Name:
Morella pensylvanica - Ammophila breviligulata - Schizachyrium littorale Dune & Grassland Group
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This group encompasses vegetation of sandy coastlines and barrier islands, ranging from northernmost North Carolina northward to southern Maine where extensive sandy coastlines are replaced by rocky coasts. A range of physiognomies may be present, from somewhat sparse herbaceous dune vegetation with <i>Ammophila breviligulata</i> diagnostic, to backdune shrublands, and shrub-herb patchworks on nearshore sandplains. Characteristic species (in different associations within the group) include <i>Ammophila breviligulata, Andropogon virginicus, Cenchrus tribuloides, Diodia teres, Hudsonia tomentosa, Morella pensylvanica, Panicum amarum, Panicum virgatum, Polygonella articulata, Schizachyrium littorale, Schizachyrium scoparium</i>, and <i>Solidago sempervirens</i>, among others. Dominant ecological processes are those associated with the maritime environment, including frequent salt spray, wind exposure, saltwater overwash, and wind-transported sand movement that are severe enough to limit tree growth. Vegetation in this group includes grasslands and shrublands of foredunes and more stabilized backdunes, as well as sandplain grasslands and heathlands of the southern New England / New York coast. In Atlantic Canada, coastal sandplain grasslands can also occur with 10s to 100s of meters from the coast. Most of the dwarf dune heath is <i>Empetrum</i> spp.-dominated, but some stands feature <i>Corema conradii</i> and <i>Hudsonia tomentosa</i>.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40128-{B64A58BE-AC8A-4D4A-8599-6FE63A4BF1A5}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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