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A3760 Populus tremuloides Riparian Forest Alliance

Type Concept Sentence: This alliance includes only those stands of Populus tremuloides that are truly wetlands and riparian in their setting. Most stands of this alliance are found in riparian zones. Some may be near lakes where the ground is flooded or saturated for a short time in the spring. The moderate to closed tree canopy is dominated by Populus tremuloides; sometimes other tress are codominant, such as Populus angustifolia, Abies concolor, Pinus ponderosa, and Picea pungens. More open stands have a prominent shrub layer containing species such as Alnus incana, Cornus sericea, and Salix spp. This alliance is found in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, eastern Oregon and Washington, and Great Basin mountain ranges of Nevada, possibly extending into the Sierra Nevada of California. It addition it occurs on high plateaus and canyons of New Mexico.

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Quaking Aspen Riparian Forest Alliance

Colloquial Name: Quaking Aspen Riparian Forest

Hierarchy Level:  Alliance

Type Concept: This alliance includes only those stands of Populus tremuloides that are truly wetlands and riparian in their setting. Most stands of this alliance are found in riparian zones. Some may be near lakes where the ground is flooded or saturated for a short time in the spring. The moderate to closed tree canopy is dominated by Populus tremuloides; sometimes other tress are codominant, such as Populus angustifolia, Abies concolor, Pinus ponderosa, and Picea pungens. More open stands have a prominent shrub layer containing species such as Alnus incana, Cornus sericea, and Salix spp. This alliance is found in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, eastern Oregon and Washington, and Great Basin mountain ranges of Nevada, possibly extending into the Sierra Nevada of California. It addition it occurs on high plateaus and canyons of New Mexico.

Diagnostic Characteristics: Riparian and other wetland areas dominated in the upper canopy by Populus tremuloides.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Populus tremuloides is a widespread species that occurs in generally mesic slopes. This alliance is limited to those stands on wetland soils and riparian alluvial areas and draws where water collects.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: Vegetation included in this alliance has a moderately dense to dense tree canopy dominated by cold-deciduous broad-leaved trees (5-20 m tall). Evergreen needle-leaved trees may be present to codominant in the tree canopy. The understory is variable. Sparse to dense, tall- and short-shrub layers may be present and are typically dominated by deciduous broad-leaved species; however, a scale-leaved short shrub dominates the understory of some stands. Sparse to dense, tall or short herbaceous layers may also be present and may be dominated by perennial forbs or graminoids.

Floristics: This alliance is dominated by Populus tremuloides. Common tree associates include Abies concolor, Abies lasiocarpa, Betula papyrifera, Picea engelmannii, Picea glauca, Pinus contorta, Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa, and Pseudotsuga menziesii, depending on the elevation. A shrub layer may be dominated by Alnus incana, Amelanchier alnifolia, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Betula nana, Betula occidentalis, Cornus sericea, Prunus americana, Prunus pensylvanica, Prunus virginiana, Quercus gambelii, Ribes montigenum, Rosa woodsii, Rubus idaeus, Salix bebbiana, Salix drummondiana, Salix monticola, other Salix spp., Sorbus scopulina, Symphoricarpos albus, Symphoricarpos oreophilus, and/or Vaccinium scoparium. The dwarf-shrubs Mahonia repens and Vaccinium myrtillus are common. The herbaceous layer may be lush and diverse, dominated by graminoids or tall forbs. Common graminoids may include Bromus ciliatus, Bromus carinatus, Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex siccata (= Carex foenea), Carex hoodii, Elymus glaucus, Elymus trachycaulus, and Festuca thurberi. Forbs may include Achillea millefolium, Delphinium x occidentale, Equisetum arvense, Eucephalus engelmannii (= Aster engelmannii), Fragaria virginiana, Geranium richardsonii, Ligusticum porteri, Maianthemum stellatum, Mertensia arizonica, Osmorhiza occidentalis, Senecio bigelovii var. bigelovii, Thalictrum occidentale, Veratrum californicum, and many others. Exotic grasses such as the perennial Poa pratensis and the annual Bromus tectorum are often common in stands disturbed by grazing.

