Classification of Vegetation Communities of Maryland: First Iteration

I. FOREST
I.C.3.N.a. Mixed needle-leaved evergreen - cold-deciduous forest
I.C.3.N.a.24. PINUS TAEDA - QUERCUS (ALBA, FALCATA, STELLATA) FOREST ALLIANCE
Loblolly Pine - (White Oak, Southern Red Oak, Post Oak) Forest Alliance

Concept: This alliance encompasses loblolly pine - oak forests of the Coastal Plain and some adjacent provinces of the eastern United States. The canopy is dominated by Pinus taeda with some combination of the nominal oaks. More mesic examples tend to be codominated by Quercus alba, while dry to dry-mesic examples are usually codominated by Quercus falcata. Associated species vary by geography, substrate, and exposure. Described members of this alliance are found sporadically, ranging from the North Atlantic Coast of Delaware, through the Chesapeake Lowlands of Maryland and Virginia to the West Gulf and Upper West Gulf coastal plains of eastern Texas and Arkansas where they are most common. These forests are apparently absent from the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain of North and South Carolina, but are documented in the South Atlantic Coastal Plain of Georgia. Successional and/or semi-natural examples are known from the East Gulf and Upper East Gulf coastal plains. Within the longleaf pine belt, these forests can occur naturally on fire-protected areas such as topographically isolated hilltops, mid to lower slopes, protected ravines, broad flats and second bottoms. In some cases, they are successional forests on broad uplands following clearing or alteration of natural forests, especially those historically dominated by Pinus palustris A broad range of associated species may be present in this type, including Carya alba, Carya texana, Nyssa sylvatica, Liquidambar styraciflua, Carya cordiformis, Magnolia grandiflora, Fagus grandifolia, Quercus velutina, Quercus michauxii, Quercus pagoda, and Acer rubrum. The subcanopy can include canopy species, as well as Ilex opaca var. opaca, Ostrya virginiana, Carpinus caroliniana, Cornus florida, and others. Callicarpa americana, Symplocos tinctoria, Morella cerifera (= Myrica cerifera), Vaccinium elliottii, Viburnum dentatum, and Viburnum acerifolium are common shrub species. Herbaceous species that may be present include Polystichum acrostichoides, Athyrium filix-femina ssp. asplenioides, Phegopteris hexagonoptera, Prenanthes altissima, Spigelia marilandica, Mitchella repens, Podophyllum peltatum, Phlox divaricata, Tipularia discolor, Arisaema triphyllum, Erigeron pulchellus, Lilium michauxii, Chasmanthium laxum, Chasmanthium sessiliflorum, and Melica mutica.

Range: This alliance encompasses pine - oak forests of the coastal plain and some adjacent provinces from Virginia to Texas. This includes the mesic to dry-mesic loblolly - oak - hickory forests of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas; dry forests on flats in the Piedmont of, at least, North Carolina and South Carolina that are dominated by Pinus taeda with a combination of the nominal oaks; and related vegetation in the East Gulf and Atlantic coastal plains.

States/Provinces: AL AR DE GA LA MD MS OK TX VA

TNC Ecoregions: 31:C, 40:C, 41:C, 43:P, 44:P, 50:?, 52:P, 53:C, 56:C, 57:?, 58:C, 62:C

USFS Ecoregions: 231Aa:CCC, 231Ac:CCC, 231Ae:CCC, 231Af:CCC, 231Ah:CCP, 231Ba:CCP, 231Bc:CCP, 231Bd:CCC, 231Be:CCC, 231Bg:CCP, 231Bh:CCP, 231Bi:CCC, 231C:CC, 231Ea:CCC, 231Ee:CCC, 231Ef:CCC, 231Eg:CCC, 231Eh:CCC, 231Ei:CCC, 231Ej:CCC, 231En:CCC, 231Fa:CCC, 232Ac:CCC, 232Ad:CCC, 232Ba:CCC, 232Bb:CCC, 232Bi:CCP, 232Bj:CCP, 232Bk:CCP, 232Bl:CCC, 232Bm:CCP, 232Bn:CCC, 232Bo:CCP, 232Bq:CCC, 232Br:CCC, 232Bt:CCC, 232Bu:CCC, 232Bv:CCC, 232Bx:CCC, 232Bz:CCC, 232Ca:CCC, 232E:C?, 232Fa:CCC, 232Fb:CCC, 232Fe:CCC, 234Ab:PP?, 234Ac:PPP, 234Ah:PPP, 255:?

