Ohio subset of Plant Communities of the Midwest ... - NatureServe

Wet Prairies and Wet Meadows: Midwestern Wet Prairies and Meadows
Spartina pectinata - Carex spp. - Calamagrostis canadensis Lakeplain Herbaceous Vegetation
Prairie Cordgrass - Sedge Species - Bluejoint Lakeplain Herbaceous Vegetation
Lakeplain Wet Prairie
CEGL005109
DESCRIPTION: Average vegetation height is 1-2 m with little bare ground exposed. The dominant species are
graminoids, although forbs and small trees and shrubs are common. Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex aquatilis,
Carex pellita (= Carex lanuginosa), and Spartina pectinata are typical dominants. Andropogon gerardii,
Symphyotrichum ericoides (= Aster ericoides), Juncus balticus, Panicum virgatum, Oligoneuron ohioense (= Solidago
ohioensis), and Sorghastrum nutans are all common components of this community. The shrubs Cornus sericea and
Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda (= Pentaphylloides floribunda), and small Fraxinus pennsylvanica and Populus
deltoides trees may also be found (Faber-Langendoen and Maycock 1987, 1994, Comer et al. 1995b).
This community occurs on level, sandy glacial outwash, sandy glacial lakeplains, and deposits of dune sand in
silty/clayer glacial lakeplains. Soils are sandy or sandy loam soil, rarely with clay or silt loam. There is often a clay
layer below the surface thatimpedes drainage and prevents groundwater from moving to the surface (Comer et al.
1995b). These conditions result in temporary flooding in the winter and spring and drought in the summer and fall.
The soil is neutral to somewhat alkaline (Chapman 1984). The subsurface clay was deposited on the beds of glacial
lakes, whereas the sand was deposited on lake beaches or by alluvial processes (Comer et al. 1995b).
Wildfires may have played a role maintaining these systems in the past (Faber-Langendoen and Maycock 1987).
COMMENTS: 2, MCS. Faber-Langendoen and Maycock (1994) found that wet lakeplain prairies were floristically
distinct from other wet prairies in Michigan and Wisconsin, though no diagnostic species were provided. In Ohio, this
type is found at Castalia Prairie. In Vermont this type is found in the Lake Champlain area.
CONSERVATION RANK: G2G3. There are probably fewer than 100 occurrences of this community rangewide. It is
reported from Ohio (where it is ranked S3), Indiana (S2), Michigan (S2), Ontario (S) and Vermont (S). Currently 19
occurrences have been documented from Indiana and Michigan. There are probably less than 4000 acres rangewide.
Currently over 370 acres have been documented; the average documented size is about 37 acres. Acreage of this
community has probably been reduced by both residential and commercial development near the Great Lakes and
Lake Champlain shores.
DISTRIBUTION: This lakeplain wet prairie grassland community occurs in the southern Great Lakes region of the
midwestern United States, ranging from northern Indiana, northern Ohio, southern Michigan, and southern Ontario,
eastward to possibly Vermont. In Michigan, lakeplain wet prairies are most commonly found close to the shoreline of
Saginaw Bay and within the St. Clair River Delta.
USFS ECOREGIONS: 212E:CC, 222If:CCC, 222Jb:CCC, 222Jd:CCC, 222Je:CCC, 222Jj:CCC, 222Qb:CCC
CONSERVATION REGIONS: 48:C
STATES: IL IN MI OH VT PROVINCES: ON
MIDWEST HERITAGE SYNONYMY: IL wet sand prairie +
IN wet sand prairie +
MI lakeplain wet prairie =
OH slough grass-bluejoint prairie +
OTHER SYNONYMY: Wet loam prairie (Faber-Langendoen and Maycock 1987) =, Wet prairie (Faber-Langendoen and
Maycock 1994) =, Lakeplain wet prairie (Comer et al. 1995b) =
USNVC HIERARCHY: SPARTINA PECTINATA TEMPORARILY FLOODED HERBACEOUS ALLIANCE (V.A.5.N.j)
PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST – 2001. APPENDIX: ASSOCIATION DESCRIPTIONS
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