Alluvial plant communities of Piedmont brownwater rivers

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Alluvial plant communities of Piedmont brownwater
rivers

• Elizabeth R. Matthews1,
• Robert K. Peet1,
• Alan S. Weakley1,
• and Thomas Wentworth2.
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill1,
  North Carolina State University2

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Anthropogenic impacts to Piedmont riparian
bottomlands

• Conversion to agriculture, housing developments,
  etc.
• Impoundments flood many historical bottomland
  areas
• Altered flow regime of many rivers

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Development outside of Greensboro-Burlington area
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Deep River in Chatham Co., North Carolina
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Confluence of the Deep and Haw Rivers, North
Carolina
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Bottomland communities of Piedmont brownwater
rivers

• Description of vegetation composition and
  structure can inform management decisions and
  future restoration projects
• NC Ecosystem Enhancement Program
• Currently not well documented and described

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Cape Fear River Basin
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CVS protocol

• 20m X 50m plots
• Nested corners in 4 intensive modules
• Cover by strata
• Soil samples and geomorphic position

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Geomorphic position
Channel shelf
Levee
Backswamp
Terrace
Wharton et al 1982
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Results

• Ordination and cluster techniques yielded nine
  provisional community types
• PC-ORD software
• Compared these groups with current
  classifications
• Classification of the Natural Communities of
  North Carolina, 3rd approximation, Schafale and
  Weakley
• National Vegetation Classification

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Justicia americana herbaceous community (5 plots)
Acer rubrum-Fraxinus pennsylvanica/Saururus
cernuus swamp forest (2 plots)
Quercus lyrata-Quercus phellos swamp forest (5
plots)
Quercus michauxii-Quercus pagoda bottomland
forest (7 plots)
Platanus occidentalis-Celtis laevigata-Fraxinus
pennsylvanica/Acer negundo forest (12 plots)
Bottomland forest (11 plots)
Pinus taeda bottomland forest (5 plots)
Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest (7
plots)
Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
forest (5 plots)
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Non-metric multidimensional scaling
(1) Acer rubrum-Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Saururs
cernuus swamp forest
(2) Quercus lyrata-Quercus phellos swamp forest
(3) Quercus michauxii-Quercus pagoda bottomland
forest
(4) Platanus occidentalis Celtis laevigata
Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Acer negundo forest
Axis 2
(5) Bottomland forest
(6) Pinus taeda bottomland forest
(7) Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest
(8) Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
forest

• Bray-Curtis distance measure
• 3D shown in 2D
• 1 run with real data

Axis 1
Pinus taeda bottomland forest (5 plots)
Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest (7
plots)
Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
forest (5 plots)
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Oak dominated bottomland communities
Levee communities
Rocky shore community
Swamp community
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(1) Acer rubrum - Fraxinus pennsylvanica /
Saururus cernuus swamp forest

• Dominance Acer rubrum, Fraxinus pennslyvanica,
  Saururus cernuus
• Environment high clay content
• Plots 2
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont swamp forest
• NVC Acer rubrum - Fraxinus pennsylvanica /
  Saururus cernuus Forest

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(2) Quercus lyrata-Quercus phellos swamp forest

• Dominance Quercus lyrata, Quercus phellos,
  Liquidambar styraciflua, Nyssa sylvatica, Ilex
  verticillata, Carpinus caroliniana
• Environment backswamp, nutrient poor
• Plots 5
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont swamp forest
• NVC Quercus pagoda - Quercus phellos - Quercus
  lyrata - Quercus michauxii / Chasmanthium
  latifolium Forest

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(3) Quercus michauxii-Quercus pagoda bottomland
forest

• Dominance Quercus michauxii, Quercus pagoda,
  Quercus phellos, Acer rubrum, Ulmus rubra,
  Toxicodendron radicans, Carex tribuloides,
  Boehmeria cylindrica
• Environment backswamp, nutrient poor
• Plots 7
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont bottomland forest
• NVC Quercus pagoda - Quercus phellos - Quercus
  lyrata - Quercus michauxii / Chasmanthium
  latifolium Forest

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Non-metric multidimensional scaling
(1) Acer rubrum-Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Saururs
cernuus swamp forest
(2) Quercus lyrata-Quercus phellos swamp forest
(3) Quercus michauxii-Quercus pagoda bottomland
forest
(4) Platanus occidentalis Celtis laevigata
Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Acer negundo forest
Axis 2
(5) Bottomland forest
(6) Pinus taeda bottomland forest
(7) Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest
(8) Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
forest

• Bray-Curtis distance measure
• 3D shown in 2D
• 1 run with real data

Axis 1
Pinus taeda bottomland forest (5 plots)
Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest (7
plots)
Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
forest (5 plots)
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(4) Platanus occidentalis Celtis laevigata
Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Acer negundo Forest

• Dominance Platanus occidentalis, Celtis
  laevigata, Fraxinus pennslyvanica, Acer
  negundo
• Environment levee, high calcium content
• Plots 8
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont levee forest
• NVC Platanus occidentalis - Celtis laevigata -
  Fraxinus pennsylvanica / Lindera benzoin - Ilex
  decidua / Carex retroflexa Forest

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(6) Pinus taeda bottomland forest

• Dominance common bottomland species plus
  significant cover from Pinus taeda
• Environment
• Plots 3
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont bottomland forest
• NVC no good fit

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(7) Carya spp. small-stream bottomland forest

• Dominance common bottomland species plus
  significant cover from Carya spp., especially
  Carya ovata, Carya alba
• Environment mafic bedrock, small stream
• Plots 7
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont bottomland forest
• NVC no good fit

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(8) Platanus occidentalis-Liriodendron tulipifera
Forest

• Dominance Platanus occidentalis, Liquidambar
  styraciflua, Liriodendron tulipifera, Betula
  nigra, Asimina triloba
• Environment early succesional forest
• Plots 5
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Piedmont levee forest
• NVC Platanus occidentalis - (Liquidambar
  styraciflua, Liriodendron tulipifera) Temporarily
  Flooded Forest Alliance

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(9) Justicia americana herbaceous vegetation

• Dominance Justicia americana
• Environment rocky substrate
• Plots 5
• Nearest community concepts
• 3rd approx Rocky Bar and Shore
• NVC Justicia americana Herbaceous Vegetation

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Future directions

• Further refine classification and description
  with GIS derived variables
• Expand dataset with more plots
• Do other watersheds fit with Cape Fear
  classification
• Neuse and Tar-Pamlico summer 2007

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Thank you

• This project was made possible by a grant from
  the NC Ecosystem Enhancement Program
• Forbes Boyle, Brenda Wichmann, Jessi Outzs, PEL
  lab at UNC

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