Juniperus virginiana Woodland Alliance
Type Concept Sentence: This woodland alliance is found in the western Great Plains of the United States where Juniperus scopulorum and Juniperus virginiana dominate the short, open tree canopy on steep north-facing slopes or ravines.
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Rocky Mountain Juniper - Eastern Red-cedar Woodland Alliance
Colloquial Name: Great Plains Juniper Ravine Woodland
Hierarchy Level: Alliance
Type Concept: This alliance is found in the western Great Plains of the United States. The vegetation is an evergreen woodland with moderately open to dense cover of Juniperus scopulorum, Juniperus virginiana, or introgressant hybrids of the two. Woody species other than Juniperus scopulorum or Juniperus virginiana occur sporadically, but none achieves prominence. Most of the trees are small (10-20 cm dbh) and few exceed 6 m in height. Where the density of the tree canopy is high, the short-shrub and herbaceous strata are not well-developed. In more open places Piptatheropsis micrantha is often abundant. Other common herbaceous species include Campanula rotundifolia, Galium boreale, and Maianthemum stellatum. Mosses and lichens can cover much of the ground. Stands occur on steep (30-70%) north-facing slopes or in ravines. The soils are shallow and poorly developed; loamy sands and sandy loams predominate.
Diagnostic Characteristics: Hillsides or ravines dominated by Juniperus scopulorum (possibly Juniperus virginiana in the eastern portion of the alliance range).
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This description includes stands with both Juniperus scopulorum and Juniperus virginiana over a herbaceous layer, typically with Piptatheropsis micrantha. Pinus ponderosa, if present, is less than 25% tree canopy cover.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: Vegetation included in this alliance has a moderate to dense tree canopy that is typically 2-6 m tall. Stands are dominated by evergreen scale-leaved trees. Scattered evergreen needle-leaved or deciduous broad-leaved trees may be present, but they never codominate. Lower vegetation layers are usually in inverse proportion to the tree canopy cover; sites with dense tree canopies have sparse lower strata. A sparse to moderately dense shrub layer may be present as a mixture of broadleaf and microphyllous, deciduous shrubs that are usually less than 2 m tall. A sparse to moderately dense herbaceous layer dominated by perennial graminoids is usually present. Perennial forbs may be scattered. Annual forbs and grasses may be seasonally present.
Floristics: This alliance is an evergreen woodland with moderately open to dense cover of Juniperus scopulorum, Juniperus virginiana, or introgressant hybrids of the two. Woody species other than Juniperus scopulorum or Juniperus virginiana occur sporadically, but none achieves prominence. Fraxinus pennsylvanica and Pinus ponderosa are the most common associates. Where the density of the tree canopy is high, the short-shrub and herbaceous strata are not well-developed. In more open places Piptatheropsis micrantha (= Oryzopsis micrantha) is often abundant. Other common herbaceous species include Campanula rotundifolia, Chenopodium fremontii, Chenopodium simplex, Galium boreale, and Maianthemum stellatum. Drier and more open-canopied examples of this alliance often have Bouteloua curtipendula, Pseudoroegneria spicata, and Schizachyrium scoparium in the herbaceous layer and Rhus trilobata and Ribes aureum var. villosum (= Ribes odoratum) in the shrub stratum (Brown 1971, Rolfsmeier and Steinauer 2010). Mosses and lichens can cover much of the ground.
Dynamics: Altered fire regimes, cutting trees for fencing, and improper grazing by livestock have significant impacts on the quality of sites. Grazing by livestock can modify the fire regime by removing the fine fuels that carry fire.
Environmental Description: This alliance is found on steep (30-70%) north-facing slopes or in ravines. The soils are shallow and poorly developed; loamy sands and sandy loams predominate except in badlands landscapes where finer-textured soils are abundant. Climate is semi-arid, continental with most of the 40-60 cm of annual precipitation occurring during the growing season.
Geographic Range: This alliance is found in the western Great Plains of the United States. It is found in the Black Hills and the Badlands of North and South Dakota and Montana, and from the High Plains of eastern Wyoming and northeastern Colorado eastward to central Nebraska.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: CO, MT, ND, NE, SD, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.899334
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
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.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Ne North American Great Plains Forest & Woodland Division | D326 | 1.B.2.Ne |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Ne.1 Bur Oak - Quaking Aspen / Western Wheatgrass Forest Woodland Macrogroup | M151 | 1.B.2.Ne.1 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Ne.1.b Green Ash - American Elm / Cherry species Forest & Woodland Group | G145 | 1.B.2.Ne.1.b |
| Alliance | A3210 Rocky Mountain Juniper - Eastern Red-cedar Woodland Alliance | A3210 | 1.B.2.Ne.1.b |
Concept Lineage: Alliance composed of just one association from old A.506.
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Juniperus - Agropyron Community (Brown 1971)
? Juniperus scopulorum Series (Johnston 1987)
? Juniperus scopulorum Series (Hess 1981)
>< Rocky Mountain Juniper: 220 (Eyre 1980)
? Juniperus scopulorum Series (Johnston 1987)
? Juniperus scopulorum Series (Hess 1981)
>< Rocky Mountain Juniper: 220 (Eyre 1980)
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