Minnesota Land Cover Classification System User Manual Version 5.2 Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Central Region Bart Richardson & Ethan Perry August 2003 Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................... 1 PREFACE...................................................................................................................................... 4 INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................... 5 THE CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM ........................................................................................... 7 LAND COVER VS. LAND USE............................................................................................... 7 SCHEMATIC TABLES ............................................................................................................ 9 System Overview....................................................................................................................... 9 Cultural Land Cover System................................................................................................ 9 Natural / Semi-Natural Land Cover System ...................................................................... 10 National Vegetation Classification System: Schematic Tables............................................ 14 NVCS schematic table ....................................................................................................... 14 NVCS - MLCCS: Natural / Semi-Natural Communities.................................................. 14 NVCS - MLCCS: Cultural Land Cover ........................................................................... 15 CODING SCHEMES............................................................................................................... 16 MODIFIER CODING SCHEMES......................................................................................... 17 LAND COVER INVENTORY EXAMPLES ........................................................................... 18 INVENTORY PROCESS........................................................................................................... 19 MATERIALS............................................................................................................................ 19 Printed materials:..................................................................................................................... 19 Digital materials: ..................................................................................................................... 19 PROCEDURE........................................................................................................................... 19 Broadly delineate level 1 & 2 ............................................................................................... 19 The Minimum Mapping Unit and levels 3, 4, & 5................................................................ 20 Sampling techniques and the dichotomous key.................................................................... 20 Modifiers to land cover codes............................................................................................... 20 Interpretation and digitizing standards.................................................................................. 20 Polygon Attribute Table standards........................................................................................ 21 Error checking techniques..................................................................................................... 26 Polygon Attribute Table..................................................................................................... 26 Digitizing Quality............................................................................................................... 26 Interpretation Quality ......................................................................................................... 26 The DNR's proofing procedure .......................................................................................... 26 MLCCS DICHOTOMOUS KEY .............................................................................................. 28 DEFINITIONS OF CODES....................................................................................................... 67 ARTIFICIAL SURFACES AND ASSOCIATED AREAS................................................... 68 Artificial surfaces with trees as the dominant vegetation cover.............................................. 68 Artificial surfaces with coniferous trees ............................................................................... 68 Artificial surfaces with deciduous tree cover........................................................................ 71 Artificial surfaces with mixed coniferous and deciduous tree cover.................................... 75 Artificial surfaces with coniferous and/or deciduous shrub dominant vegetation .................. 77 Artificial surfaces with coniferous and/or deciduous shrubs................................................ 77 Artificial surfaces with coniferous and/or deciduous shrubs with sparse trees .................... 79 Artificial surfaces with herbaceous dominant vegetation........................................................ 80 Artificial surfaces with perennial grasses with sparse trees.................................................. 80 Artificial surfaces with perennial grasses ............................................................................. 83 Artificial surfaces with cultivated herbaceous vegetation (gardens) .................................... 85 Artificial surfaces with less than 25% vegetation cover.......................................................... 87 Buildings and/or Pavement................................................................................................... 87 Exposed Earth ....................................................................................................................... 88 PLANTED OR CULTIVATED VEGETATION.................................................................. 91 Planted, maintained or cultivated tree vegetation.................................................................... 91 Planted, maintained or cultivated coniferous trees ............................................................... 91 Planted, maintained or cultivated deciduous trees................................................................ 91 Planted, maintained or cultivated mixed coniferous/deciduous trees................................... 92 Planted, maintained or cultivated shrub and/or vine vegetation.............................................. 92 Planted, maintained or cultivated coniferous shrubs ............................................................ 92 Planted, maintained or cultivated deciduous shrub/vine vegetation..................................... 93 Planted, maintained or cultivated mixed coniferous-deciduous shrub/vine vegetation........ 93 Planted or maintained herbaceous vegetation ......................................................................... 94 Planted or maintained grasses with sparse tree cover........................................................... 94 Planted or maintained grasses............................................................................................... 95 Planted or maintained grasses and forbs............................................................................... 95 Cultivated Herbaceous Vegetation .......................................................................................... 96 Cultivated Row Cropland ..................................................................................................... 96 Close grown or solid seeded cropland .................................................................................. 97 FORESTS................................................................................................................................ 100 Coniferous forests.................................................................................................................. 100 Upland coniferous forests ................................................................................................... 100 Saturated coniferous forests................................................................................................ 106 Deciduous forests .................................................................................................................. 109 Upland deciduous forests.................................................................................................... 109 Temporarily flooded deciduous forests .............................................................................. 117 Saturated deciduous forests................................................................................................. 120 Seasonally flooded deciduous forests ................................................................................. 123 Mixed coniferous - deciduous forests.................................................................................... 124 Upland mixed coniferous - deciduous forests..................................................................... 124 WOODLAND ......................................................................................................................... 128 Coniferous woodland............................................................................................................