Ecology of Red Maple Swamps in the Glaciated Northeast: A ...

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Fig. 8.4. Electric utility lines passing through a former red maple swamp. Forested swamp flanks the pwerline on either side while shrub swamp dominates the right-of-way. agricultural purposes. In northeastern Connecticut, red maple swamps were sometimes clear-cut for fuelwood during the first half of the twentieth century (Grace 1972). Clearing of forested wetland for utility rights-ofway is a major form of alteration that is growing in importance throughout the Northeast (Fig. 8.4). In a sample of 100 Vermont wetlands surveyed in 1974,14% had been affected by transmission lines (Wanner 1979). The impacts of cutting usually are compounded by wetland faing for the construction of power line maintenanm roads. The degree of impact of timber removal on wetland functions and values depends on the intensity of cutting. Clear-cuts radically alter habitat values and may result in slightly higher water levels during the summer because of reduced transpiration losses; selective cutting may have far less impact. Timber harvesting for wood products is not currently a major form of alteration in red maple swamps, but increasing energy costs and elimination of upland forests by urbanization may heighten the importance of this activity in the future. Water Level Manipulation Human-induced changes in the water regime of a red maple swamp may have major impacts on the floristic composition and structure of the plant community, its habitat values, and its scenic and recreational values. Prior to the passage of wetland protection regulations, changes in wetland water regimes were a common consequence of highway construction. Culverts that were inwmt1y designed, improperly installed, or omitted altogether fkequently resulted in impoundment of water on the upstream side of the road and a reduction in surface-water flow to the downstream side. Such impoundment commonly converted red maple swamps to marshes or shrub swamps. These impacts are less common today where wetland regulations are strictly enforced; however, sediment accumulation in culverts under roads may cause gradual changes in wah~egimes the same ultimate result (Golet and Parkhurst 1981). Nearly Wh of the human-induced changes in inland wetlands of South Kingstown, R.I., between 1939 and 1972 were retrogressive; raised water levels were the eause in most cases. +%
Groundwater withdrawal by large municipal wells has been a suspected cause of water level declines in a number of swamps in southern New England @. Albro, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Providence, personal communication; E Golet, personal observation), but none of these cases has been documented through field measurement. Heavy withdrawal of surface water from streams and lakes for irrigation of crops also may lower water levels in adjacent swamps, particularly in dry summers. Reductions in surface-water hydroperiods in both instances could adversely affect the habitat value of forested swamps for amphibians, waterfowl, and wetland-dependent songbirds such as the northern waterthrush. In some southern New England communities, extensive metworks of ditches have been constructed in red maple swamps for the purpose of mosquito control. Stormwater and Wastewater Disckassrges The addition of stormwater runoff and wastewater effluent to red maple swamps may alter both the hydrologic regime and water quality (Fig. 8.5). The volume of storm water runoff entering wetlands from surrounding upland areas may increase dramatically as those areas are urbanized. The increase in impervious surface area (highways, parking lots, rooftops) that accompanies urbanization decreases groundwater recharge and increases runoff. Increased runoff can Fig. 8.5. Stormwater discharge in a red maple swamp. Such discharger s may alter both water regime and water quality in these wetlands.
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Technical IIbpg~rt Series U.S. Fish
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Preface In many areas of the glacia
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Acer rubrum (red maple) diagnostic
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Zone 111 . St . Lawrence Valley and
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Fig . 3.7. Red maple swap with unde
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Table 4.5. Flood tolerance of trees
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Chapter I. Introduction Wetland kbr
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Regional Setting throughout the gla
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C-J Spruce-Fa Beech-Birch-Maple Mit
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Fig. 1.4. The range of red maple (a
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~ b 1.5, h fircort~ of Wet landc Ir
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Fig. 22. &~lrit~ve Irtndtici~pe yos
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egional groundwakr table by the roc
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y e~rr~mtrtm~~,irzst ion. Cat~t,inu
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inflow^ Outflows OF SWQ SWI Fig. 25
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Fig, 23.6,Soasonally flmded red map
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Fig. 27. Water levels in six mode I
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The duration of soil saturation has
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Organic soils are always very poorl
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Chapter 3. The Plant Community The
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.dar02f 'B Xi? s%u?mma -?sway+xqq p
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Community S tructare Red maple swam
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suggesta a strong correlation betwe
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Table 3.2. Stmtuml chumcteristics o
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Table 3.3. Continued. "- -- - Speci
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Table __ 3.3. _ Continued ._.lll.__
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Table 3.3. Continued. . * - __.. ^.
