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Quercus macrocarpa Woodland Alliance | Midwestern Ecology Working Group...
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Name: Quercus macrocarpa Woodland Alliance Reference: Midwestern Ecology Working Group... Description: This alliance is widespread in the northern and central Great Plains. All of its associations are found exclusively or primarily in the midwestern United States west of the Mississippi River. The canopy is open to moderately closed and usually dominated by Quercus macrocarpa. Common associates in the canopy are Quercus muehlenbergii in the southeast portion, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Tilia americana, and Populus tremuloides in the northern half, and Carya spp. and Ulmus spp. in the eastern part of the alliance's range. Pinus ponderosa can occur in some stands at the extreme western limit of this alliance's range. A shrub layer 1-2 m tall is often present, especially in the northern half of the range of this alliance. Dominant shrubs include Amelanchier alnifolia, Corylus americana, Corylus cornuta, Prunus virginiana, and Symphoricarpos occidentalis. The herbaceous layer is dominated by graminoids. These can range from tall grasses, such as Andropogon gerardii, Panicum virgatum, and Sorghastrum nutans, to mid grasses, such as Schizachyrium scoparium and Hesperostipa spartea (= Stipa spartea), to short graminoids, such as Carex inops ssp. heliophila. This alliance is found in a landscape dominated by prairie communities. The woodland is typically found on rolling hills, lower mountain slopes (in the Black Hills), or along ravines. These topographic positions provided some protection from the fires that regularly occurred on the surrounding prairies in pre-European times. However, some fire was necessary to prevent the woodland physiognomy from closing and becoming a forest. This was especially important in the more mesic eastern portions of this alliance's range. In Nebraska, the soils are fertile, moderately well-drained to well-drained, and deep.  Accession Code: VB.CC.17861.QUERCUSMACROCAR Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 26-Nov-1997 to: 01-May-2019
	status: accepted This Community's Level: Alliance This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   Scientific: Quercus macrocarpa Woodland Alliance   UID: HIGHER_CLASS_UNIT.2.125327 NatureServe Explorer   Translated: Bur Oak Woodland Alliance   Code: A.620