Field Trip Three
Appalachian Upland Communities Native Plant Communities | Taylor Keegan | 11/14
PART I. Delaware Water Gap Delaware Water Gap|
1. What geologic provinces were visited on this field trip? What geological events shaped these provinces? Explain. The Pocono Region began its formation during the
Paleozoic Era, approximately four hundred million years ago, created the stratification from sedimentation; this sedimentation was made up of quartz on top of Ordovician Martinsburg Shale. The more violent uplifting and folding of the land marked the end of the Paleozoic area two hundred million years later. Volcanic activity created islands that made their way across modern day North America, and created the Kittatinny Ridge and Valley. During the collision of the continents, the Silurian Shawangunk Conglomerate shattered much of the gray quartzite, which is where the Delaware River found its path to the Atlantic Ocean. Glaciation created the landscape we are familiar with today during the Pleistocene era; it was primarily to Wisconsin glaciation that is responsible occurring approximately 20,000 to 13, 000 B.C.E. Clarence Gehris, a graduate student at Pennsylvania State University provides a thorough history of the region in his doctoral thesis on a Pollen Analysis of the Cranberry (1964).
The following formations and their associations are outlined Silurian Period: Cayuga Formation Limestone and calcareous shale, Catskill sandstone found in Pike County*, Delaware River bottoms contain the lower helderberg beds: a good grain soil, Hamilton Beds: agricultural land Lower Helderberg: Blue, cherty limestone and calcareous shale Middle Devonian: Olive shale and sandstone of Hamilton Beds, and the black, platy Marcellus shale, and the Onondaga dark limestone and green shale Upper Devonian shows Genesee shale, Portage shale, Chemung Formation has grey sand and shale and limestone, Catskill formation has red shale, sandstone and grit *The Catskill sandstone formation in Pike County is indicative of the Scrub Oak community found at the top of Mount Minsi; this plant community is marked by its dominance in scrubb Quercus ilicifolia, Quercus Montana and Pinus Rigida)
2. What is a water gap? What explanations exist for the river taking a 90Ëš turn southward through the Kittatinny Range?
The Delaware Water Gap is a mile wide from Mount Tammany in New Jersey to Mount Minsi in Pennsylvania, crossing over the border of the states, which is the Delaware River. Mount
Tammany is framed by the appalachian range moving east, and the Delaware river moving south, is seen from several of the overlooks on the Appalachian Trail leading up to the top of Mount Minsi; Mount Tammany is the southernmost peak in the Kittatinny Mountains. There are several theories as to how the water gap was formed.The first story is set 420 million years ago when the land masses, today known as North America and Africa, collided causing the earth’s crust to rise forming mountains. Rivers caused erosion, creating the sedimentary rock sandstone known as the Shawangunk Formation (NPS “How the Gap Formed” 2014 ). Approximately 290 million years ago, an era deemed as “Mountain Building” created more pressure and folding the layers of rock; the varying degrees of hardness of rock allowed for more easily eroded rock to be swept away with the river, forming now what is believed to be the gap. The term used to describe this is Headwater Erosion or stream-capturing, where creeks flowing down the mountain formed a cut that grew into the gap. The other theory is Superposition, which takes the stance that creeks eroded an ever deepening channel, and that softer rocks were not involved in the process of creating the gap (NPS “The Water Gap” 2014).
3. How are glaciers formed? Which of the four major glaciations influenced Pennsylvania? What evidence exists for glacial activity in the areas visited today? Glaciation in this region is responsible for many of the landforms present in the Delaware Water Gap and across the Appalachian Range. The last glaciation was the Wisconsin, and melted a 20,000 years prior. Aforementioned, the water gap
was already formed at the time that the glaciers advanced, but evidence in the boulders and sedimentation tell the story that glaciers played a role in the formation of the landscape. The National Park Service has a self-guided tour available that highlight geology along the Mount Tammany portion of the Appalachian Trail Hike. A copy of this map has been included in the Appendix (National Park Service. Advanced My. Tammany Geology).
