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(Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla) / Polytrichum strictum - Cladina spp. - Sphagnum spp. Nonvascular Vegetation |
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Name: (Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla) / Polytrichum strictum - Cladina spp. - Sphagnum spp. Nonvascular Vegetation
Reference:
Description: This ombrotrophic late-successional wetland occurs on slightly domed peat deposits in the Allegheny Mountains region of West Virginia, at elevations between 960 and 1030 m. It is characterized by well-developed hummocks of mosses and lichens with occasional dominance by clonal patches of <i>Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla</i>. It is a small-patch type (0.05-10 hectares) that occupies flat-lying headwater basins in the center of wetland mosaics, where it is isolated from seepage inputs. Hummock-and-hollow microtopography is well-developed, with rounded peat hummocks ranging from 25-50 cm in height. The substrate is poorly drained peat, with depths ranging from 2 to 3.5 m. According to carbon dating of peat, this community grows on a site that has been characterized by bog vegetation for about 9500 years. The short-shrub stratum ranges from 0 to 60% cover and is almost exclusively composed of <i>Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla</i>, with infrequent very low cover by <i>Photinia melanocarpa</i> or <i>Hypericum densiflorum</i>. The dwarf-shrub layer is comprised of <i>Rubus hispidus</i> and <i>Vaccinium oxycoccos</i> with an average cover of 12%. The herbaceous layer, with mean 5% cover, is characterized by <i>Eriophorum virginicum</i>, which grows on top of the hummocks. <i>Rhynchospora alba</i> may line the hollows, and very low cover of <i>Carex trisperma var. trisperma</i> or <i>Osmunda cinnamomea var. cinnamomea</i> may be present. Nonvascular plants average 95% cover, with hummocks dominated by <i>Polytrichum strictum</i> and <i>Cladina</i> spp. (<i>Cladina arbuscula (= Cladonia arbuscula), Cladina rangiferina (= Cladonia rangiferina), Cladina stygia (= Cladonia stygia)</i>), and hollows lined with <i>Sphagnum</i> spp. (<i>Sphagnum rubellum, Sphagnum flexuosum, Sphagnum magellanicum</i>). Mean species richness of all vascular plants and any nonvascular plants with cover >1% is 13 taxa per 400 square meters, with 40% of the diversity in the nonvascular stratum. 
Accession Code: VB.CC.37496.CEGL006589
Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 4
      Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization)
Perspective from: 17-Nov-2014 to: 01-May-2019
     
  • status: accepted
  • This Community's Level: association
  • This Community's Children: [none]
Names:   Common: Bog-rosemary Peatland
  Translated: (Bog-rosemary) / Bog Haircap Moss - Reindeer Lichen species - Peatmoss species Nonvascular Vegetation
  Scientific: (Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla) / Polytrichum strictum - Cladina spp. - Sphagnum spp. Nonvascular Vegetation
  Code: CEGL006589
  UID: ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.800167 NatureServe ExplorerNatureServe Explorer logo