Dynamics:  Stands in this alliance often originate, and likely are maintained by, stand-replacing disturbances such as crown fire, disease and windthrow, or clearcutting by man and beaver. The stems of these thin-barked, clonal trees are easily killed by surface fires. They can quickly and vigorously resprout in densities of up to 30,000 stems per hectare (Knight 1994). Stands are favored by fire in the conifer zone (Mueggler 1988). The stems are relatively short-lived (100-150 years) and individual stands will succeed to longer-lived conifer forest if undisturbed. With adequate disturbance, a clone may live many centuries. Although Populus tremuloides produces abundant seeds, seedling survival is rare because the long warm, moist conditions required to establish are rare in the habitats where it occurs.
Environmental Description:  Forests included in this alliance occur in seasonally flooded areas in the Rocky Mountain region. Elevations range from 850-3170 m. Climate is temperate with a relatively long growing season, typically cold winters and often deep snow. Mean annual precipitation is greater than 38 cm and typically greater than 50 cm. The distribution of Populus tremuloides forests is primarily limited by adequate soil moisture required to meet its high evapotranspiration demand (Mueggler 1988). Secondarily, its range is limited by the length of the growing season or low temperatures (Mueggler 1988). Habitats vary in aspect according to elevation and latitude in respect to the most limiting factor. Stands in this alliance are restricted to sites saturated by seepage from springs and streams from snowmelt. They occur below seeps on gentle slopes, wet draws and flats, and in depressions along streambank terraces. Aspects are variable. In Colorado they are typically on cool, moist north and northeast aspects, whereas in northwestern Wyoming, aspects often are on warmer eastern or western slopes. Soils are often fine-textured, poorly drained, consisting of silts and clays, often forming an organic muck (Youngblood and Mueggler 1981). However, some the alluvial soils are coarse-textured and permit rapid groundwater movement (Hansen et al. 1995). The water table is typically at or near the soil surface in the spring but may drop more than 1 m by midsummer (Hansen et al. 1995). Parent materials are variable and may include sedimentary, metamorphic or igneous rocks, but it appears to grow best on limestone, basalt, and calcareous or neutral shales (Mueggler 1988).
Geographic Range: This alliance is found in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, eastern Oregon and Washington, and Great Basin mountain ranges of Nevada, possibly extending into the Sierra Nevada of California. It addition it occurs on high plateaus and canyons of New Mexico.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  AB, BC, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY


Confidence Level: Low

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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation F026 1.B.3
Division 1.B.3.Nc Rocky Mountain-Great Basin Montane Flooded & Swamp Forest Division D195 1.B.3.Nc
Macrogroup 1.B.3.Nc.1 Engelmann Spruce - Narrowleaf Cottonwood / Red-osier Dogwood Riparian & Swamp Forest Macrogroup M034 1.B.3.Nc.1
Group 1.B.3.Nc.1.a Engelmann Spruce - Blue Spruce - Narrowleaf Cottonwood Riparian & Swamp Forest Group G506 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Alliance A3760 Quaking Aspen Riparian Forest Alliance A3760 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000191 Ponderosa Pine - Quaking Aspen / Sedge species - (Bluegrass species) Riparian Forest CEGL000191 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000574 Quaking Aspen / Bluejoint Riparian Forest CEGL000574 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000576 Quaking Aspen Canyon Formation Riparian Forest CEGL000576 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000577 Quaking Aspen / Woolly Sedge Riparian Forest CEGL000577 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000582 Quaking Aspen / Red-osier Dogwood Riparian Forest CEGL000582 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000584 Quaking Aspen / Field Horsetail Riparian Forest CEGL000584 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000590 Quaking Aspen / Nodding Ragwort Riparian Forest CEGL000590 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000599 Quaking Aspen / Plantainleaf Buttercup Riparian Forest CEGL000599 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000600 Quaking Aspen / Gooseberry Currant Riparian Forest CEGL000600 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL000621 Quaking Aspen / California False Hellebore Riparian Forest CEGL000621 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL001082 Quaking Aspen / Gray Alder - Willow species Riparian Forest CEGL001082 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL001149 Quaking Aspen / Gray Alder / Dwarf Birch - Currant species Riparian Forest CEGL001149 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL001150 Quaking Aspen / Gray Alder Riparian Forest CEGL001150 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL002650 Quaking Aspen / Water Birch Riparian Forest CEGL002650 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL002902 Quaking Aspen / Drummond''s Willow Riparian Forest CEGL002902 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL003147 Quaking Aspen - Jeffrey Pine Riparian Forest CEGL003147 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL003149 Quaking Aspen / Woods'' Rose Riparian Forest CEGL003149 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL003371 Quaking Aspen / Slough Sedge Riparian Forest CEGL003371 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL003442 Quaking Aspen / Water Sedge Riparian Forest CEGL003442 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL005418 White Fir - (Quaking Aspen) / Booth''s Willow / Mountain Sedge Riparian Forest CEGL005418 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Association CEGL005419 White Fir - Quaking Aspen / Mountain Sedge Riparian Forest CEGL005419 1.B.3.Nc.1.a
Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Pinus ponderosa Riparian Woodlands (Chappell et al. 1997) [includes Oregon''s Pinus ponderosa - Populus tremuloides / Carex spp. - (Poa spp.) Forest. This type may have a flood regime.]
>< Populus tremuloides (Aspen groves) Alliance (Sawyer et al. 2009) [61.111.00]
? Populus tremuloides Riparian/Wetland Forests and Woodlands (Chappell et al. 1997)
>< Aspen Forest (#81B00) (Holland 1986b)
>< Aspen Series (Sawyer and Keeler-Wolf 1995)
>< Aspen: 217 (Eyre 1980)
Concept Author(s): G. Kittel, in Faber-Langendoen et al. (2013)

Author of Description: G. Kittel

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 09-26-14
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