Name:
Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda Subalpine Shrubland
Reference:
Western Ecology Working Group of...
Description:
This alpine-subalpine dwarf-shrubland is described from the southern Rocky Mountains from New Mexico to northern Colorado, occurring in the high subalpine between 3460 and 3540 m (11,350-11,600 feet) elevation. Stands are found on moderate to steep (26-100%), rocky, sometime talus slopes near treeline. Soils are typically shallow and rocky. Exposed bedrock and large and small rock cover a significant amount of the ground surface. The vegetation is characterized by a moderately dense (30-60% cover) dwarf-shrub layer dominated by <i>Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda</i>, sometime with <i>Ribes montigenum</i> present. The stands may be located next to clusters of krummholz <i>Picea engelmannii</i> and <i>Abies lasiocarpa var. lasiocarpa</i>. Beneath the shrub layer is a diverse array of alpine forbs and graminoids that characterize this association, generally up to 30 different herbaceous species in each stand cumulatively covering 20-50%. The most abundant herbaceous species include <i>Carex rupestris var. drummondiana, Carex elynoides, Calamagrostis purpurascens, Elymus scribneri, Festuca brachyphylla, Geum rossii var. turbinatum, Poa reflexa, Trifolium dasyphyllum</i>, and <i>Trisetum spicatum</i>. The widespread species <i>Deschampsia caespitosa</i> is not a characteristic species in this association but may codominate some stands. The following additional species are characteristic with low coverage of <5%: <i>Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis, Antennaria</i> spp., <i>Aquilegia caerulea, Arenaria fendleri var. fendleri, Artemisia arctica ssp. arctica, Campanula rotundifolia, Castilleja</i> spp., <i>Cirsium scopulorum, Heuchera parvifolia, Minuartia obtusiloba, Oreoxis alpina, Phlox</i> spp., <i>Poa alpina, Polygonum viviparum, Ranunculus</i> spp., <i>Rhodiola rhodantha, Saxifraga bronchialis, Silene acaulis var. subacaulescens, Solidago simplex var. nana, Tetraneuris acaulis, Tetraneuris grandiflora</i>, and <i>Tonestus pygmaeus</i>.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.31940.CEGL003499
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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