5. Describe one plant community that was seen on our hike on the Appalachian trail up to (but not including) Table Rock. List two dominant species for each of the following 4 layers: canopy, understory, shrub, and herbaceous layers. Use
Latin names followed by the common names in brackets. Name one abiotic variable that influences the appearance of vegetation in this habitat. At the top of Mount Tammany, a Pitch-Pine Scrub Oak forest emerges and becomes the most prevalent community of the rocky outcrops that foster the best views of the surrounding lands. The pine is the tallest and most abundant species, but chestnut oak, scarlet oak, white oak and red maple of varying sizes are associate species; oak seedlings are found more often than pine seedlings and speculation about fire suppression may contribute to the decline of the pitch-pine scrub oak community (Collins and Anderson, 98-9). Aformentioned, the abiotic variable that would alter the appearance of this habitate is most likely the sandstone
rock type it is found in. A second, abiotic variable would be wind, due to the high elevation and location of this community. The following is most commonly found within the Pitch-Pine-Scrub Oak community; Pitch Pine
Pinus rigida
Red Maple
Acer rubrum
Chestnut oak
Quercus prinus
Black oak
Quercus velutina
White oak
Quercus alba
Scarlet oak
Quercus coccinea
Black birch
Betula lenta
Gray birch
Betula populifolia
Sassafras
Sassafras albidum
Downy juneberry
Amelanchier arborea
Smooth juneberry
Amelanchier laevis
Scrub oak
Quercus ilicifolia
Black huckleberry
Gaylussacia baccata
Early lowbush blueberry
Vaccinium pallidum
Late lowbush blueberry
Vaccinium angustifolium
Deerberry
Vaccinium stamineum
Pinxter flower
Rhododendron periclymenoides
Mountain laurel
Kalmia latifolia
Sweet fern
Comptonia peregrina
Black chokeberry
Aronia melanocarpa
American chestnut
Castanea dentata
Virginia creeper
Parthenocissus quinquefolia
Wild sarsaparilla
Aralia nudicaulis
Bracken Fern
Pteridium aquilinum
Canada mayflower
Maianthemum canadense
Rattlesnake weed
Hieracium venosum
False Solomon’s-seal
Smilacina racemosa
Pennsylvania sedge
Carex pensylvanica
Wintergreen
Gaultheria procumbens
White Moss
Leucobryum glaucum
Haircap moss
Polytrichum sp.
6. Give examples of plants associated with hydric, mesic, and xeric communities on the hike. What other variables (other than soil moisture) influence the appearance of different community types here?
The gradient from hydric to mesic to xeric communities seen in the Appalachian mountains can also be seen on a micro-scale on the Mount Minsi hike along the old fire road and Appalachian Trail. The driest part of the hike is seen on the rock outcroppings near the top of the mountain. Here scrubby oaks and pines are seen, not dissimilar to the pitch pines and scrub oaks found in the pine barrens. This community also adds the flair of rhododendrons and sassafras. As we move down the mountain, or get closer to the streams that carry rainwater and springwater down to the Delaware that wraps around the mountains and through the range, more mesic and hydric plants are found. Beech trees are found at the bottom of the trail, along with Tulip Tree, Liriodendron tulipifera; and although invasive even the burning bush, Euonymus alatus, or demarcated an exit from the xeric areas. As you move towards the more hydric areas of the trail, such as Lake Lenape, Red Maple, Acer Rubrum, becomes an indicator of these poorly drained soils as well as Salix, Illex, and Alnus species. In addition to soil moisture, the geology of the area strongly influences the types of plant communities found in the area. The interesting outcrop of pitch pines and scrub oak at the top of Mount Minsi are indicative of Catskill sandstone aforementioned.
