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

Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Midwestern Bottomland Hardwood Forests
Acer saccharum - Carya cordiformis / Asimina triloba Floodplain Forest
Sugar Maple - Bitternut Hickory / Common Pawpaw Floodplain Forest
Maple - Hickory Mesic Floodplain Forest
CEGL005035
DESCRIPTION: The vegetation is dominated by broadleaf deciduous trees. Acer saccharum and Carya cordiformis
dominate the overstory. These stout-branched trees display broad crowns and stout columnar trunks and grow to 20-
30 m in height. The subcanopy contains a variety of tree saplings, including Ulmus americana, Ulmus rubra, Morus
rubra, and Prunus serotina var. serotina. The shrub layer is often quite dense and tangled with vines. Species include
Toxicodendron radicans, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Campsis radicans, Smilax tamnoides (= Smilax hispida),
Smilax rotundifolia, Wisteria frutescens, and Vitis vulpina. Asimina triloba dominates the shrub layer, but Lindera
benzoin, Aralia spinosa, Corylus americana, Ilex decidua, Crataegus viridis, Crataegus pruinosa, and Cornus florida
are also commonly encountered. On better sites, the herbaceous stratum is dense and diverse. Typical species
include Laportea canadensis, Symphyotrichum lanceolatum (= Aster lanceolatus), Polygonum virginianum, Poa
sylvestris, Ruellia strepens, Tradescantia subaspera, Vernonia gigantea, Eupatorium purpureum, Teucrium
canadense, and Dioscorea quaternata. Stands on the floodplains of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers in western
Kentucky contain other canopy species, such as Gymnocladus dioicus, Quercus pagoda, Quercus shumardii,
Quercus macrocarpa, Quercus muehlenbergii, Carya illinoinensis, Quercus alba, Quercus rubra, Nyssa sylvatica, and
Juglans nigra (TNC 1995a).
Stands occur on level to gently sloping ridges, terraces, natural levees, or higher elevations which border river
floodplains or streams. Sites often have a ridge-and-swale topography. Mesic moisture conditions are maintained
throughout most of the growing season, but some flooding does occur. Soils are moist and well- to moderatelydrained.
In general, they have medium-textured silts and colluvial, deep, clay loams derived from sandstone and
shales.
Natural disturbance includes flooding, wind, and storm damage.
COMMENTS: 3, MCS. This type is not well-defined, occupying a relatively narrow segment of the
moisture/topographic gradient and containing a diverse mixture of tree species. Further study is needed to determine
its characteristics. Only a few remnants remain in Kentucky (e.g., Bayou Creek Ridge Natural Area, McCracken
County). Many occurrences have been cleared for agriculture. This type resembles Acer saccharum - Quercus rubra
- Carya cordiformis / Asimina triloba Forest (CEGL002060) but is east of the Mississippi, whereas CEGL002060 is
west. A related mesic hardwood floodplain type, Fagus grandifolia - Quercus spp. - Acer rubrum - Juglans nigra
Forest (CEGL005014), is dominated by Fagus rather than Acer and Carya.
CONSERVATION RANK: G2. There are probably fewer than 100 occurrences of this community rangewide. This
community occurs in Illinois (where it is ranked S3S4), Ohio (S), Kentucky (S), and Tennessee (S); it may also
occur in Indiana. Currently three occurrences are documented from Illinois and Ohio. There are probably fewer than
1000 acres rangewide. Currently 16 acres have been documented from two occurrences in Illinois. Many occurrences
may have been degraded by logging, and others have been cleared for conversion to agriculture.
DISTRIBUTION: This maple - hickory mesic floodplain forest is found in the central United States, ranging from
Tennessee, Kentucky, and southern Illinois east to Ohio and possibly Indiana.
USFS ECOREGIONS: 222Aq:CPP, 222C:CP, 222Dh:CCC, 222Di:CCC, 222Gb:CCC, 222Hb:CCC, 251Cj:CCC
CONSERVATION REGIONS: 36:C, 42:C, 43:C, 44:C, 45:C
STATES: IL IN KY OH TN PROVINCES:
MIDWEST HERITAGE SYNONYMY: IL mesic floodplain forest (S); wet-mesic upland forest (S) I
IN mesic floodplain forest
OH mixed floodplain forest
OTHER SYNONYMY: Fagus - Liquidambar/Rhus [Toxicodendron] Community (Voigt and Mohlenbrock 1964) B.
Despite the difference in name and presence of Fagus in Voigt and Mohlenbrock's (1964) type, the topographic
position and associated species are very similar., No equivalent (Eyre 1980)
USNVC HIERARCHY: ACER SACCHARUM - CARYA CORDIFORMIS TEMPORARILY FLOODED FOREST ALLIANCE (I.B.2.N.d)
PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST – 2001. APPENDIX: ASSOCIATION DESCRIPTIONS
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