Name:
Salix planifolia / Carex scopulorum Shrubland
Reference:
Western Ecology Working Group of...
Description:
This plant community is found at high elevations in the southern Rocky Mountains and the Beartooth Plateau in northwestern Wyoming, eastern Idaho, and the North Cascades in Washington. Elevations range from 3230-3810 m (10,600-12,500 feet) in Colorado, near 2900 m (9500 feet) in Wyoming, and 1585-2260 m (5200-7400 feet) in Washington. Stands primarily occur at low to middle alpine elevations, although they occur in the subalpine in western Colorado. This community occupies diverse topographic positions, being found within and around seepage areas and drainages fed by persistent but melting snowfields and in headwaters of streams. The dependence of this community on snowmelt runoff allows its occurrence on steep cirque walls, as well as gently sloping hillsides or flats near lakes. Substrates are shallow to moderately deep, with high organic content, and range from loamy mineral to organic soils. The vegetation is characterized by the low willow layer dominated by <i>Salix planifolia</i> with an average of 60% cover. <i>Salix glauca</i> and <i>Betula glandulosa</i> are present in some stands. <i>Carex scopulorum</i> usually dominates the herbaceous understory with 25-50% cover. However, in some stands, <i>Caltha leptosepala</i> may codominate, the two species together averaging 30% cover. Associated understory species may include <i>Deschampsia caespitosa, Eleocharis quinqueflora, Juncus</i> spp., <i>Luzula spicata, Poa alpina</i>, and <i>Poa reflexa</i>, among the graminoids, and <i>Castilleja occidentalis, Gentiana algida, Geum rossii, Pedicularis groenlandica, Polygonum bistortoides, Polygonum viviparum, Potentilla diversifolia, Rhodiola rhodantha (= Sedum rhodanthum), Swertia perennis, Trifolium parryi</i>, and <i>Trollius laxus</i>, among the forbs.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.32553.CEGL001229
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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