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

irch (Betula pumikz), shrubby cinquefoil, mossy- namon fern cormnunities occur in this situation.
cup oak (&uefcus macmrpu), and alder-leaf Some have very poorly drained soils and are seabuckthorn
are wmdy plants that also indicate cal- sonally flooded.)
cium-rich soils in southern New England seepage In summary, the differences in floristic composwamps.
sition among northeastern red maple swamps are
best explained by either physiographic location,
Transitional Swamps -
which takes into account climatic and elevational
influences, or hydrogeologic setting, which deter-
Where the land at the edge of mines water regime, water ,-,hemist. and microwetland
basins containing open water, marsh,
climate. Floristic differences are further exshrub
swamp) fen' Or bog mmmunities9 red plained by the complex overlap of the geographic
forests form a narrow
ranges of individual species. Land-use history unbetween
these types and the adjacent up- doubtedly influences swamp noristics as well, but
land' are often less than 30
the details of that relationship have not been
wide, they are a conspicuous feature of many northdescribed.
eastern wetlands and have been referred to specifically
by several authors. The floristic composition
of these transitional communities is often some- Plants of Special Concern
what unique in that plants from both the adjacent
upland and wetland communities are represented, None of the plant species in Table 3.3 is listed
along with the more typical swamp species. as endangered or threatened by the Federal Gov-
In association with Atlantic white cedar, north- ernment (J. Dowhan, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Servern
white cedar, hemlock, or balsam fir, red maple ice, Charlestown, R.I., personal communication),
commonly forms a narrow border around north- and none of those species is restricted to red maple
eastern bogs (Nichols 1913; Goodwin 1942; swamps. However, many of the species that have
Montgomery and Fairbrothers 1963; Moizuk and been observed in red maple swamps also appear
Livingston 1966; Osvald 1970; Ellis 1980; Dam- in the official rare-plant lists published by the
man and French 1987). In a study of six peat bogs various northeastern states. Appendix B identiin
southern Maine, R.B. Davis (University of fies those species and gives their status in each
Maine, Orono, personal communication) noted the state. Overall, nearly 140 (33%) of the species
presence of Labrador tea (Ledum groenlandicum) known to occur in red maple swamps are considand
rhodora (RhocloderuLron camdense), typical ered rare, threatened, or endangered in one or
bog shrubs, in the bordering red maple swamps. more states.
Balsam fir, black spruce, velvet-leaf blueberry Owing to the broad extent and physiographic
(Vminium myrtilloides), black huckleberry (Gay- diversity of the northeast region, some species are
lussacia baccata), mountain holly, and speckled common in the red maple swamps of certain states
alder were also present in the shrub stratum. but rare in others. Sweet pepperbush, spicebush,
Black spruce, tamarack, and white pine were as- and swamp azalea for example, are endangered in
sociated with red maple in the overstory of those Maine, but they are among the most common
swamps,
wetland shrubs in southern New England. Con-
A red maple-cinnamon fern association has also versely, northern white cedar is common in northbeen
recognized as a transitional community in ern New England but rare in Connecticut, Massasouthern
New England (Egler and Niering 1967; chusetts, and New Jersey. A few plants are listed
Damman and Kershner 1977; Anderson et al. 1980; by five or more northeastern states; these include
Messier 1980, Metzler 1982). This community typi- climbing fern (Lygodium palmatum), bog birch,
cally occupies a sloping, poorly drained soil zone, great rhododendron, showy lady's slipper
often just upslope from a seasonally flooded swamp (Cypripedium reginae), small yellow lady's slipper
community. The lack of surface water and the drier (C. cakeolus var. parviflorum), white adder'sso2
conditions during the growing semon, which mouth (Malaxis rnomphy llus var. brachypoda),
characterize this transitional community, make the Britton's violet (Vila brittoniana), md gypsywort
site suitable for species that are more frequently (Lycopus rubellus). Swamp red currant (Ribes
found outside of wetlands. White oak and American triste), hemlock parsley, sweet coltsfoot (Petmites
beech, for example, are commody observed in this palmatus), marsh willow-herb (Epilobium paluscommunity
in Rhode Island. (Not all red maple-cin- tre), cyperus-like sedge (Carex pseuckqperus),