RAPID WETLAND ASSESSMENT FOR MICHIGAN SECTION 1: BIOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK Prepared by: Dennis A. Albert, Paul Adamus, David Campbell, John Christy, Joshua G. Cohen, Theadore Cook, Helen Enander, Linda Hardison, Michael A. Kost, Katie Mitchell, Jennifer Sackinger, and Bradford S. Slaughter Of: Michigan Natural Features Inventory Oregon State University, and Adamus Resource Assessment, Inc. For: Michigan Department of Transportation September 2008 Report Number 2008-06 Cover image taken by: D. Albert Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................................. 1 2.0 Literature Review........................................................................................................................................ 1 3.0 Field Sampling ............................................................................................................................................ 2 4.0 Plant Community Classification and Distribution Map Development ........................................................ 4 5.0 Quantitative Metrics for Wetland Quality, Function, and Value ................................................................. 5 6.0 Hydrologic Metric - Relationship to Plant Communities and Species ........................................................ 5 7.0 Characteristic Plant Species for Each Wetland Type ................................................................................ 10 8.0 Photos and Diagrams of Plant Communities ............................................................................................ 10 9.0 Endangered and Rare Wetland Types ........................................................................................................ 11 10.0 Tables of Rare Plants and Animals by Plant Community........................................................................ 11 11.0 Plant Cummunity Analysis Based on FQA Species Lists of Natural Communities ................................ 11 11.1 Methods................................................................................................................................................... 14 11.2 Results ..................................................................................................................................................... 15 12.0 Wildlife Habitat Models .......................................................................................................................... 25 13.0 Discussion ............................................................................................................................................... 26 14.0 Achnowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 26 15.0 Literature................................................................................................................................................. 27 Figures Figure 1. Relationship Between FQI and MiRam Scores ................................................................................. 3 Figure 2. Relationship of Mean C Scores to MiRam Scores ............................................................................. 3 Figure 3. Bog distributions along DCA axis 1 and axis 2. .............................................................................. 12 Figure 4. Bog distributions shown by county along DCA Axis 1 and Axis 2. ............................................... 13 Figure 5. Bray-Curtis ordination of species at 180 sites representing the Marsh community group. ............. 16 Figure 6. Bray-Curtis ordination of species at 43 sites representing the Wet Prairie community group. ........ 18 Figure 7. Bray-Curtis ordination of species at 144 sites representing the Fen and Bog community group..... 20 Figure 8. Bray-Curtis ordination of species at 6 sites representing the Shrub Wetland community group. .. 22 Figure 9. Bray-Curtis ordination of species at 121 sites representing the Forested Wetland community. ....... 24 Tables Table 1. Primary and Secondary Water Source for Wetland Communities of Michigan. ................................ 6 Table 2. Inundation or saturation condition associated with each type of Michigan wetland. ......................... 8 Table 3. Endangered (S1) and rare (S2) wetland types. ................................................................................. 11 Table 4. Analysis of communities by community group per Kost et al. (2007), but with bog and fen groups combined................................................................................................................................................... 14 Table 5. Reclassification of Marsh community group based on floristic similarity ........................................ 17 Table 6. Reclassification of Wet Prairie community group based on floristic similarity................................. 19 Table 7. Reclassification of Fen and Bog community group based on floristic similarity. ............................. 21 Table 8. Classification of Shrub Wetland community group based on floristic similarity .............................. 22 Table 9. Reclassification of Forested Wetland community group based on floristic similarity. ...................... 25 Rapid Wetland Assessment for Michigan Page - i Appendices APPENDIX I. Key to the Natural Commuunities of Michigan. .................................................................. A-2 APPENDIX II. Distribution of Michigan’s Natural Plant Communities by Ecoregion. .............................. A-8 APPENDIX III. Distribution Maps of Natural Communities .......................................................................CD APPENDIX IV. Association of wetland types to common landforms of Michigan. .................................... A-9 APPENDIX V-A. Crosswalk of Michigan Natural Features Inventory and National Wetland Inventory Wetland Classifications ......................................................................................................................... A-11 APPENDIX V-B. Crosswalk of Michigan Natural Features Inventory and NatureServe Wetland Community Names ................................................................................................................................................... A-14 APPENDIX VI. NWI map codes ..................................................................................................................CD APPENDIX VII. Characteristic Plant Species of Michigan Wetlands....................................................... A-16 APPENDIX VIII-A, VIII-B, VIII-C and VIII-D. Photographs of Natural Communities .............................CD APPENDIX IX-A. Diagram of Wooded Dune and Swale Complex.......................................................... A-63 APPENDIX IX-B. Diagrams of Interdunal Wetland ................................................................................. A-64 APPENDIX IX-C. Diagrams of Prairie Fen .............................................................................................. A-65 APPENDIX IX-D Diagrams of Bog in Kettle Lake .................................................................................. A-66 APPENDIX X-A. Rare Animals Occupying Michigan’s Wetland Plant Communities. ............................ A-67 APPENDIX X-B. Rare Plants Occupying Michigan’s Wetland Plant Communities................................. A-90 APPENDIX XI. Rare species and number by wetland community. .............................................................CD APPENDIX XII-A. Reclassified groupings for Marsh communities based on floristic similarity. ......... A-104 APPENDIX XII-B. Reclassified groupings for Wet Prairie communities based on floristic similarity. .. A-108 APPENDIX XII-C. Reclassified groupings for Fen and Bog communities based on floristic similarity. A-110 APPENDIX XII-D. Reclassified groupings for Shrub Wetland communities based on floristic similarity. .................................................................................................................................................................. A-114 APPENDIX XII-E. Reclassified groupings for Forested Wetland communities based on floristic similarity. .................................................................................................................................................................. A-115 APPENDIX XIII-A. Importance Values > 50 for species in Shrub Wetland community group, by group number. ............................................................................................................................................... A-118 APPENDIX XIII-B. Importance Values > 25 for species in Forested Wetland community group, by group number. ............................................................................................................................................... A-120 Rapid Wetland Assessment for Michigan Page - ii 1.0 Introduction This project was focused on developing a Rapid MNFI staff and Paul Adamus participated in the Wetland Assessment protocol (MiRAM) and providing evaluation of MDEQ’s draft MiRAM protocols by associated biological data that would assist users in conference call and by submitting email comments. more efficient and accurate identification of wetland Dennis Albert, Phyllis Higman, and Suzan Campbell types, their hydrology, and other important attributes. also met with MDEQ and MDOT staff