Comm #1767
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NY Heritage: Rich sloping fen
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accession code: VB.CC.28547.NYHERITAGERICHS
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Ecological Communities of New York, 2nd Ed. |
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A small, gently sloping, minerotrophic wetland, with shallow peat deposits, that occurs in a shallow depression on a slope composed of calcareous glacial deposits. Sloping fens are fed by small springs or groundwater seepage. Like other rich fens, their water sources have high concentrations of minerals and high pH values, generally from 6.0 to 7.8. Rich sloping fens are headwater wetlands with cold water constantly moving through them. They often have water flowing at the surface in small channels or rivulets. Rich sloping fens are often surrounded by upland forest and grade into other palustrine communities such as hemlock-hardwood swamp, shrub swamp, or shallow emergent marsh downslope.
The structure of rich sloping fens is variable; usually there are scattered trees and shrubs, and a nearly continuous groundlayer of herbs and bryophytes. They may be shrub-dominated or herb-dominated. Species diversity is usually very high and may include species from the surrounding forest.
Characteristic shrubs include red osier dogwood (Cornus sericea), the willows Salix discolor, S. sericea, and S. bebbiana, dwarf raspberry (Rubus pubescens), northern gooseberry (Ribes hirtellum), alder-leaf buckthorn (Rhamnus alnifolia), arrowwood (Viburnum dentatum var. lucidum), highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum), red maple (Acer rubrum), eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis). Other shrubs found in rich sloping fens include gray dogwood (Cornus foemina), poison sumac (Toxicodendron vernix), and shrubby cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa). Virgin's-bower (Clematis virginiana) is a characteristic vine.
Characteristic herbs include skunk-cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), marsh fern (Thelypteris palustris), spotted joe-pye-weed (Eupatorium maculatum), spreading goldenrod (Solidago patula), the sedges Carex leptalea, C. flava, C. hystericina, C. interior, C. sterilis, and C. stricta, golden ragwort (Senecio aureus), purple-stem aster (Aster puniceus), cat-tails (Typha latifolia and T. angustifolia), swamp goldenrod (Solidago uliginosa), cotton-grass (Eriophorum viridi-carinatum), thoroughwort (Eupatorium perfoliatum), flat-top white aster (Aster umbellatus), purple avens (Geum rivale), tall meadow-rue (Thalictrum pubescens), common horsetail (Equisetum arvense), fowl mannagrass (Glyceria striata), field mint (Mentha arvensis), sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), water-horehound (Lycopus americanus), cinnamon fern (Osmunda cinnamomea), bulrush (Scirpus atrovirens), wild strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), water-horehound (Lycopus uniflorus), and bush goldenrod (Euthamia graminifolia). Other herbs found in rich sloping fens include the sedge Carex prairea, spike muhly (Muhlenbergia glomerata), turtle-heads (Chelone glabra), bog-candle (Platanthera dilatata), spreading globeflower (Trollius laxus), showy ladyslipper (Cypripedium reginae), and grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia glauca).
Characteristic non-vascular species include the mosses Campylium stellatum, Aulacomnium palustre, Calliergonella cuspidata, Bryum pseudotriquetrum, Fissidens adianthoides, Sphagnum warnstorfii, and Thuidium delicatulum. Other non-vascular plants found in rich sloping fens include the mosses Tomenthypnum nitens and Drepanocladus vernicosus.
A rare animal of some rich sloping fens is bog turtle (Clemmys muhlenbergii). Data on characteristic animals are needed. |
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