7. Name a vascular, spore-bearing species that was not a fern that we saw on our hike to Table Rock. A species that is related to a fern, and has a misleading common name “Fan Club Moss” or Lycopodium digitatum, is a
vascular, spore-bearing species. Also known as Running Cedar, this is an evergreen plant, with leathery leaves that can grow to be between five and ten inches tall. It is typically found on drier soils with debris, like leaves from maples, basswood, and pines.
lichens which adhere themselves as colorful stains on rocks. Foliose lichens, Umbilicate lichens also form on these rocks providing a micro-plant community on these rocky outcrops. Mosses tend to stick to the moister places along these exposed
It is seen in a bunch, which is because of its rhizomes.
areas such as cracks in the rocks, or places that soil has been able to accumulate; haircap mosses, white moss, threat moss, and rock mosses are typical (Anderson and Collins, p 102). The second successional community that, if enough soils are able to accumulate, includes the following herbaceous plants; New Jersey Hairgrass, poverty-oatgrass, starved panicgrass, Pennsylvania sedge, wild sarsaparilla, bristly sarsaparilla, little bluestem, common polypody, hoary mountain mint and pale corydalis (Anderson and Collins, p. 102). This community is typically taken over with ericaceous species such as lowbush blueberry, black huckleberry, sheep laurel, and black chokeberry and winged sumac and scrub oak. The Pitch-Pine Scrub Oak forest comes next as the landscape develops along the successionary journey.
8. Describe four different stages of succession on Table Rock, beginning with the pioneer species. Provide at least one indicator species for each stage, explaining how it paves the way for the next successive sere. Vegetation more typical in the Kittatinny Mountains varies between three plant communities that vary depending on their successional stage and the soil/rock type that they have formed on. The soils, as you climb in elevation become thinner, rockier and drier. As described in Plant Communities of New Jersey, gneiss, shale and sandstone contribute to the rocky ridgetops, steep slopes and outcroppings that Chestnut Oak forest and Pitch Pine Scrub Oak thrive in (Collins and Anderson p. 93). The third plant community, which is more prevalent on the rock outcroppings are a lichen-moss early successional stage of growth. Collins and Anderson discuss Successional Plant Communities on rock outcroppings in Plant Communities of New Jersey, which is relevant for the type of flora found along the Delaware Water Gap Hike. Because bare rock typically fosters a harsher environment- usually with a greater range of temperature and exposure, and less water retention abilities making it difficult for vascular plants to grow. This leaves a niche for lichen and moss community, beginning with crustose
Chestnut Oak Forest Chestnut Oak Red Oak White Oak Scarlet Oak Black Birch Pitch Pine Black Oak Red Maple Pignut Hickory Shagbark Hickory Sassafras
Quercus prinus Quercus rubra Quercus alba Quercus coccinea Betula lenta Pinus rigida Quercus velutina Acer rubrum Carya glabra Carya ovata Sassafras albidum
Black Cherry Downy Juneberry White Pine Flowering dogwood Scrub Oak Winged sumac Early Lowbush Late lowbush blueberry Deerberry Black huckleberry Pinxter flower, Mountain laurel Maple-leaved viburnum Sweet fern Wild sarsaparilla Bracken fern Wintergreen Pennsylvania sedge Spotted wintergreen White wood aster Rattlesnake weed Cow-wheat
Prunus serotina Amelanchier arborea Pinus strobus Cornus florida Quercus ilicifolia Rhus copallina Blueberry Vaccinium pallidum Vaccinium angustifolium Vaccinium stamineum Gaylussacia baccata Rhododendron periclymenoides Kalmia latifolia Viburnum acerifolium Comptonia peregrina Aralia nudicaulis Pteridium aquilinum Gaultheria procumbens Carex pensylvanica Chimaphila maculata Aster divaricatus Hieracium venosum Melampyrum lineare
Chestnut oak and red oak are prevalent on both north and south facing slopes, but black birch, tulip tree, white ash, basswood and sugar maple are favore the moist-north facing slope. The herbaceous layer also give clues to which side of the mountain you may be on; wild ginger, wild sarsaparilla, black snakeroot, columbine favor communities found in northern forests, whereas the warmer, drier south slope creates an environment more suited towards grassess, sedges and annuals (Collins and Anderson 96).
9. What is a lichen? What is the role of lichens on Table Rock? How do they influence succession? What is the role of lichens in the bog? According to webster-merriam dictionary, a lichen is “a simple slow-growing plant that typically forms a low crustlike, leaflike, or branching growth on rocks, walls, and trees.� As mentioned above, the lichens provide a base for the later successional plant communities through the formation of an organic matter, by breaking down rock and forming substrate. In a bog, lichens serve a similar function, as a pioneer species; they help form the initial mat along with other vascular and nonvascular species.
