Classification of Vegetation Communities of Maryland: First Iteration

VII. SPARSE VEGETATION
VII.C.2.N.a. Sand flats
VII.C.2.N.a.2. CAKILE EDENTULA SPARSELY VEGETATED ALLIANCE
Sea-rocket Sparsely Vegetated Alliance

Concept: Annual-dominated sand flats on island end flats and upper ocean beaches, within the reach of storm tides and extreme lunar tides. This alliance has less perennial species than the related Cakile constricta Sparsely Vegetated Alliance (A.1860), since the Atlantic Coast shoreline is a higher-energy system, and the alliance is more dynamic and more frequently disturbed. Vegetative cover is variable, depending on the amount of exposure to wave and wind action, but on average is sparse; no species can be considered dominant. Annual or biennial species more or less restricted to beach habitats are characteristic of this alliance, including Cakile edentula ssp. edentula, as well as Salsola kali ssp. kali (= Salsola caroliniana), Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Honckenya peploides, Cenchrus tribuloides, Amaranthus retroflexus, Chenopodium album, Erechtites hieraciifolia, and Atriplex cristata (= Atriplex arenaria). Associated species include Ammophila breviligulata, Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Salsola kali ssp. kali, and Triplasis purpurea. At Assateague Island National Seashore, this alliance is sparsely vegetated with Cakile edentula ssp. edentula, covering approximately 1% of the area. Other associated species in this alliance are just as sparse and generally adapted to a low growth form, given the exposed windy conditions of their environment. The South Atlantic Coast phase of this alliance occupies the upper portion of ocean beaches in the southern part (Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to Cape Romain, South Carolina) of the microtidal region (barrier islands with coastal geomorphology dominated by hurricane overwash rather than tidal energy). Other characteristic species include mostly annual herbs, such as Chamaesyce polygonifolia, Chamaesyce bombensis, Sesuvium portulacastrum, Salsola kali ssp. kali, and the rare Amaranthus pumilus. In addition to the two associations in the Southeast, there is also an association in the Great Lakes; in this association the dominant plant is Cakile edentula ssp. edentula var. lacustris.

Range: This alliance is found in Florida (?), Georgia (?), North Carolina, South Carolina, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Virginia, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; and in Canada in Ontario.

States/Provinces: CT DE FL? GA? IL IN MA MD ME MI NB? NC NF? NH NJ NS? NY OH ON PA PE? RI SC VA WI

TNC Ecoregions: 48:C, 56:C, 57:C, 58:C, 62:C, 63:C, 64:C

USFS Ecoregions: 212Cb:CCC, 212Db:CCC, 212Dc:CCC, 212Ec:CPP, 212Hd:CCC, 212He:CCC, 212Hi:CCP, 212Hj:CCC, 212Hw:CCP, 212Ia:CPP, 212Ja:CPP, 212Oa:CCC, 212Ob:CCC, 221Aa:CCP, 221Ab:CCC, 221Ac:CCC, 221Ad:CCP, 221Ak:CCC, 222Ia:CCC, 222If:CCC, 222Jj:CCC, 222Kg:CCC, 222Qa:CCC, 232Aa:CCC, 232Ab:CCC, 232Ac:CCC, 232Bb:CCP, 232Bc:CCP, 232Bd:CCP, 232Bx:CCC, 232Bz:CCC, 232Cb:CCP, 232Ce:CCC, 232Ch:CCC, 232Ci:CCC, M411A:CC

Federal Lands: NPS (Acadia, Assateague Island, Cape Hatteras, Cape Lookout, Fire Island); USFWS (Cape Romain)

Synonymy: Upper Beach, in part (Schafale and Weakley 1990); Maritime Grassland, in part (Nelson 1986); Beach community (Hill 1986); Beach community (Johnson 1985b); beach community (Baumann 1978b); beach (Higgins et al. 1971); beach (Fender 1937); beach (McDonnell 1979); pioneer beach community (Boule 1979); dune-strand area (Clovis 1968); dune community (Jenkins 1974); middle beach (Shreve et al. 1910); middle beach (Nichols 1920); Cakiletum edentula (Conard 1935); sea-strand vegetation, beach formation (Harshberger 1900); embryo dune (Klotz 1986); maritime beach (Reschke 1990); beach vegetation (Moul 1973); marine sandy beach (Clancy 1993b); Marine intertidal gravel/sand beach community (Breden 1989); coastal beach strand (Sperduto 1994); Beach strand community (MENHP 1991); Cakile edentula-Chenopodium album community (Metzler and Barrett 1992); dune and swale community, in part (Stalter 1990); Maritime Beach Strand Community (Swain and Kearsley 2001); Great Lakes Region sparsely vegetated beach (Fike 1999); Eastern Great Lakes Beach (Smith 1991)