Federal Lands: DOD (Fort Benning); NPS (Chickamauga-Chattanooga, Kennesaw Mountain, Rock Creek); USFS (Angelina, Apalachicola?, Bienville, Conecuh, Croatan?, Davy Crockett, De Soto, Holly Springs, Homochitto, Kisatchie, Oconee, Sabine NF, Sam Houston, St. Francis, Sumter?, Talladega, Tombigbee, Tuskegee, Uwharrie?); USFWS (Eufaula)

Synonymy: IA6e. Loblolly Pine - Shortleaf Pine - Oak Forest, in part (Allard 1990); Lowland Pine - Oak Forest (Foti 1994b); Calcareous Forest, in part (Smith 1996a); Mixed Hardwood-Loblolly Pine Forest, in part (Smith 1996a); Dry-Mesic Mixed Oak - Pine Forest (Wieland 1994b); Loblolly Pine-Oak Series (Diamond 1993); T1B3aIII4a. Pinus echinata - Pinus taeda - Quercus spp. (stellata, alba, falcata) (Foti et al. 1994); Loblolly Pine - Hardwood: 82 (Eyre 1980); White Oak - Loblolly Pine/Callicarpa Loamy Mesic Lower Slopes and Terraces, in part (Turner et al. 1999)

References: Allard 1990, Baker and Langdon 1990, Clarke et al. 2000, Diamond 1993, Eyre 1980, Foti 1994b, Foti et al. 1994, Golden 1979, Martin and Smith 1991, Martin and Smith 1993, Smith 1996a, Smith pers. comm., Turner et al. 1999, Wieland 1994b

Authors: D.J. ALLARD, MOD. R.E. EV, RW, Southeast Identifier: A.404

Concept: This mixed loblolly pine-oak forest of the northern Atlantic Coastal Plain occurs on dry to somewhat mesic, sandy or sandy loam soils on gently rolling to flat topography. The canopy is dominated by a mixture of Pinus taeda and oaks, of which Quercus falcata and Quercus alba are the most characteristic. Other canopy associates include Acer rubrum, Quercus velutina, Quercus coccinea, Sassafras albidum, Nyssa sylvatica, Carya glabra, and Ilex opaca. The ericaceous shrub layer is characterized by Gaylussacia frondosa (= var. frondosa), Gaylussacia baccata, Vaccinium stamineum, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium corymbosum, and Kalmia latifolia. The herbaceous layer is generally sparse and characterized by Pteridium aquilinum, Cypripedium acaule, Chimaphila maculata, and Gaultheria procumbens.

Comments: The relative cover of Pinus taeda is likely related to disturbance history, with higher pine cover suggesting more recent disturbance.

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

TNC Ecoregions: 58:C, 62:C

USFS Ecoregions: 232Ac:CCC, 232Ad:CCC, 232Br:CCC, 232Bt:CCC, 232Bx:CCC, 232Bz:CCC, 232C:CP

Synonymy: Quercus alba - Quercus falcata - Pinus taeda / Gaylussacia frondosa Forest (Patterson pers. comm.)

References: Bowman 2000, Clancy 1996, Fleming 2001, Fleming et al. 2001, Lea 2002b, Patterson pers. comm., Shreve et al. 1910

Authors: ECS Confidence: 2 Identifier: CEGL006169

- Maryland Vegetation Classification Subset Report I.C. Mixed evergreen-deciduous forest

View Next Topic