Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Ecological site F144AY029NY
Semi-Rich Wet Outwash
Accessed: 04/27/2024
General information
Provisional. A provisional ecological site description has undergone quality control and quality assurance review. It contains a working state and transition model and enough information to identify the ecological site.
MLRA notes
Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): 144A–New England and Eastern New York Upland, Southern Part
MLRA 144A: New England and Eastern New York Upland, Southern Part. The eastern half of the eastern part of this MLRA is in the Seaboard Lowland Section of the New England Province of the Appalachian Highlands. The western half of the eastern part and the southeastern half of the western part are in the New England Upland Section of the same province and division. The northwestern half of the western part is in the Hudson Valley Section of the Valley and Ridge Province of the Appalachian Highlands. This MLRA is a very scenic area of rolling to hilly uplands that are broken by many gently sloping to level valleys that terminate in coastal lowlands. Elevation ranges from sea level to 1,000 feet (0 to 305 meters) in much of the area, but it is 2,000 feet (610 meters) on some hills. Relief is mostly about 6 to 65 feet (2 to 20 meters) in the valleys and about 80 to 330 feet (25 to 100 meters) in the uplands. This area has been glaciated and consists almost entirely of till plains and drumlins dissected by narrow valleys with a thin mantle of till. The southernmost boundary of the area marks the farthest southward extent of glaciation on the eastern seaboard. The river valleys and coastal plains are filled with glacial lake sediments, marine sediments, and glacial outwash. The bedrock in the eastern half of the area consists primarily of igneous and metamorphic rocks of early Paleozoic age. Granite is the most common igneous rock, and gneiss, schist, and slate are the most common metamorphic rocks. In the parts of the MLRA in northeastern Pennsylvania and in eastern and southeastern New York, Devonian- to Pennsylvanian-age sandstone, shale, and limestone bedrock is dominant. Carbonate rocks, primarily dolomite and limestone, are the dominant kinds of bedrock in the part of this MLRA in northwestern Connecticut.
Ecological site concept
This site consists of very deep, poorly drained soils formed in glaciofluvial materials on outwash terraces and outwash plains. Representative soils are Fredon. Circumneutral seepage swamps of the northeastern United States have moderate to closed canopies and a rich herb layer influenced by calcium-rich groundwater seepage. These can occur along streams or at headwaters in areas of calcareous bedrock. Soils are saturated, organic muck or peat that can be quite deep. The canopy is dominated by Acer rubrum and Larix laricina, with Fraxinus nigra sometimes prominent. Canopy associates include Betula alleghaniensis, Tsuga canadensis, Pinus strobus, Carpinus caroliniana, and Picea rubens, the latter especially in the north or at higher elevations. Shrub cover varies with canopy cover and can be quite dense; typical species include Toxicodendron vernix, Rhamnus alnifolia, Cornus sericea, Salix candida, Ilex verticillata, Vaccinium corymbosum, and occasionally Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda and Betula pumila. The diverse herb layer is characterized by Saxifraga pensylvanica, Caltha palustris, Cardamine bulbosa, Geum rivale, Osmunda cinnamomea, Carex leptalea, Carex interior, Carex stricta, Carex lacustris, Carex flava, Solidago patula, Iris versicolor, Ranunculus hispidus var. caricetorum, Cardamine douglassii, Thelypteris palustris, Dryopteris cristata, Solidago patula, Packera aurea (= Senecio aureus), and Symplocarpus foetidus; plus Cypripedium reginae, Cypripedium parviflorum (= Cypripedium calceolus), and Platanthera dilatata.
Table 1. Dominant plant species
Tree |
(1) Fraxinus nigra |
---|---|
Shrub |
(1) Rhamnus alnifolia |
Herbaceous |
Not specified |
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