Woods for Spruce

Spruce - Fir - Northern Hardwoods ForForestest State Rank: S4 - Secure

and smaller amounts of red spruce and/or of northern hardwoods. balsam fir. Hemlock can be abundant or Northern Hardwoods - Hemlock scattered. Heart-leaf paper birch and paper - White Pine Forest (NHHWPF) birch usually occur as scattered lack abundant spruce, fir, and individuals. Characteristic shrubs include heart-leaf paper birch. mountain maple, red-berried elder, Blueberry is occasionally northern mountain ash, hobblebush, present in the understory of beaked hazel, and American yew. A low SFNHF, but absent or nearly so shrub layer has bunchberry, creeping in NHHWPF. Successional snowberry, and occasionally, twinflower. Northern Hardwood Forests is The herbaceous layer tends to be sparse, best distinguished by the especially when conifers are abundant; abundance of white birch and/or plants include intermediate fern, mountain aspens in the canopy and wood fern, blue-bead lily, painted trillium, northern hardwood species 400 year old red spruce in SFNHF. Photo: Patricia Swain, NHESP. and wood sorrel. generally occurring in the subcanopy or shrub layer, not Description: The Spruce - Fir - the canopy. If spruce or fir is present, it is Examples with Public Access: Northern Hardwoods Forest (SFNHF) has as scattered individuals, <25% cover. Monroe SF, Monroe; Mt. Greylock, a canopy of mixed red spruce and/or SFNHF can have abundant eastern Adams; Watatic Mountain Sanctuary balsam fir and northern hardwoods. It hemlock, but differ from other upland (DFW) and Reservation (DFG/DCR); occurs in cool areas above ~450m (~1400 hemlock forests by the presence of red Ashburnham. ft.), generally on rocky, nutrient poor, dry spruce, balsam fir, and/or heart-leaf paper to mesic, acidic soils. Often little light birch and other species of cool areas gets through the dense canopy and lower including mountain maple, mountain ash, layers are sparse and patchy. Slow and skunk currant and lacking species of decomposition produces dense needle warmer areas such as oaks, black birch, accumulation that further limits and mountain laurel. herbaceous growth. Tree reproduction is in gaps left by single tree fall. Red Spruce needles and cone. Photo: Keith Habitat for Associated Fauna: Kanoti, Maine Forest Service, Bugwood.org. Animals of SFNHF tend to be northern Characteristic Species: The species that are more typical of forests to canopies of SFNHF have variable Differentiating from Related our north. Birds include Golden-crowned dominance of 25 to 75% conifers, and the Communities: In SFNHF red spruce Kinglet, Blue-headed Vireo, and species inverse of northern hardwoods: red spruce is a dominant or at least present with other of big warblers including Blackburnian, and/or balsam fir with eastern hemlock conifers including balsam fir and eastern Yellow-rumped, and Magnolia Warbler. may be dominant or codominant with hemlock; and white pine is uncommon. In Mammals include fisher, as a classic sugar maple and beech (or these may be Massachusetts, High Elevation Spruce - example, and northern species such as red dominant), with abundant yellow birch Fir Forest/Woodland occurs only in the squirrels, snowshoe hare, in the open Greylock range at the very highest areas, northern flying squirrels, and Spruce -Northern Hardwoods Forests are elevations in the state, and is more pygmy shrews. Amphibians would usually found in northern, higher parts of exposed resulting in shorter, sparser trees include the ubiquitous redbacked the state, on cool, rocky soils that are in more open woodland conditions than acidic, nutrient poor, and somewhat dry; salamanders, wood frogs, and red efts Broken canopy tree in SFNHF, letting light into SFNHF. There is also a lower proportion (juvenile stage of red-spotted newts). lower layers. Photo: Patricia Swain, NHESP.

From: Classification of Natural Communities of Massachusetts htthttpp://www;mass;gov/nhesp/://www;mass;gov/nhesp/ Updated: 2016 Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, Division of FishFisheeriesries & Wildlife, 1 Rabbit Hill Rd;, Westborough, M! 01581 (508) 389-6360