Vegetation of Alnus sinuata thicket of the Chugach Mountains, southeastern Alaska-Its classification and ecogeographical interpretations

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Vegetation of Sitka alder(Alnus sinuata) thickets occurring in the subalpine environment in the Thompson Pass area, the Chugach Mountains, Alaska, was studied. On the southern slopes of the Chugach Mountains facing the Pacific Ocean, the subalpine zone develops in an altitudinal range approximately from 100m up to 800m above sea level. There a complex of shrub thickets of Alnus sinuata and open dwarf shrub meadows best represented the vegetation. A total of 52 releves were established to describe the vegetation structure; 32 releves representing the Alnus sinuata thicket and 20 releves the open dwarf shrub meadow. For each releve, all the vascular plants were listed and their coverage was assessed. Vegetation synthesis tables were constructed. Vegetation was classified according to phytosociological methods. Two plant associations, Calamagrostido canadensis-Alnetum sinuatae and Empetro nigri-Vaccinietum caespitosi, were identified; the former association represented the Alnus sinuata thickets and the latter open dwarf shrub meadow communities. The ecogeographical status of the Alnus sinuata thicket is discussed in relation to other subalpine biomes of the northern Amphi-Pacific region. It is concluded that the Alnus sinuata thicket represents a mild winter but snowy oceanic subalpine environment of the southern slopes of the Chugach Mountains, Alaska.
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