Surrounded by forest within Allegheny WMA. Pinnacle road (gravel) is nearby but does not appear to impact plot (no weeds or trails).;Ridgetop oak - birch forest with understory of heaths and other shrubs, on bouldery substrate. Trees are stunted and wind - battered. Abundance of red maple & sassafras snags may indicate succession toward more mesic oak forest.
Representativeness
Plot was placed to sample stunted ridgetop red oak forest within high wind resource polygon. This community is dominant on the ridgetop, with interspersed boulderfields (plot ALLE.1).