10. How might you incorporate features of Table Rock in a landscape design?
Similar to teardrop park in Brooklyn by Michael Van Valkenburgh, utilizing the natural forms from Table Rock could potentially to inspire a smaller scale design that would be reminiscent of the rock outcroppings seen at Table rock and along the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania. Furthermore, the idea of creating places that would evolve rather than be maintained align with using ecological models for design; this idea can be applied to a range of scales and locations from a large public park to a small backyard.
11. Identify birds that are common to this part of the Appalachian Mountains. What other animals frequent this area? According to the National Park Service, more than 260 species of birds have been spotted in the Delaware Water Gap.
Specific to water corridors, Louisiana waterthrush and bald eagles can be found. Areas high in hemlocks provide breeding grounds for blackburnian and black-throated green warblers, acadian flycatchers and hermit thrush. Bald Eagles are very common in
the infestation it is severely weakened and will most likely die prematurely from secondary causes (McClure). Because of the Adelgid, many Hemlock forests have been dramatically compromised; a good example of a transitioning Hemlock forest
this area as they are attracted to the open water and tend to spend the winters along the river. Other lookouts along the Appalachian Range in Pennsylvania include Hawk Mountain Sanctuary also known as the Pinnacle and Pulpit Lookouts. Here migrating Hawks and Turkey Vultures can be seen at the changing of the seasons. (National Park Service, Birds). Other animals that are common in the Appalachian Mountains are black bears, white tailed deer, gray fox, and gray squirrels; these animals are specific to more wooded areas. (National Park Service, Mammals)
can be found in Rickett’s Glen State Park. Each year in Pennsylvania, the adelgid has two generations; In early spring overwintering females lay around 200 eggs found on the underside of the branches. By April and May larvae emerge looking for food and are spread to other hemlocks via animals or strong winds. These larvae, known as crawlers, become nymphs when then mature into adult females by early summer. This cycle then repeats and the second cycle overwinters to emerge in spring.
12. Look for signs of Wooly Adelgid on the hemlocks and evidence of decline in the host tree. What is the life history for this insect? How has this insect impacted the forest landscape?
13. This tree species is found in low-lying bottomlands, stream banks, and swamps subject to periodic flooding Quercus palustris. It is extremely sensitive to iron chlorosis and should not be planted in soils with a pH above 7.
Woody Adelgid (Adelges tsugae) was seen on the branches of Eastern Hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) at the lower elevations along the Appalachian Trail. It is most easily identified by the small white sacs that form on the underside of the stems on Eastern Hemlocks; it primarily feeds on the younger growth while injecting a toxin which causes the tree to shed its needles. It was introduced to the region from Japan in the 1950s and has been found along the East Coast from Georgia to New England; it was first discovered in Pennsylvania in 1967 (McClure). Research conducted in 2007 found that 50% of Tsuga canadensis) has been impacted by the Adelgid (Kok et al). Typically a tree will die four to ten years after being infected; if it does not die from
PART II. Tannersville Cranberry Bog Tannersville Cranberry Bog is the southernmost black sprucetamarack bog in the Eastern Seaboard, and according to the National Park Service, is one of the best developed boreal bogs in Pennsylvania. It is located in Monroe County, PA and was designated in 1974; it is owned privately by the Nature Conservancy and is currently 185 acres of preserved land. Also, although it is called a bog, in America’s Natural Places: East and Northeast, it is categorized as an Acid Fen. This is because a fen receives water from a spring, whereas bogs are replenished by rainwater. The vegetation found includes the following; moss Black spruce Tamarack highbush blueberry leatherleaf Highbush cranberry Sheep laurel bog-laurel swamp azalea rhododendron bog rosemary swamp loosestrife beggar’s tick Labrador Tea Golden Club Hartford Fern Pitcher Plant
Sphagnum sp. Picea Mariana Larix laricina Vaccinium corymbosum Chamaedaphne calyculata Viburnum trilobum Kalmia angustifolia Kalmia polifolia Rhododendron viscosum Rhododendron maximum Andromeda polifolia Decodon verticillatus Bidens pilosa Rhododendron tomentosum Orontium Lygodium palmatum Sarracenia sp
Sundew Grass Pink White-fringed orchid Yellow lady’s slipper Heart-leaf twayblade Wild calla Gold Thread
Drosera sp Calopogon sp Platanthera praeclara Cypripedium pubescens Neottia cordata Calla palustris Coptis trifolia
