A Natural Areas Inventory of Monroe County, Pennsylvania
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
A Natural Areas Inventory of Monroe County, Pennsylvania Document includes the original 1991 full report followed by the 1999 update addendum. This Natural Areas Inventory was conducted by Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program 208 Airport Drive Middletown, Pennsylvania 17057 For The Monroe County Planning Commission Monroe County Courthouse Stroudsburg, PA 1 83 60 A NATURAL AREAS INVENTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA 1991 Anthony F. Davis, Ecologist Gregory J. Edhger, Ecology Research Assistant Sarah B. Andersen, Ecology Research Assistant Anthony M. Wilkinson, Coordinator/Zoologist Jill R. Belfonti, Data Manager Pennsylvania Science Office of The Nature Conservancy 34 Airport Drive Middletown, Pennsylvania 17057 for The Monroe County Planning Commission Monroe County Courthouse Stroudsburg, PA 183 60 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE .--- - .- - ---- --- - - ---- - ; ----XCKNOWLiEDGMENTS . .;. GLOSSARY.......................m.mm..m.. 2 INTRODUCTION.............m~..~m.m....m..m 4 COUNTY OVERVIEW..............mm......m....m....m 5 PENNSYLVANIA NATURAL DIVERSITY INVENTORY DATA SYSTEM....... 10 NATURAL AREAS INVENTORY METHODS. .....m.m..mm...m. ..ma ..a. 11 SUINARY AND RECOMMENDATIONSem............*.m....m... 14 RESULTS OF THE INVENTORY........................e...... 34 LITERATURE CITED.......m..mm.........m...........m.........l28 APPENDICES I. Federal and State Endangered Species Categories, Global and State Element Ranks.......l29 11. Element Occurrence Quality Ranks.................135 111. potential Natural Area Inventory Forms...........137 IV. Recommended Natural Area Inventory Fonn..........139 V. Natural Community Types in Pennsylvania ..........140 VI. special Animals and Plants in the County .........147 Note: This report is printed entirely on recycled paper. i This study was developed in part with financial assistance from the Recreational Improvement and Rehabilitation Grant Program (RIRA-ST-5-90) administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Community Affairs, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation. The Pennsylvania Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and the County of Monroe provided additional funding and support. We thank the members of the aforementioned agencies, the Monroe County ~ommissioners:James E. Cadue, chairman, Thomas R. Joyce, vice-chairman, and Edward A. Katz; and the members of the Natural Areas Inventory Study committee: Ken Kochey, chairman, Amy Albert, David Buck, Frank Buser, Ed Elliott, Jim Purcell, Richard Ring, Elaine Rogers, Karen Sweeney, and Craig Todd. We also thank all the individuals who have contributed time and expertise to the study. We would especially like to thank Ms. Lisa Surma of the Monroe County Planning Commission for her time and effort, and Eugenie B. Drayton and Molly Docherty, former PNDI data managers, who extracted information on Monroe County from the PNDI data base, JoAnn Stanosz, ecology intern, and Tom Smith, former PNDI coordinator. p' -, GLOSSARY i, \ Alluvium - sediment deposited by rivers; includes gravels, sands, silts, and clays -.-- ..- ---- ATC - Appalachian Trail Conference &TJ - all-terrain-vehicle Barrens - areas that are naturally infertile as a consequence of nutrient-poor soils; often form on resistant rock such as quartz- sandstone-or highly weathered and leached glacial material Drawdown - lowering of the water table due to natural causes such as a drought or human activities such as excessive pumping of well water Effluent - waste water from septic tanks or from stormwater sewers Ericaceous - members of the heath family including blueberries, huckleberries, rhododendrons, and azaleas; these plants- are adapted- to living in acid soils Exemplary Natural Communitv - natural habitat that has received little or no human disturbance or has recovered sufficiently that the species composition reflects natural conditions LJ Exce~tionalValue - stream designation used by the Department of Environmental Resources to indicate high water quality Exotic - non-native; used to describe plant or animal species that were introduced by humans; examples include Japanese honeysuckle and garlic mustard; in some cases, exotics present a problem because they may be more competitive than native species en - peat-accumulating wetland that receives some drainage from surrounding mineral soil and usually supports marsh vegetation Forb - non-grass herbaceous plant such as goldenrod Graminoid - grass-like plant such as a sedge or a rush Hvdrolow - water system of an area including both surface water and ground water Kettle - depression formed when a chunk of ice entrapped in glacial material melts leaving behind a void End Moraine - ridge of till marking a