Classification of Vegetation Communities of Maryland: First Iteration

I. FOREST
I.B.2.N.e. Seasonally flooded cold-deciduous forest
I.B.2.N.e.6. LIQUIDAMBAR STYRACIFLUA - (ACER RUBRUM) SEASONALLY FLOODED FOREST ALLIANCE
Sweetgum - (Red Maple) Seasonally Flooded Forest Alliance

Concept: Forests dominated by Liquidambar styraciflua with seasonally flooded hydrology. Some stands may be dominated or codominated by Acer rubrum. Other woody species that may be present include Planera aquatica, Salix nigra, Quercus palustris, Quercus lyrata, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Quercus phellos, and Cornus foemina. Shrubs that may be present include Ilex opaca, Magnolia virginiana, Cephalanthus occidentalis, Clethra alnifolia, Leucothoe racemosa, and Vaccinium corymbosum. Sphagnum spp. are common in the herbaceous layer. Known examples occur in seasonally flooded depressions and not on floodplains.

Comments: There is a Liquidambar styraciflua-dominated type in ponded areas and shallow sloughs in Pond Creek Bottoms in southwestern Arkansas, Sevier and Little River counties (J. Campbell pers. comm., D. Zollner pers. comm. cited in Weakley et al. 1996). Other woody species include Salix nigra, Planera aquatica, Quercus lyrata, Cephalanthus occidentalis, Cornus foemina, Styrax americanus, Brunnichia ovata, and Cardiospermum halicacabum. Herbs include Carex joorii, Cyperus erythrorhizos, Hydrocotyle verticillata, Triadenum walteri, Limnobium spongia, Lycopus rubellus, Mikania scandens, Polygonum hydropiperoides, Proserpinaca palustris, Rhynchospora corniculata, and Saururus cernuus. See Liquidambar styraciflua - (Acer rubrum) Seasonally Flooded Forest [Provisional] (CEGL007387).

Range: This alliance is found in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania (?), Virginia, West Virginia, and elsewhere.

States/Provinces: AL DE GA MD NC NJ NY PA? SC TN VA

TNC Ecoregions: 32:P, 40:C, 49:C, 50:C, 51:C, 52:C, 53:P, 56:C, 57:?, 58:C, 59:C, 61:C, 62:C

USFS Ecoregions: 221Ae:CCC, 221Dc:CCC, 221Eb:C??, 221F:C?, 231Ad:CCC, 231Af:CCC, 231Cd:CCC, 231E:CC, 231Ga:CC?, 231Gb:CC?, 231Gc:CC?, 232Aa:CCC, 232Ab:CCC, 232Ac:CCC, 232Ad:CCC, 232Bj:CCC, 232Bq:CCC, 232Bt:CCC, 232Cb:CCC, 232Ce:CCC, 232F:CC, 234Ac:PPP, 234An:PPP, 255A:PP, M221B:C?, M221C:C?, M221Dd:CCC

Federal Lands: DOD (Fort Gordon); NPS (Great Smoky Mountains); USFS (Bankhead, Chattahoochee, Uwharrie)

Synonymy: Red maple - magnolia Coastal Plain palustrine forest. ? (Fike 1999); Coastal Plain Forest. ?, in part (Smith 1991)

References: Campbell et al. 1996, Fike 1999, Smith 1991, Weakley et al. 1996

Authors: A.S. WEAKLEY/K.D. PATTERS, MP, Southeast Identifier: A.321

Range: This community is limited to small seasonally flooded depressions of the Coastal Plain of Maryland and Virginia.

States/Provinces: MD:S?, VA:S?

TNC Ecoregions: 57:?, 58:C

USFS Ecoregions: 232A:CC, 232B:CC, 232C:C?

References: Fleming et al. 2001, Rawinski 1997, Sneddon et al. 1996

Authors: ECS Confidence: 2 Identifier: CEGL006223

Concept: This association is a seasonally flooded forest of shallow basins and other depressions of the Coastal Plain of the Chesapeake Bay region. The substrate is characterized by mineral soils, generally acidic, gleyed to mottled, sandy or clay loams. Characteristic tree species include Acer rubrum, Liquidambar styraciflua, and Nyssa sylvatica, which are nearly constant in the canopy. Associates include Ilex opaca, Magnolia virginiana, Nyssa biflora, Sassafras albidum, Quercus palustris, Pinus taeda, and Quercus phellos, and occasionally Quercus lyrata or Betula nigra. The shrub layer is characterized by Leucothoe racemosa, Vaccinium corymbosum, Clethra alnifolia, Lindera benzoin, Ilex verticillata, and Rhododendron viscosum. Smilax rotundifolia is a particularly characteristic vine. The herbaceous layer is generally sparse but may include Mitchella repens, Osmunda cinnamomea, Woodwardia areolata, Onoclea sensibilis, Carex albolutescens, Scirpus cyperinus, and Polygonum spp.

Comments: Delaware examples contain Quercus spp. and Magnolia virginiana. In Maryland, Clethra is more prominent than Leucothoe, Quercus phellos less characteristic than Nyssa sylvatica.

Range: This association is a seasonally flooded forest of shallow basins and other depressions of the Coastal Plain of the Chesapeake Bay region.

States/Provinces: DE:S?, MD:S?, NJ:S3, NY:S1S2, PA?, VA:S?

TNC Ecoregions: 58:C, 61:C, 62:C

USFS Ecoregions: 221Ae:CCC, 221Dc:CCC, 231A:??, 232Aa:CCC, 232Ab:CCC, 232Ac:CCC, 232Ad:CCC, 232Bt:CCC

Synonymy: Leucothoe racemosa communities (Tyndall et al. 1990). are likely synonymous with this community, Liquidambar-Acer hardwood swamp (Breden 1989)

References: Bowman 2000, Breden 1989, Breden et al. 2001, Brush et al. 1980, Clancy 1996, Edinger et al. 2002, Fleming et al. 2001, Hunt 1998, Sneddon and Anderson 1994, Sneddon et al. 1996, Thompson et al. 1999, Tyndall et al. 1990

Authors: ECS Confidence: 1 Identifier: CEGL006110

- Maryland Vegetation Classification Subset Report I.B. Deciduous forest

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