1. How was Tannersville Bog formed? Describe succession in Tannersville Bog. What is the pioneer species?
Tannersville Bog was direct result of glaciation and was
formed approximately 10,000 years ago from a large glacial lake which has now become “a thick soup of peat moss.” (The Nature Conservancy, Tannersville Cranberry Bog Preserve). As the ice from the Wisconsin Glacier began to break off and melt, larger chunks formed holes, which then formed lakes and swamps. Because it was a hostile environment with limited nutrients, sphagnum began to encroach onto the lake which, today, is a layer of peat around 50 feet deep. Based on the depth of the bog, it has been aged at approximately 6,000 years (America’s Natural Places: East and Northeast p. 127). Cranberry creek currently runs through the middle, and is slightly less acidic than the water in the surrounding bog.
2. What factors influence pH at Tannersville Bog? As with most acidic environments, Tannersville occurs at the water table where the ground surface is acidic and relatively nutrient poor. The peat, or decaying organic matter, in this particular landscape has contributed to the low pH.
3. Why is decomposition inhibited in the bog? How would you describe the soils of the bog? How deep is the bog?
Because much of the bog is made up of Sphagnum, which produces acids, decomposition is prevented. This then creates an environment where accumulation of organic matter is accelerated which essentially fills in the lake that the bog evolves from. The soils in the bog are primarily poorly drained soils and peat which is a type of partially decomposed vegetation.
4. Why do we see boreal species in the bog? How does sphagnum influence the temperature of bog? The boreal species present such as black spruce and tamarack are able to thrive in this landscape because the sphagnum acts as a type of “air conditioner� or regulator for the bog; it allows it to maintain a cooler microclimate than the surrounding plant community types.
5. Name some plants seen in the bog that were also seen in the Pitch Pine lowland communities in the Pine Barrens. As pictured to the left pitch pines were seen in the area surrounding the upland areas of Tannersville bog. The pines were much taller (estimated around 80’), as they were not as regularly burned and disturbed as the pines that we saw in
the barrens. In the lowland areas sphagnum, bog cranberry, pitcher plant and carnivorous plants were also seen in the wetter area of the barrens surrounding Bastos Creek. The same phenomenon of the “quaking bog� was witnessed in the areas directly surrounding the Bastos River, most likely indicating the successionary movement of the sphagnum into the waterway; in the case of Tannersville it is Cranberry Creek and in the case of Pine Barrens it is the Bastos River.
6. What enables trees to maintain a foothold in the floating mat vegetation of the bog?
Trees are able to maintain a foothold in the bog through the vegetative mat that is created from the succession of the sphagnum mosses, and the accumulation of organic matter.
7. Provide a table showing the plant species assemblages, pH, water depth, and relative distances in the bog that the measurements were taken. Interpret the data as best you can. (WATING FOR DATA)
8. What happens to pH as we approached the creek? The center of the bog? Why?
The pH increases as you approach the creek, and drops as you get to the bog; this is demonstrated in the variation of plants that grow as you get closer to the creek. This is due to the fact that the water closer to the creek is being replenished by its flow, while the bog water is being retained in the vegetation, the substrate, and the sphagnum which exists from the peat.
9. What animals were seen on our field trip?
Describe some things you learned about the usually scarce in such conditions. animals we encountered. Describe some other In Tannersville, the most visible carnivorous plants were animals that occur in the areas we visited and their Pitcher Plants. The common name leads to numerous different role in community dynamics. family associations including Nepenthaceae, Sarraceniaceae, Because of the large group that was present during our visit to the bog (a local group of fourth graders), no animals were seen on the field trip. However, the animals that are observed in the bog include hawks, snowshoe hares, bears, bobcats, and the usual suspects like squirrels, chipmunks and birds.