stationary front of an ice sheet NPS - National Park Service ÿ on-Point - refers to diffuse sources of pollution such as stormwater runoff contaminated with oil or pesticides Outwash - sands and gravels deposited by glacial meltwaters potential Natural Area - area that may have desirable environmental characteristics, but needs a field survey to confirm; a preliminary category given to sites prior to field survey Seeps - springs; where water flows from the ground and saturates the soil; lush herbaceous vegetation often grows in these wet areas Stratified Drift - glacial material deposited in layers by meltwaters succession - natural process of vegetation change through time; over time, the vegetation of a site will change in composition and structure as-light and soil conditions change Till - jumbled mix of glacial material of varying particle size deposited by ice Test Pit - small excavation for testing the suitability of soils for on-site waste disposal (i.e. septic tanks) Understow - layer of shrubs and small trees between the herbaceous layer and the canopy INTRODUCTION i Monroe is a county rich in scenic and natural resources. However, its rural character and mountainous terrain in combination --------- with its proximity to major metropolitan centers have made Monroev------ County an attractive place to have a permanent residence or a vacation home. As a result, Monroe is one of the fastest growing counties in Pennsylvania. The scenic and natural environments that attract so many people to the county are quickly being lost because of increased development. Wise planning is needed to maintain these natural environments and the plants and animals associated with them. To achieve a balance between economic growth and protection of natural resources, development should be guided toward the most suitable sites and away from environmentally sensitive areas where possible. In order to plan development and ensure protection of important natural areas, county and municipal government officials, private citizens, and developers need to know the location and importance of sites. This knowledge can prevent conflicts over land use. A ranking of sites in terms of significance and vulnerability can help direct protection efforts and limited conservation dollars to the most critical areas. The Natural Areas Inventory of Monroe County, in conjunction with the county's comprehensive plan, can provide guidance for open space and nature preserves. The inventory report briefly describes G the geology, soils and vegetation of the county; methodology used to gather information, includingthe ~ennsylvaniaNatural Diversity Inventory data base, is also described. A summary of the highest quality sites in the county with conservation recommendations and tables listing sites in approximate order of importance precedes individual map descriptions. The Results section includes maps of the best natural areas in the county and the locations of all known animal and plant species of special concern (endangered, threatened, or rare). A written description and a summary table listing the quality, degree of rarity, and last-observed date of each "element oc~urrence'~accompany each map. The locations of some areas that are too disturbed to be deemed natural, but are significant at the local level for wildlife habitat and open space are also included. The information and maps in the Monroe County Natural Areas Inventory report will be useful guides for planning the development of residential communities and park lands, for conserving natural areas, and for setting protection priorities for the most vulnerable natural areas. COUNTY OVERVIEW The climate, geology, topography, and soils of Monroe County are important factors in the development of the local forests, wetlands, and other natural communities. In addition, man's activities exert a profound influence on community composition and structure. To locate and identify natural communities within the county, we utilized an ecological approach considering the various environmental factors and human disturbancea that contribute to vegetation patterns. A brief review of some important environmental factors sets the stage for the rest of the report. The following discussion of the geology and topography of Monroe County is taken from Lipscomb (1981) and Oplinger and Halma Monroe County straddles two physiographic provinces, each bearing a distinctive landscape reflecting the underlying bedrock geology. The northern two-thirds of the county are in the Pocono Plateau and Glaciated Low Plateaus sections of the Appalachian Plateaus province. The southern third of the county is in the Appalachian Mountain section of the Valley and Ridge province. Sedimentary rocks folded and faulted to varying degrees as a consequence of continental collision millions of years ago underlie Monroe County. The rocks in the Valley and Ridge