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
30
m
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot location: steep SW-facing bluff fronting Potomac Creek near N tip of Big Marsh and ca. 0.7 miles NW of Boykins Island.
Field estimate from topo: (UTME): 296098 (UTMN): 4247652.
Rock Types Present: (shell-marl conglomerate boulders present nearby slope).
The vegetation of this bluff-like slope is impressively species-rich and has a very unusual composition for the Coastal Plain. Large-diameter specimens of the calciphiles Quercus muhlenbergii dominate the open forest. Other noteworthy calciphiles that are uncommon or rare on the Coastal Plain include Cercis canadensis, Anemone virginiana, Arabis laevigata, Erigeron pulchellus, Hexalectris spicata, Muhlenbergii sobolifera, M. tenuiflora, Solidago ulmifolia, and Ulmus rubra. This is likely a rare, small-patch vegetation type and has many similarities to dry calcareous ravine forests of the Peninsula around Williamsburg and Yorktown.