Name:
Sibbaldiopsis tridentata - Polypodium virginianum / Cladonia spp. Eastern North American Cliff & Rock Vegetation Macrogroup
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This type encompasses vegetation of eastern temperate and boreal North American cliffs, talus slopes and erosional bluffs characterized by often sparse and patchy vascular vegetation and often high nonvascular cover. It ranges from the East Coast west to the Ouachitas and upper Great Lakes and through central and eastern boreal Canada. Vegetation structure varies widely, and may include scattered small trees such as <i>Betula papyrifera, Juniperus virginiana, Picea glauca, Pinus banksiana, Pinus strobus, Thuja occidentalis</i>, and <i>Quercus</i> spp. Other commonly encountered species may include <i>Asplenium</i> spp., <i>Cystopteris fragilis, Danthonia spicata, Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda, Deschampsia cespitosa, Dryopteris marginalis, Hydrangea arborescens, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Polypodium virginianum, Ribes</i> spp., <i>Rubus pubescens, Sibbaldiopsis tridentata</i>, and <i>Toxicodendron radicans</i>. Characteristic foliose and fruticose macrolichen genera include <i>Cladonia, Lasallia, Stereocaulon</i>, and <i>Umbilicaria</i>. Crustose lichens are also common. Substrates include all lithologies from acidic granites to circumneutral basalts to calcareous limestones, with concomitant floristic variation. These cliffs are prone to harsh climatic conditions; frequent disturbances include drought stress and wind and storm damage. Most of the substrate is dry and exposed, but small (occasionally large) areas of seepage are often present. The vegetation is patchy and sparse overall, except in some wet, or seepy, areas where the rocks are often densely or moderately covered with bryophytes or algae. Outside of the glaciated regions and the Appalachian Mountains, this vegetation is primarily limited to river gorges and bluffs. A specialized habitat within this macrogroup is the vertical walls of limestone sinkholes. Vegetation occurring on shoreline examples seems to be mostly restricted to areas protected from wave action, ice-scour, and wind.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40511-{20178C5D-66D1-4C01-A7F8-383B955B2ACD}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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