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| General Description |
Members of this habitat are associated with hardwood forests growing on nutrient-rich substrates. Most are associated with mesic mountain coves but at least some occur on ridges where mafic or calcareous formations are present. A few, such as Butternut, are associated with riparian forests with rich alluvial soils.
As in other montane habitats, several of the Determining Species are primarily northern in their distribution, occupying disjunct sites in the Southern Appalachians where they survived the Ice Age. A number of other species, however, have the majority of their ranges located west of the Appalachians, where they are associated with the limestone and other sedimentary rock formations laid down in the inland seas of the Paleozoic and Mesozoic Eras. Although the mountains of North Carolina have only a few scattered outcrops of limestone or dolomite, the basophilic plant species of this habitat are able to make use of mafic substrates as well as those derived from Amphibolite and other metamorphic rocks that are rich in minerals. The ranges of these species, however, are essentially confined to the Mountains in North Carolina, although in some cases, there do not appear to be any climatic restrictions that keep them from occupying mafic soil habitats in the Piedmont.
The animal members of this habitat are all specialist herbivores on the Determining Plant species. Like the plants, these species are confined to the Mountains, even though in some cases -- e.g., the Nettle- or Basswood-feeding species -- their host plants have ranges that extend much farther to the east. Most have their centers of distribution located west of the Appalachians, including the Ohio River drainages, with some extending north into the Great Lakes region or Canada.
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| Abiotic Factors |
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| Biotic Structure |
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| Co-evolved Species Groups |
Phagic and Competitory Symbioses:
Acer saccharum // Cameraria aceriella
Aesculus flava // Lithophane joannis-Olethreutes appalachiana-Olethreutes monetiferanum-Olethreutes ochrosuffusanum-Olethreutes sciotana-Zeiraphera claypoleana
Collisonia canadensis // Papaipema astuta
Prunus serotina // Papilio appalachiensis
Nettle species // Abrostola ovalis-Abrostola urentis-Hypena edictalis
Tilia americana // Catocala cerogama-Hypena deceptalis
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| Determining Species |
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| Estimated Risk to the Determining Species |
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| Estimated Risk to the Co-evolved Species Groups |
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| Estimated Security of the Habitat |
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| Index of Habitat Imperilment |
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| Identified Risks |
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| Observed Trends |
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| Distribution Map | |
| Distribution |
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| Major Conservation Reserves |
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| Priority Areas for Surveys and Conservation Protection |
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| Stewardship and Management Recommendations |
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| References |
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| Updated on |
2022-01-01 00:27:55 |
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