Name:
Betula occidentalis Wet Shrubland Alliance
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
In this alliance, <i>Betula occidentalis</i> forms a dense, closed canopy with cover up to 95%. The shrub layer may also include <i>Alnus incana, Artemisia tridentata ssp. vaseyana, Cornus sericea, Crataegus douglasii, Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda, Juniperus horizontalis, Purshia tridentata, Purshia tridentata, Rosa woodsii</i>, and <i>Salix</i> spp. Due to the dense shrub canopy, herbaceous undergrowth is usually limited. Forb species include <i>Aquilegia formosa, Maianthemum stellatum</i>, and <i>Urtica dioica</i>. Graminoid cover is usually low and is typically composed of introduced hay grasses. This riparian shrubland alliance occurs in the Rocky Mountains, intermountain ranges of Nevada and Sierra Nevada of California on moderately wide stream benches and floodplains. It may also occur on hillside seeps in the mountains and foothills. Sites are relatively flat (1-5% slope) stream benches and often extend away from the channel edge. The substrate is usually exposed, but surface water can be present for variable periods without detectable seasonal periodicity. Inundation is not predictable to a given season and is dependent upon highly localized rainstorms (e.g., summer thunderstorms in eastern Oregon and Idaho). Soils are derived from alluvium and are fairly shallow, ranging from 30 cm to greater than 60 cm. Substrates are typically alluvial and range from fairly shallow, finer-textured soils to gravel and boulders. Soils usually have signs of saturation (mottles).
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:38986-{E1113604-102D-4E20-BC29-A5CDAE0CC69A}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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