Vegetation Classification and Mapping Project Report - USGS
Vegetation Classification and Mapping Project Report - USGS
Vegetation Classification and Mapping Project Report - USGS
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<strong>USGS</strong>-NPS <strong>Vegetation</strong> <strong>Mapping</strong> Program<br />
Colonial National Historical Park<br />
Association Fagus gr<strong>and</strong>ifolia - Quercus (alba, rubra) - Liriodendron tulipifera / (Ilex opaca<br />
var. opaca) / Polystichum acrostichoides Forest<br />
Association (English name) American Beech - (White Oak, Northern Red Oak) - Tuliptree / (American<br />
Holly) / Christmas Fern Forest<br />
Ecological System(s): Atlantic Coastal Plain Mesic Hardwood Forest (CES203.242).<br />
Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Hardwood Forest (CES203.475).<br />
GLOBAL DESCRIPTION<br />
Concept Summary: This forest of mesic to submesic, well-drained soils occurs in the Piedmont<br />
<strong>and</strong> Coastal Plain of Virginia <strong>and</strong> Maryl<strong>and</strong>, extending north to southern New Engl<strong>and</strong> on the<br />
Coastal Plain. It also occurs occasionally at low elevations of the Blue Ridge <strong>and</strong> adjacent Ridge<br />
<strong>and</strong> Valley in Virginia <strong>and</strong> Maryl<strong>and</strong>. It is characteristically a mixed forest dominated by Fagus<br />
gr<strong>and</strong>ifolia (American beech), Quercus alba (white oak), Quercus rubra (northern red oak), <strong>and</strong><br />
Liriodendron tulipifera (tuliptree) in various proportions. Overstory associates over the range<br />
include Quercus velutina (black oak), Quercus falcata (southern red oak), Quercus coccinea<br />
(scarlet oak), Liquidambar styraciflua (sweetgum), Acer rubrum (red maple), Nyssa sylvatica<br />
(blackgum), Carya alba (mockernut hickory), Carya glabra (pignut hickory), <strong>and</strong> Fraxinus<br />
americana (white ash). The subcanopy is characterized by young Fagus gr<strong>and</strong>ifolia (American<br />
beech), Acer rubrum (red maple), Carpinus caroliniana (American hornbeam), Cornus florida<br />
(flowering dogwood), <strong>and</strong> Sassafras albidum (sassafras). Ilex opaca var. opaca (American holly)<br />
is particularly characteristic <strong>and</strong> abundant on the Coastal Plain. The shrub layer varies from very<br />
sparse to well-developed <strong>and</strong> can include Asimina triloba (pawpaw), Viburnum acerifolium<br />
(mapleleaf viburnum), Viburnum dentatum (southern arrowwood), <strong>and</strong> Euonymus americanus<br />
(strawberry bush). Heath shrubs, such as Vaccinium corymbosum (highbush blueberry) <strong>and</strong><br />
Vaccinium pallidum (Blue Ridge blueberry), may be common but not abundant. Vines are<br />
common, including Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Virginia creeper), Smilax glauca (cat<br />
greenbrier), <strong>and</strong> Toxicodendron radicans (eastern poison ivy). In the southern part of the range,<br />
Oxydendrum arboreum (sourwood) <strong>and</strong> Vitis rotundifolia (muscadine) may be conspicuous<br />
members of the understory. The herb layer is comprised of Polystichum acrostichoides<br />
(Christmas fern), Thelypteris noveboracensis (New York fern), Uvularia perfoliata (perfoliate<br />
bellwort), Cypripedium acaule (moccasin flower), Mitchella repens (partridgeberry), Tipularia<br />
discolor (crippled cranefly), Goodyera pubescens (downy rattlesnake plantain), Eurybia<br />
divaricata (white wood aster), Chimaphila maculata (striped prince's pine), Carex swanii<br />
(Swan's sedge), Medeola virginiana (Indian cucumber), Athyrium filix-femina (common<br />
ladyfern), Carex digitalis (slender woodl<strong>and</strong> sedge), Carex willdenowii (Willdenow's sedge),<br />
Epifagus virginiana (beechdrops), Maianthemum canadense (Canada mayflower), Desmodium<br />
nudiflorum (nakedflower ticktrefoil), Polygonatum biflorum (smooth Solomon's seal),<br />
Podophyllum peltatum (mayapple), Arisaema triphyllum (Jack in the pulpit), <strong>and</strong> Maianthemum<br />
racemosum (feathery false lily of the valley).<br />
Environmental Description: This forest association occurs on mesic to submesic slopes or<br />
gentle gradients. Ravines in dissected topography are particularly typical sites in the Piedmont<br />
<strong>and</strong> parts of the Inner Coastal Plain. The type also occupies rolling upl<strong>and</strong>s with deep soils. Soils<br />
are typically well-drained, acidic s<strong>and</strong>y <strong>and</strong> silt loams derived from parent material of low to<br />
moderate fertility. This association is found throughout the Piedmont from south-central Virginia<br />
to New Jersey <strong>and</strong> Pennsylvania, <strong>and</strong> on the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain from southeastern<br />
Virginia northward.<br />
<strong>Vegetation</strong> Description: Rangewide, this vegetation type is characteristically a mixed<br />
mesophytic forest dominated by Fagus gr<strong>and</strong>ifolia (American beech), Quercus alba (white oak),<br />
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