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

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Sphagnum wulfianum, Sphagnum warnstorfii, Sphagnum magellanicum, and Sphagnum squarrosum) are commonly found in the thick peat soils of the swale behind the shoreline (MNFI 1999). As described by the MNFI (1999) summary description this complex, composed of upland and wetland features, is found in embayments and sand spits along the Great Lakes shoreline. Most were formed in two stages, with progressive dropping lake levels and post-glacial uplift beginning with the glacial Lake Algonquin levels (approx. 12,000 years ago), and again with the Lake Nipissing water levels 3000-4000 years ago. The receding lake levels deposited a series of sandy beach ridges ranging from 0.5 to 4 m high. From the air these ridges appear as a series of arcs, extending inland up to 2 miles, generally parallel to the present shoreline. In several examples, beach ridges were also built up and re-sorted by wind, creating a higher, somewhat irregular dune ridge. These complexes are often best developed where post-glacial streams entered an embayment and provide a dependable sand source. The combination of along-shore currents, waves, and winds form foredunes along the shoreline. With gradual long-term drops in water level, combined with post-glacial uplifting of the earth's crust, these low dunes gradually rise above the direct influence of the lakes, and new foredunes replace them. Over several thousand years, a series of ridges and swales is created. For most complexes, the flow of surface streams and groundwater maintain the wet conditions in the swales. With time, plant succession has proceeded to the point where the beach ridges are now forested while the wet swales are either forested or open wetlands. Along the Lake Superior shoreline, where post-glacial uplift is greatest, many of the complexes consist primarily of dry, forested swales (Comer and Albert 1993). The number and size of the dune ridges and swales differs depending on fetch and the amount of sediment available. Both swales and upland dune ridges have been studied (Comer and Albert 1993). Of the 17 sites where elevations were measured from the shoreline inland, only 3 sites contained swales where the sandy bottoms of all or most of the swales lay below the current Great Lakes water levels. This suggests that, except for a few examples, the influence of Great Lakes water-level fluctuations is probably limited to the first few swales inland from the shoreline. For most of the complexes, the water occupying the swales comes from streams flowing from the adjacent uplands or from groundwater seepage (MNFI 1999). Classic ecological studies have identified distinctive successional zones within the sand dune portion of the complexes, determined on the basis of several factors, including distance from the lake, amount of soil development, and available light (Olson 1958,Cowles 1899). Lichter's (1998) recent study of dune-and-swale complexes at Wilderness State Park in northern Lower Michigan has identified similar successional trends. He found that, at the Lake Michigan shoreline, young dunes had (1) stronger winds, (2) more sand burial and erosion, (3) higher levels of sunlight, (4) higher rates of evaporation, and (5) lower available nitrogen and phosphorus than older beach ridges farther inland, resulting in an open herbaceous-dominated plant community along the shore. Farther inland, with greater protection from sun and wind and with greater soil development, there was succession from open dune, first to grassland, then to shrubs, and finally to forests, with mesic northern hardwoods increasing in dominance on beach ridges farther from the shoreline. COMMENTS: 3, MCS. Because they contain a unique assemblage of physiographic, soil, and vegetative components, and provide a high-quality habitat for numerous shoreline animal species, the Wooded Dune and Swale Complex is considered a distinct complex that groups together a number of different associations, some restricted to the complex, others more wide-ranging. The various zones of plant communities in each complex may include several of the following, depending on the complex subtype and local site: Great Lakes Foredune, Interdunal Wetland, Great Lakes Pine Barrens, Great Lakes Dune Pine Forest, Red Pine / Blueberry Dry Forest, White Pine - Red Oak Forest, Great Lakes White Pine - Hemlock Forest, White Cedar - (Hemlock) Mesic Forest, White Cedar - Mixed Hardwood Swamp, Black Ash - Mixed Hardwood Swamp, Speckled Alder Swamp, Bog Birch - Willow Rich Boreal Fen, Leatherleaf Bog, Northern Poor Fen, Tussock Sedge Wet Meadow. The complex can be further subdivided into five complex subtypes, reflecting north-south trend in plant species distributions, from southern