Name:
Arctostaphylos patula - Ceanothus velutinus - Quercus vacciniifolia Montane Chaparral Macrogroup
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
These are chaparral shrublands found among montane forests of the Cascades south into Baja California, Mexico, and east in scattered locations on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada and Cascades and into the western Great Basin, Colorado Plateau, and Rocky Mountains. These hardy shrublands have open canopies with little undergrowth and are dominated by evergreen or winter-deciduous shrubs; some stands can have high densities of shrubs. Dominant and diagnostic shrubs include <i>Arctostaphylos glandulosa, Arctostaphylos nevadensis, Arctostaphylos patula, Ceanothus cordulatus, Ceanothus diversifolius, Ceanothus integerrimus, Ceanothus pinetorum, Ceanothus sanguineus</i> (in Oregon), <i>Ceanothus velutinus, Cercocarpus intricatus, Cercocarpus montanus var. glaber, Chrysolepis sempervirens, Eriogonum fasciculatum, Garrya flavescens, Holodiscus discolor, Prunus emarginata, Prunus subcordata, Purshia stansburiana, Quercus garryana var. fruticosa, Quercus sadleriana, Quercus vacciniifolia</i>, and <i>Rhus trilobata</i>. This macrogroup occurs on sideslopes between low-elevation desert landscapes and higher pinyon-juniper woodlands of the western and central Great Basin on steep, exposed slopes with rocky and/or shallow soils, and among montane forests of the Rocky Mountains, Cascades and Sierra Nevada, above 1500 m (4550 feet) elevation where much of the annual precipitation occurs as snow. The shrubs are adapted to freezing temperatures and cold winters. Most of these chaparral species are fire-adapted, resprouting vigorously after burning or producing fire-resistant seeds. These may be short-duration chaparrals in previously forested areas that have experienced crown fires or recent logging. Occurrences likely shift across montane forested landscapes with catastrophic fire events.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40503-{E4ECAE5D-1FD6-4967-94D1-E438FCBD55D9}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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