releve Virginia Division of Natural Heritage, see http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural_heritage/documents/nh_plotform_instructions.pdf
Overall Taxon Cover Values are Automatically Calculated?
no
Stem Observation Area
400
m²
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(2) classification plot: sufficient for inclusion in a classification revision
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Tree Height
18
m
Field Height
4
m
Tree Cover
25
%
Shrub Cover
0
%
Field Cover
65
%
Nonvascular Cover
40
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
This is a dry, savanna-like Shendandoah Valley sinkhole pond. Several dead pin oaks on ground. Soil dry and compact, with large patches of Sphagnum. It has a stand of pin oaks near the center and scattered red maples in the southern half. Flooding depth in center is about 55 cm, but observations over the years indicate that the pond is mostly winter-flooded and dries up quickly during the growing season. Several dead pin oaks have fallen and many of the living specimens have branch die-back suggesting drought stress. Old vehicular ruts run through the pond, and in the northwest corner, old bedding suggests an attempt to cultivate the soil. Vegetation here is floristically depauperate, with only ten species recorded and only four attaining > 1% cover.
