Large protected wetland (TNC) but there are agricultural fields upstream and surrounding (some forest buffer). Muddy Creek headwaters are partly agricultural but without significant hydrologic alteration; natural flooding/water table fluctuations maintain this community.;Floodplain of Muddy Creek with a young woodland of larch over Ilex verticillata and Rhododendron scattered in the tall shrub layer. Tall herb layer dominated by Osmunda cinnamomea and Symplocarpus foetidus. Dry hummocks are formed by root masses of large trees. Some areas closer to the creek have many dead larch presumably due to flooding.
Representativeness
Large patch. Single occurrence community in state. This plot represents an area of clear dominance in canopy by larch. Most larch are pole size but there is one larger tree at the center of the plot. The understory is pretty uniform throughout.