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Zone I II III TV C" Drppnmriad* sp.
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on Long Island, pin oak, swamp whit
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fern moea (?ki.c&inz &limfulum), an
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countered (Table 3.3). The herb lay
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~akareous Seepage Swamps England si
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and globeflower are. listed in four
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was the most likely reason for diff
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kvei fluctuation during the gmwing
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Table 4.2. .Rektit.e ~bmchnce w Q)
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difficuit to delineate in many inst
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in the librature btlx>~ithe moi~ttl
Page 81 and 82: Origin. an$ Relationship to Water R
Page 83 and 84: Influence on Swamp Vegetation Flori
Page 85 and 86: taka wpra-x li)wcir, t raac* df~rla
Page 87 and 88: dwuL 4.3 6.3. C ~ ~ ~ strisk- P C I
Page 89 and 90: Chapter 5. Ecosystem Processes Irr
Page 91 and 92: - 0 2 E E 0l *" C 8 g 00 - c_ m 3 -
Page 93 and 94: Ehnzdoltf (IWj wm mmht~nt, rru@w on
Page 95 and 96: 1976; I">irwia RE& vari iier Vdk 18
Page 97 and 98: Xletritus Exprort and 'sod Chain Su
Page 99: Chapter 6. Wetland Dynamics Most no
Page 102 and 103: since forested wetland is the endpo
Page 104 and 105: kettle bogs, lakes, or large rivers
Page 106 and 107: mmdwakr depression wetlands. Becaus
Page 108 and 109: (Mniotila varia), regularly breed i
Page 110 and 111: EXusbtand arid Eddleman (1Y30) quan
Page 112 and 113: census results. Twenty-five (40%) o
Page 114 and 115: elated to avian richness and abunda
Page 116 and 117: Fig. 7.6. Wood duck (Aix sponsa). T
Page 118 and 119: Table 7.5. Small-mammal communities
Page 120 and 121: ing the latter years of flowage occ
Page 122 and 123: Chapter 8. Values, Impacts, and Man
Page 124 and 125: of the bordering upland. Both studi
Page 126 and 127: Fig. 8.1. ST folia) in pel fer. .bu
Page 128 and 129: Table 8.1. Emrnpks ofgmss loss rate
Page 130 and 131: Fig. 8.3. Southern New England red
Page 134 and 135: e expected to cause more drastic fl
Page 136 and 137: and enhancement has been a highly c
Page 138 and 139: y capturing sediment, reducing nutr
Page 140 and 141: M.R.S.A., Sect. 480.A). Research by
Page 142 and 143: Broadfoot, W. M., and H. L. Willist
Page 144 and 145: Fefer, S. I. 1980. me palushe syste
Page 146 and 147: Jordan, R J. 1978. Glacial geology
Page 148 and 149: Xew Hampshire Xatural Areas Program
Page 150 and 151: Ren MAPLE SWAMR 137 Smith, H. 1984.
Page 152 and 153: Appendix A. Sources of Floristic Da
Page 154 and 155: Appendix B. Plants of Special Conce
Page 156 and 157: Appendix B. Continued Species d Car
Page 158 and 159: Appendix C. Vertebrates That Have B
Page 160 and 161: Mourning warbler ... Nashville warb
Page 162 and 163: Appendix D. Vertebrates of Special
Page 164 and 165: ~tnte"and ronsewat ion stat ilu' d
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Ecology of Red Maple Swamps in the Glaciated Northeast: A ...

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