Chapter 4 Habitats
4.4.19 Successional Communities (Herb, Shrub, Woody) 4.4.19.1 Ecosystem Description
Successional communities can be described as grassland, shrubland, or woody types and are found in upland terrestrial landscapes as well as wetlands. Successional uplands are dominated by herbaceous vegetation and/or shrub cover because most trees have been removed, either through natural means or by human activity. Where tree species exist, they are young and often not much taller than shrubs. Successional wetlands are primarily dominated by herb and shrub communities that develop on frequently flooded, semi-permanently flooded, or other wetland sites following disturbance, either natural or manmade. Natural examples of successional wetlands include the communities that form as Beaver ponds become filled in with sediments, particularly following abandonment of a pond by the Beavers. Artificial examples include habitats that form along routinely maintained corridors (e.g., power line easements, rights-of-way) and where borrow pits, farm ponds, drainage ditches, or larger reservoirs become filled in. • Grassland types can be either uplands or wetlands and are dominated by herbaceous vegetation such as mixed grasses, wildflowers, and vines. Examples of this habitat include fallow farm fields, hayfields, pastures with native grasses, savannas, prairies, meadows, and mountain balds. Grass Balds are a unique community and are described in Section 4.4.6. While areas such as ball fields, golf courses, intensively managed horse farms, and mowed lawns are dominated by grasses, they do not provide quality grassland habitat for priority species. • Shrubland types have a mixture of young saplings, shrubs, and woody plants typically less than 10 feet tall with scattered open patches of grasses, wildflowers, and vines. Vegetation composition is generally dependent on disturbance frequency and patterns. Hedgerows, clear-cut and regenerating forests, field borders, large canopy gaps, and transportation or utility rights-of-way in dry to mesic uplands are often shrubland communities. Scattered mature trees may be present but not to the point that they shade out the beneficial understory vegetation. Shrubland habitats provide structural diversity that offers a variety of nesting sites, escape cover, and food for wildlife. • Woody types represent late-stage successional communities that have not developed the characteristics of a specific natural community. Dominant trees in the overstory and shrubs in the understory are often dense and most likely composed of common weedy species or nonnative invasives. The niche that successional communities occupy probably has always existed, having once been associated primarily with openings created by natural disturbances such as storms, floods, or fire. Since they rely on patterns of disturbance to maintain them, these communities are
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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