Department of Conservation and Recreation

THE NATURAL COMMUNITIES OF VIRGINIA
CLASSIFICATION OF ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITY GROUPS

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Second Approximation (Version 2.5)
Information current as of February, 2012

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Coastal Plain Dry Calcareous Forests and Woodlands

This is a group of rare, deciduous (rarely mixed) forests and woodlands of subxeric to xeric, fertile habitats over unconsolidated, calcareous deposits. Similar forests are scattered in the mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain from Maryland to South Carolina. In Virginia, occurrences are small and highly localized in two environmental situations: 1) steep, convex, south-facing slopes of dissected ravine systems and river-fronting bluffs of the inner Coastal Plain from southeastern Virginia north to Stafford County; and 2) steep cut-slopes bordering estuaries on the outer Coastal Plain. In the first setting, slopes have downcut into Tertiary shell deposits or limesands, producing circumneutral to slightly alkaline soils. In the estuarine settings, shell middens may provide the primary source of substrate calcium. Calcium levels in soil samples collected from these habitats are among the highest documented in Virginia, ranging to > 11,000 ppm. The majority of documented stands are on The Peninsula near Williamsburg (James City and York Counties).

Tree canopies range from semi-closed to very open. Chinkapin oak (Quercus muhlenbergii) is the most characteristic tree; southern sugar maple (Acer barbatum), white oak (Quercus alba), northern red oak (Quercus rubra), bitternut hickory (Carya cordiformis), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), and white ash (Fraxinus americana) are common associates. In the stands bordering tidal streams, hackberries (Celtis occidentalis and Celtis laevigata) are characteristic components. The understory includes eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana), eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis var. canadensis), American holly (Ilex opaca var. opaca), buckthorn bumelia (Sideroxylon lycioides), and flowering dogwood (Cornus florida).

Although not lush, the herb layer contains a diversity of species, including several long-range mountain disjuncts. Particularly abundant or noteworthy herbaceous species include robin's-plantain (Erigeron pulchellus var. pulchellus), Bosc's panic-grass (Dichanthelium boscii), bearded short-husk (Brachyelytrum erectum), white crownbeard (Verbesina virginica var. virginica), American bellflower (Campanulastrum americanum), bear's-foot (Smallanthus uvedalius), whorled rosinweed (Silphium trifoliatum var. trifoliatum), few-flowered tick-trefoil (Desmodium pauciflorum), crested coralroot (Hexalectris spicata), slender wild rye (Elymus villosus), and eastern needlegrass (Piptochaetium avenaceum). Compared to Basic Mesic Forests of the Coastal Plain, these dry calcareous forests have a larger component of oaks (particularly chinkapin oak) in the overstory and have a much less lush herb layer. The single Virginia community in this group is considered globally rare and are threatened by logging and development.

References: Fleming (2002a).

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Click on the images below to open a larger image in a separate window.

	Coastal Plain Dry Calcareous Forest on a very steep, shell-rich bluff along the James River in Surry County.Gary P. Fleming / © DCR Natural Heritage.
	Exposed Tertiary shell material on an erosive ravine convexity supporting Coastal Plain Dry Calcareous Forest. Near Williamsburg, James City County.Gary P. Fleming / © DCR Natural Heritage.
	Large chinkapin oaks (Quercus muhlenbergii) in a graminoid-rich Coastal Plain Dry Calcareous Forest near Yorktown, York County (Colonial National Historical Park).Gary P. Fleming / © DCR Natural Heritage.

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REPRESENTATIVE COMMUNITY TYPES:
A single community types has been classified. Twenty-six (26) plots have been sampled at 14 sites representing the range of discrete geographic localities where the type is known to occur in Virginia (map). Click on any highlighted CEGL code below to view the global USNVC description provided by NatureServe Explorer.

• Quercus muhlenbergii / Cercis canadensis / Dichanthelium boscii - Bromus pubescens - Erigeron pulchellus var. pulchellus - Aquilegia canadensis Forest
  Coastal Plain Dry Calcareous Forest
  USNVC: = CEGL007748
  Global/State Ranks: G1/S1
  

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