Name:
Dasiphora fruticosa - Carex eburnea Calcareous Scrub & Grassland Macrogroup
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This macrogroup encompasses calcareous outcrops and alvar grasslands and shrublands that occur in isolated patches in the Laurentian-Acadian region of southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States. Alvars are well-described, and are found in the temperate-boreal transition of the Great Lakes and Lake Winnipeg basins. They are characterized by distinctive scrub and herb flora, of eastern tallgrass prairie elements and eastern subboreal elements, with less than 10% tree cover. Alvars occur both as open grasslands and pavements, with shrubs <25% cover and as shrublands, where shrubs are >25%. Common alvar species include <i>Carex crawei, Carex scirpoidea, Danthonia spicata, Deschampsia cespitosa, Eleocharis compressa, Juniperus horizontalis, Packera paupercula, Schizachyrium scoparium</i>, and <i>Sporobolus heterolepis</i>. In more exposed areas, there is a mosaic of mossy patches and exposed bedrock that is covered with crustose and foliose lichens. In shrubby areas, the dominant shrub is the short to tall shrub <i>Juniperus communis</i>, mixed with <i>Juniperus horizontalis</i> and/or <i>Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda</i>, or a mix of scrub forms of tree species such as <i>Abies balsamea, Larix laricina, Picea glauca</i>, and <i>Thuja occidentalis</i>. Alvars are maintained by associated geologic, hydrologic, and other landscape processes. In particular, most types of alvar tend to flood each spring, then experience moderate to severe drought in summer months. They include open pavement, grassland, and shrubland/woodland types. Alvar communities occur in an ecological matrix with similar bedrock and hydrologically influenced communities. Four key ecological processes influence Great Lakes alvar communities: (1) hydrology and soil moisture regime, (2) fire regime and land-use history, (3) herbivory: browsing by deer and grazing by cattle, and (4) the invasion of exotic plant species. Calcareous rocky outcrops are poorly described in the region.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40807-{8F5A5CB6-5124-4126-996B-7A5D30D45E48}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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