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

Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Midwestern Riverfront Floodplain Forests
Populus deltoides - Salix nigra Forest
Eastern Cottonwood - Black Willow Forest
Cottonwood - Black Willow Forest
CEGL002018
DESCRIPTION: This community is dominated by broadleaf deciduous trees. Canopy closure is complete, or nearly
so, with few shrubs and limited tree species found in the type. The tree canopy is tall (to 30 m) and dominated by
Populus deltoides and Salix nigra, although Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Acer saccharinum, Acer negundo, Platanus
occidentalis, and Ulmus americana are also commonly encountered. Tree diversity is limited due to the dynamics of
flooding and deposition/scouring of sediments. The subcanopy is almost exclusively Salix nigra. The shrub layer is
conspicuously absent in many parts of the range. Herbaceous growth can be thick and lush but is often patchy and
sparse due to frequent inundation. Species most often encountered in the ground layer include Carex spp., Leersia
oryzoides, Bidens spp., and Aster spp. (TNC 1995a).
This community is quick to colonize newly deposited substrates adjacent to rivers, lakes, streams, and in frequently
flooded, low, wet depressions in floodplains. Dynamic substrate availability caused by frequent flooding encourages
the establishment and maintenance of this community type.
Prolonged flooding in late winter and early spring is the only source of significant natural disturbance. Wind and
lightning damage also occur. Stands develop on bare, moist soil on recently formed sand bars, front-land ridges, and
well-drained flats, often forming a patchy scrub phase that includes other pioneer species.
COMMENTS: 2, MCS. The name of the community must have an additional species added to highlight the distinction
between this and Populus deltoides - Salix nigra / Mikania scandens Forest (CEGL007346). Kentucky occurrences
are intermediate between the two. This type does not occur in Nebraska, where Salix nigra is a very uncommon tree
species. In fact it is thought to have been incorrectly reported as more widespread in the state because it can been
confused with Salix amygdaloides (G. Steinauer pers. comm. 2000).
CONSERVATION RANK: G3G4. The current range of this community is much smaller than the presettlement range due
to extensive logging, ditching, draining, and land clearing for conversion to croplands. The reduced water flows and
channelization of rivers decreases the frequency of natural floods necessary for the scouring and deposition of new
substrates that favor cottonwood regeneration.
DISTRIBUTION: This cottonwood - black willow forest is characteristic of the fronts and banks of most major rivers
and streams throughout the Central Forest Region, extending into the northern forest particularly within the
Mississippi, Ohio, and Missouri River systems, extending from Ohio west to Minnesota, southward to Oklahoma, and
east to Kentucky.
USFS ECOREGIONS: 222Ad:CP, 222Ae:CP, 222C:CP, 222D:CP, 222E:CP, 222F:CP, 222G:CP, 222H:CP, 222I:CP, 222J:CP,
222K:CP, 222Lf:CCC, 222Mb:CCC, 222Me:CCC, 231A:PP, 231B:PP, 231E:PP, 231F:PP, 231G:PP, 232B:PP, 232C:PP,
234A:PP, 251Ba:CCC, 251Bb:CCC, 251Cd:CC, 251Cg:CCC, 251D:CP
CONSERVATION REGIONS: 35:C, 36:C, 37:C, 38:P, 39:, 42:C, 43:C, 44:C, 46:C
STATES: AR IA IL IN KS KY MN MO OH OK WI PROVINCES:
MIDWEST HERITAGE SYNONYMY: IL wet floodplain forest (S) +
IN wet floodplain forest +
MN floodplain forest =
MO wet bottomland forest +
OH maple-cottonwood-sycamore floodplain forest
WI floodplain forest (cottonwood-willow subtype) =
OTHER SYNONYMY: Populus deltoides - Salix nigra / Leersia community (Voigt and Mohlenbrock 1964) =
USNVC HIERARCHY: POPULUS DELTOIDES TEMPORARILY FLOODED FOREST ALLIANCE (I.B.2.N.d)
PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST – 2001. APPENDIX: ASSOCIATION DESCRIPTIONS
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