NJ Natural Heritage Program, NJDEP Division of Parks and Forestry, Office of Natural Lands Management, 22 S. Clinton Ave, Plaza Bldg 4, Fl. 4, PO Box 404 Trenton, NJ, 08625-0404
Take Rt. 9 to Sea Meadow Drive in Parkertown. Park by Forsythe Refuge Boundary signs and enter woods on trail. Go ~0.5 miles, turn left into marsh and follow edge of marsh south.
Overall Taxon Cover Values are Automatically Calculated?
no
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(1) occurrence plot: sufficient for determining type occurrence
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Dominant Stratum
Herb
Growthform1 Type
Herbs
Growthform2 Type
Shrubs
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Community Type: sea level fen
Community Description: Much distrubed and probably artificially created fen, nonetheless, very diverse, having numerous threatened and rare species. Community is located just SE of the intersection of a fiber optic cable right of way which runs from Route 9, across the marsh and Barnegat Bay, and a powerline right of way which follows the shoreline (a more or less N/S orientation). Community has hydric forest (Chamaecyparis thyoides to the north, Acer-Nyssa to the south) on both sides, and occupies an area that was probably cleared for the right of ways. Freshwater discharge comes from white cedar forest to the north. Phragmites dominates the transition zone between salt marsh and fen. Cladium mariscoides, Eleocharis rostellata, and Scirpus pungens dominate the saline edge of the fen. Vegetation grades into forbs and graminoides that are somewhat tolerant of slight brackishness. There is no evidence of flooding. Soil is saturated at one end of the plot and dry at the other. A layer of yellow sand underlies a thin layer of poorly decomposed organic matter. Below is gray sand grading into sandy clay with pebbles throughout. Entire community is less than 1 acre.