10. Look for carnivorous plants. Describe the mechanism used to capture insects in one carnivorous plant seen today. Pitcher Plants, Dropsera. Capturing insects provides nitrogen and phosphorus, which are
Cephalotaceae and Bromeliaceae. The Pitcher plant found in Tannersville, however is known as Sarracenia purpurea. Like its cousins, Sarracenia captures flies, ants, spiders, and even moths with its pitcher-shaped structure, and smartly pointing pubescence. When one of its prey is lored into the “pitcher� where the water collects, it is unable to get back out because of the downward growth of the hairs on the inside of the pitcher. Eventually, the bug decomposes, with a little help from enzymes produced by the Sarracenia and is transformed into nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, for the plant.
PART II. Aesthetic Field Study
In suppliment to the more ecological focus of the first two field trips, this section of the report relates to an aesthetic analysis via field sketches, collections and musings.
Quercus sp.
The Gap
As my knowledge increases in Ecology, and I become more and more familiar with the plant an animal species that I encounter in the landscape, I began to realize a distinction between the pallets of intact, relatively undisturbed plant communities of the northeast, and the colors that many of the invading exotic flora provides. Needless to say, in the areas that have species such as burning bush, Euonymus alatus, Norway Maple, Acer platanoide, and Wineberry, Rubus phoenicolasius, almost have a neon glow to them. Note the colors in these two photographs taken a few minutes walk from eachother and the species of plants that are more subdewed compared to the landscape they exist in. The photo below this text has no visible invasices, while the photo to the right contains Burning bush and Norway maple that “pop� in the landscape. Although this may not be the case for every exotic plant in every landscape, it was one of the first distinguishing features of the autumn colors as my vocabulary and ecological language expanded. This observation reminds me of the age old saying...
“...All that glitters is not gold�
Native
Exotic
PART IV. Overview
Water Gap that showed me not only how to play outside, but to
Reflection|
I grew up in Berks County, Pennsylvania and went to elementary school in a little town called Shartlesville, which is known for ROADSIDE AMERICA, a tourist attraction off of route 78. This little town sits in the rolling foothills that are overseen by the front range of the Blue Mountains in the Appalachian Range. An access trail to the Appalachian Trail was a 6 minute car ride just over 4 miles away. My younger years consisted of building forts in the woods behind our house, splashing in the stream with my brother and sister, and building cities with the clay from the banks. It wasn’t until I worked in Montague, New Jersey, that I really realized my love for the Appalachian Mountain Range. This little town sits just outside of High Point State Forest, and at the northern point of the Delaware Water Gap. I worked at a camp that brought underprivileged youth from New York City and brought them out to the mountains, and taught them how to be in the woods. “Rustic living,” is what we did, meaning I slept in a tipi with a dirt floor for 8 weeks during my first summer at the camp. We swam in Lake Mashipacong, and took the campers out on “vagabonds,” which included hikes along the Appalachian Trail and canoe or bike trips down the Delaware River. One morning I drove my “Counselors in Training” to Sunrise Mountain for breakfast and, to catch the sunrise! It was the Delaware
live outside; it also directly showed me the value of experiential learning with inner city youth knee-deep in wild places. After this summer, a friend and I decided to hike from Duncannon to Port Clinton on the Appalachian Trail. With some bumps along the way, and many lessons learned, this was my first introduction to backpacking, and I haven’t looked back. Along this stretch of trail, there is a unique stretch of abandoned mining villages, one of which is called Rausch Gap. Hiking through it the first time, it was raining, and cold, and so incredibly beautiful. Walking through the woods, and seeing a sign pointing to a “cemetery” where no roads had been for nearly a hundred years. Seeing some sort structure that was built to pump, what I had perceived to be limestoneinfused water, back into a stream. I recently revisited this stretch of the trail, and was so pleased to experience this landscape in such a different context, with my landscape architecture and ecology background. Rausch Gap is now considered a “ghost town” and revolved around the coal mining industry, and the rail line that served as the primary means of transporting anthracite rom the mountains down to, what was most likely Philadelphia. The entire life of Rausch Gap, and similar towns spotted in the ridges and valleys of this region lasted less than a hundred years, beginning in the 1830s, peaking in the 1850s, and falling in the mid 1970s and being nearly vacant around WWI. Today, a shelter along the Appalachian Trail is named for the town, and Stony Creek runs along the trail down to the old rail