Lake Huron to western Lake Superior, along with the relative impact of wind-sorting versus water-lain processes that formed the beach ridges of each complex. The five subtypes include the southern Lake Huron subtype, the northern Lake Huron/Lake Michigan-Low Dune subtype, the Northern Lake Michigan-High Dune subtype, the Lake Superior-High Dune subtype, and the Lake Superior-Low Dune subtype. Southern Lake Michigan dune/swale complexes in Indiana and Illinois are currently very minor and not included here. It is possible that these dune/swale complexes have mostly dried out and blown away (P. Comer pers. comm. 2000). Northward in southern Michigan, the dunes are perched and complexes do not form. Rather, scattered Interdunal Wetlands occur. Possible complexes in Lake Erie (Pennsylvania) and elsewhere in shorelines in Ontario may require additional subtypes. CONSERVATION RANK: G3. Wooded dune and swale complexes are restricted to the Great Lakes shoreline (Comer and Albert 1991, 1993, Homoya et al. 1985). Although there are features of similar geological origin along the shorelines of most oceans and seas, the biota of the marine systems is distinctly different (Wiedemann 1984). Residential and recreational development has resulted in disrupted hydrological conditions and wetland destruction. Currently, PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST – 2001. APPENDIX: ASSOCIATION DESCRIPTIONS 245
about 95 dune and swale complexes have been identified in the Great Lakes, with 70 located in Michigan. Michigan's 40 highest quality dune and swale complexes total about 70,926 acres (28,370 hectares) in area (MNFI 1999). DISTRIBUTION: This complex of wetland swales and upland beach ridges or dunes is found along the shoreline of all of the Great Lakes in the United States and Canada. Its range includes Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and the province of Ontario, and perhaps (at least historically) Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. USFS ECOREGIONS: 212H:CC, 212I:CC, 212J:CC, 212O:CC, 222I:CC, 222J:CC, 222K:CC CONSERVATION REGIONS: STATES: IL IN MI MN OH PA WI PROVINCES: ON MIDWEST HERITAGE SYNONYMY: IL foredune + IN foredune + MI wooded dune and swale complex = MN lake beach (lake superior section) sand subtype - OH beach-dune community WI lake dune (dune-swale complex) OTHER SYNONYMY: USNVC HIERARCHY: N/A PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST – 2001. APPENDIX: ASSOCIATION DESCRIPTIONS 246
Page 1 and 2:
PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE MIDWEST CL
Page 3 and 4:
CONTENTS APPENDIX: PLANT COMMUNITY
Page 5 and 6:
OVERVIEW APPENDIX: PLANT COMMUNITY
Page 7 and 8:
− The USFS (U.S. Forest Service)
Page 9 and 10:
Box 2. State Natural Heritage progr
Page 11 and 12:
INDEX TO ASSOCIATIONS BY ECOLOGICAL
Page 13:
2.3.4.4. Interior Highlands Shale G
Page 16 and 17:
Acid Peatlands: Northern Shrub/Gram
Page 18 and 19: Rich Peat Fens: Northeastern Rich F
Page 20 and 21: Rich Peat Fens: Midwestern Prairie
Page 22 and 23: Seeps: Midwestern Seepage Meadows S
Page 24 and 25: Open and Emergent Marshes: Eastern
Page 30 and 31: * Nonstandard type (needs review) G
Page 32 and 33: Open and Emergent Marshes: Great La
Page 34 and 35: Wet Prairies and Wet Meadows: Great
Page 36 and 37: Wet Prairies and Wet Meadows: Midwe
Page 38 and 39: Wet Prairies and Wet Meadows: Midwe
Page 40 and 41: Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Nort
Page 46 and 47: Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Midw
Page 60 and 61: Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Appa
Page 62 and 63: Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Sout
Page 64 and 65: Wooded Swamps and Floodplains: Sout
Page 66 and 67: Shoreline Sand/Mud Strands, Beaches
Page 70 and 71: Shoreline Sand/Mud Strands, Beaches
Page 72 and 73: Rocky Shores: Great Lakes Alkaline
Page 74 and 75: Rocky Shores: Appalachian Highlands
Page 76 and 77: Rocky Uplands (Glades, Rock Barrens
Page 78 and 79: DISTRIBUTION: This limestone glade
Page 80 and 81: DISTRIBUTION: This graminoid shale
Page 82 and 83: Cliffs, Talus, Buttes and Badlands:
Page 88 and 89: Forests and Woodlands: Midwestern D
Page 90 and 91: Forests and Woodlands: Midwestern D
Page 92 and 93: Forests and Woodlands: Midwestern M
Page 94 and 95: Forests and Woodlands: Appalachian
Page 102 and 103: Forests and Woodlands: Interior Hig
Page 104 and 105: Savannas and Non-Rock Barrens: Midw
Page 106 and 107: Savannas and Non-Rock Barrens: Midw
Page 108 and 109: Prairies/Grasslands: Midwestern San
Page 110 and 111: Prairies/Grasslands: Midwestern Thi
Page 112 and 113: Prairies/Grasslands: Midwestern Dee
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Ohio subset of Plant Communities of the Midwest ... - NatureServe

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