Abstract for CNVC00274

Forest
Forêt

Betula papyrifera – Abies balsamea / Alnus incana

Paper Birch – Balsam Fir / Speckled Alder
Bouleau à papier – Sapin baumier / Aulne rugueux

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CNVC00274 is a boreal mixedwood forest Association that occurs in Quebec. It has a closed canopy of paper birch (Betula papyrifera) with balsam fir (Abies balsamea) and/or white spruce (Picea glauca). The dense shrub layer is dominated by speckled alder (Alnus incana), although balsam fir regeneration and mountain maple (Acer spicatum) are often abundant. Red raspberry (Rubus idaeus), paper birch saplings and American mountain-ash (Sorbus americana) are also common in the shrub layer. The herb layer is well developed and typically includes low cover of many species, such as wood ferns (Dryopteris spp.), northern starflower (Lysimachia borealis), dwarf raspberry (R. pubescens), yellow clintonia (Clintonia borealis), bunchberry (Cornus canadensis), wild lily-of-the-valley (Maianthemum canadense), violets (Viola spp.), goldthread (Coptis trifolia), sedges (Carex spp.) and oak fern (Gymnocarpium dryopteris). The forest floor cover is mainly broad-leaf litter, so the moss layer is sparse, with only minor cover of red-stemmed feathermoss (Pleurozium schreberi). CNVC00274 occurs in a region with a humid continental boreal climate, usually on moist, nutrient-rich sites that are some of the most productive sites in the region. It is a mid-seral condition that can develop as shade-tolerant balsam fir and white spruce become established in early seral paper birch / speckled alder stands. Partial disturbances, such as insect outbreaks and windthrow, can maintain this mixedwood condition on the landscape. There are two subassociations, typic and Rubus pubescens.

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