line. You can walk along the old rail line, or you can take the old carriage route Rausch Gap. If you walk the carriage route, you will also see signs development and industry; a pine plantation, cribbed walls, bony piles from the mines. If you walk along the rail line, you can see the actual foundations from the towns, and walk down the, what feels like endless, corridor back to Gold Mine Road. The mining activity in the area left the Stoney Creek in compromised condition, and lower than normal PH levels; this made it uninhabitable for many of the fish that used to live in it. To remedy this, a limestone well was placed where the creek crosses the old rail line, and neutralizes the water. Just as the informational sign promised, fish could be found just several yards from the treatment well. With help consulting the Appalachian Trail Resource Management Plan, and my own field notes, the types of vegetation found along this section of the Mountain includes the following: “New Jersey AT Corridor: dry, rocky chestnut oak forest dominated by chestnut oak, red oak, and associate species of red maple, black birch, black oak an pignut hickory. Shrub layer is ericaceous with mountain laurel and vaccinium sp. This chestnut oak forest dominates from Stokes State forest, Worthington State Forest, High Point State Park, and Delaware Water Gap Recreation Areas. East of high Point State Park, Chestnut oak forest covers the upper slopes of Pochuck, Wawayanda, and Bearfort Mountains (NPS, II-19). Also found are mixed oak forests that dominate lower and mid slope forests; these include red oak, white oak, sugar maple, white ash, hop hornbeam, beech and black cherry.
Mesic-hemlock hardwood forest community occurs in ravines and on sheltered north and west facing slopes (As seen near the Rausch Gap Shelter). “Two rarer upland community types are dry-mesic calcareous forest and talus slope communities” For the Allegheny Mountain section, vegetation reflects drier conditions. Kuchler types are mapped as Appalachian oak forest, oak hickory-pine forest and some northern hardwoods forest. Braun classified much of the area as oak-chestnut, before the chestnut blight (II-20)”
spruce-fir forest, and northern hardwoods. The predominant vegetation form is montane cold-deciduous broad-leaved forest dominated by the genus Quercus (oak). The oak forest type consists of black, white, and chestnut oaks that dominate dry mountain slopes; pitch pine is often a component along ridge tops. Mesophytic species such as yellow-poplar, red maple, northern red oak, and sweet birch dominate the valleys and moist slopes. Smaller areas of cold-deciduous broad-leaved forest with evergreen needle-leaved trees are present in the intermontane basins, with the hardwood-pine cover type of scarlet, white, blackjack, and post “Section M221d Blue Ridge Mountains”- Kuchler classified oaks and shortleaf and Virginia pines. Table Mountain pine, a firevegetation in this Section as Appalachian oak forest, southeastern dependent species with serotinous cones, occurs on xeric ridge
tops where fire was historically more common. Eastern white pine dominates small areas of coarse-textured soils and parts of the Blue Ridge escarpment joining the Southern Appalachian Piedmont Section. Mesic sites at higher elevations (4,500 ft.) are occupied by northern hardwoods (e.g., sugar maple, basswood, and buckeye); drier sites are dominated by northern red oak. The broad- leaved forest changes to evergreen needle-leaved forest with conical crowns (e.g., red spruce, Fraser fir) above altitudes of about 5,000 to 6,000 ft� (Resource Management Plan: Chapter Two ) Also found along the rail line was a cranberry bog, which I have not been able to find much information on. Such a surprise, and very little information on it, its reflective waters made for some fun photographs and rock/and log hopping. This wet area was somewhat reminiscent of what I saw on the upland trails in Tannersville; however I have only seen both in the colder weather and so I am sure that the lovely orchids and herbaceous plants would give greater context to the similarities and differences of the two. I also was only able to see the outskirts of each of these bogs, which lacked the sphagnum, spongy, magical place that literature describes. I can imagine once you venture off the boardwalk, Tannersville might be something like the miles of sphagnum I trecked through in Yukon Charley, with tussock marshes and sphagnum hummocks ranging in depth and topography. Or maybe it mimicked the 800’ climb up a 50 degree I had to do 7 times up a sheer slope of sphagnum, labrador tea, and Picgla sp; regardless these sphagnum - dominated landscapes hold a special place in my heart.
