Name:
Scirpus cyperinus Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance
Reference:
Southeastern Ecology Working Gro...
Description:
This alliance, which is found in the eastern and southeastern United States, inhabits seasonally flooded marshes or emergent zones of upland depression ponds. The vegetation is dominated by Scirpus cyperinus, or at least with substantial cover of this species. The habitat of this alliance may have a pronounced seasonal fluctuation in water level, becoming saturated to ponded in the winter and often drying completely in the summer. The vegetation is typically dominated by patches or zones of Scirpus cyperinus; other species present may include Carex spp., Dichanthelium spp., Dulichium arundinaceum, Glyceria spp., Juncus spp., Leersia spp., Panicum rigidulum, Rhynchospora spp., and Thelypteris palustris, as well as other species of Scirpus including Scirpus microcarpus (= Scirpus rubrotinctus) and Scirpus atrovirens. The vegetation may consist of monospecific clumps of the component species, either scattered in the marsh or around the pond margin. Mats of Sphagnum mosses may be prominent in some examples (e.g., Sphagnum lescurii, Sphagnum pylaesii, Sphagnum cuspidatum, Sphagnum palustre, and Sphagnum recurvum. Some examples may have scattered woody plants, including shrubs and small trees such as Acer rubrum, Alnus serrulata, Cephalanthus occidentalis, Rosa palustris, and Nyssa sylvatica. To the north, Vaccinium corymbosum is a typical associate, while Hibiscus moscheutos, Itea virginica, Liquidambar styraciflua, Pinus taeda, and Quercus phellos occur more frequently in the southern portion of the range. Sparsely distributed shrubs in montane examples may include Vaccinium spp. and Leucothoe racemosa. The floristics and physiognomic expression may vary with context and management. In a burned or mowed context, examples of this vegetation type may grade down into other wetland herbaceous types, but in a more forested context may grade into upland depression forests.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.17979.SCIRPUSCYPERINU
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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