References: Baumann 1978b, Boule 1979, Breden 1989, Clancy 1993b, Clovis 1968, Conard 1935, Fender 1937, Fike 1999, Harshberger 1900, Higgins et al. 1971, Hill 1986, Jenkins 1974, Johnson 1985b, Klotz 1986, MENHP 1991, McDonnell 1979, Metzler and Barrett 1992, Moul 1973, Nelson 1986, Nichols 1920, Reschke 1990, Schafale and Weakley 1990, Shreve et al. 1910, Smith 1991, Sperduto 1994, Stalter 1990, Swain and Kearsley 2001

Authors: ECS, JT, East Identifier: A.1861

Comments: This community is common on maritime dunes of the Northeast, but is vulnerable to development and shifting wave action due to jetties.

Range: This association ranges from southern Maine to Virginia.

States/Provinces: CT:S?, DE:S?, MA:S3, MD:S?, ME:S4, NC:S3, NH:S2, NJ:S1S2, NY:S5, RI:S?, VA:S?

TNC Ecoregions: 57:C, 58:C, 62:C

USFS Ecoregions: 221Ab:CCC, 221Ac:CCC, 221Ak:CCC, 232Aa:CCC, 232Ab:CCC, 232Ac:CCC, 232Bz:CCC, 232Ch:CCC

Federal Lands: NPS (Assateague Island, Fire Island)

Synonymy: Beach community (Baumann 1978b) =. Virginia., Beach community (Hill 1986) =. Assateague Island., Beach community (Johnson 1985b), Beach (Fender 1937) =. New Jersey., Beach (Higgins et al. 1971) =. Assateague Island., Beach (McDonnell 1979) =. Massachusetts., Pioneer beach community (Boule 1979) =. Virginia., Dune-strand area (Clovis 1968) =. Virginia., Dune community (Jenkins 1974) =. Chesapeake Bay., Middle beach (Shreve et al. 1910) =. Maryland., Middle beach (Nichols 1920) =. Connecticut., Cakiletum edentula (Conard 1935) =. New York., Sea-strand vegetation, beach formation (Harshberger 1900) =. New Jersey., Embryo dune (Klotz 1986) =, Beach vegetation (Moul 1973) =. Massachusetts., Marine sandy beach (Clancy 1993b) =. Delaware., Marine intertidal gravel/sand beach community (Breden 1989) =. New Jersey., Coastal beach strand (Sperduto 1994) =. New Hampshire., Beach strand community (MENHP 1991) =. Maine., Cakile edentula - Chenopodium album community (Metzler and Barrett 1992) =. Connecticut., Dune and swale community (Stalter 1990) B. Virginia portion of Assateague., Coastal beach strand community (Rawinski 1984), Maritime beach (Reschke 1990) =. New York.

References: Baumann 1978b, Berdine 1998, Boule 1979, Bowman 2000, Breden 1989, Breden et al. 2001, Clancy 1993b, Clovis 1968, Conard 1935, Edinger et al. 2002, Enser 1999, Fender 1937, Fleming et al. 2001, Gawler 2001, Gawler 2002, Godfrey et al. 1978, Harshberger 1900, Higgins et al. 1971, Hill 1986, Jenkins 1974, Johnson 1985b, Klotz 1986, MENHP 1991, McDonnell 1979, Metzler and Barrett 1992, Metzler and Barrett 2001, Moul 1973, Nichols 1920, Rawinski 1984, Reschke 1990, Schafale and Weakley 1990, Shreve et al. 1910, Sperduto 1994, Sperduto 2000b, Stalter 1990, Swain and Kearsley 2001

Authors: S.L. Neid, ECS Confidence: 2 Identifier: CEGL004400

- Maryland Vegetation Classification Subset Report VII. Sparse Vegetation

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