Pulpit Rock
Appalachian Trail, Pennsylvania
Overlooking the Kandik River
Yukon Charley National Preserve, Alaska
Works Cited| Advanced My. Tammany Geology. 2010. National Park Service. N.p.: National Park Service, 3/1/10. Print. Tannersville Cranberry Bog Preserve. 2014. The Nature Conservancy, 5 Nov. 2014. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. http://www. nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/ pennsylvania/placesweprotect/tannersville-cranberry-bogpreserve.xml Resource Management Plan: Chapter Two Present Resource Status. Appalachian National Scenic Trail. 2014. National Park Service. September 2008. Accessed November 2, 2014. http://www.nps. gov/appa/naturescience/upload/AT_Resource_Management_Plan_ Ch_2.pdf Collins, Beryl Robichaud, and Karl H. Anderson. 1994. Plant communities of New Jersey: a study in landscape diversity. Rutgers University Press. Dreese, Donelle N. 2014. "Tannserville Cranberry Bog." America's Natural Places. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood/ABC-CLIO, 2010. N. pag. Print. Gehris, Clarence W. 1964. “Pollen Analysis of the Cranberry Bog Preserve, Tannservillle, Monroe Co., Pa.” The Pennsylvania State University. Department of Botany. June 1964. Kok, Loke T.; Salom, Scott M., et al. "Biological Control of the
Hemlock Woolly Adelgid". Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Department of Entomology. McClure, Mark S. 2014. "Hemlock Wooly Adelgid Greenshare Factsheet". University of Rhode Island, University of Maryland Cooperative Extension. http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cs/groups/ public/documents/document/dcnr_007179.pdf National Park Service. 2014. Birds. Delaware Water Gap. Accessed November 6, 2014. http://www.nps.gov/dewa/ naturescience/birds.htm National Park Service. 2014. Mammals. Delaware Water Gap. Accessed November 6, 2014. http://www.nps.gov/dewa/ naturescience/mammals.htm National Park Service. 2014. “The Water Gap.” Accessed November 9, 2014. http://www.nps.gov/dewa/planyourvisit/thewater-gap.htm National Park Service. 2014. “How the Gap Formed” Accessed November 9, 2014. http://www.nps.gov/dewa/planyourvisit/ upload/sb2geogap.pdf
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R
Stop
Kittatinny Point Visitor Center (seasonal)
Overflow Parking
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Summit overlook
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Contact between Shawangunk Formation and Bloomsburg Redbeds Eight-foot-long boulder with slickensides Glacial kame terrace on sand and gravel Glacial Striae Rutted limestone glacial errratic Rib of Bloomsburg bedrock Greenish-gray & red siltstone, sandstone & shale of Bloomsburg Formation Large glacial erratic. Schoharie Formation (?) First Overlook (Arrow Island) Glacially-polished red sandstone and siltstone. Glacial striae. Springs Beginning of Shawangunk Formation on steep slope Talus Rib of quartzite with joints Crossbeds. Glacial cobbles. Gentle slop underlain by shale Evidence of forest fire Summit Overlook (Indian Head) junction with Blue Blazed Trail Sedimentary Structures. Mt. Tammany 1,527 ft.
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Mt. Tammany 1,527’
Feature (this itinerary is recommended for those with a knowledge of geology)
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Red Dot (Mt. Tammany) Geology Trail 1.3 miles to summit
Blue Blazed Trail 1.7 miles to summit
First Overlook
Rest Stop Parking (I-80 mile 2)
Dunnfield Parking
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Trail
Coordinates x y 489657 4535648 618 659 518 653 450 828 462 859 535 891 673 897 687 879 740 809 899 808 490117 827 171 814 191 790 256 712 289 528 413 452 454 328 481 217
Appalachian Trail
1 inch = 0.14 mile
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Dunnfield Trail (green blaze)
Stops along the Red Dot/Mt. Tammany Trail
Advanced Mt. Tammany Geology
Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
Dot Red