Elevation: 1369 ft
Aspect: South EastSlope Position: Back Slope
Landform: Nose Slope
Common Vegetation: Chestnut Oaks
The last stop we made during our trek at Wolf Rock was site W5C. This area was a drier site and was dominated by chestnut oaks, much like the first stop of the day. In fact, this site was very similar to the first site, not only in the vegetation found there but also in the slope position, aspect and landform. Both were South facing, back, nose slopes.
However, this site wasn’t exactly identical to the first site, because it had pitch pine and mountain laurel (species that only grow in very dry areas) in addition to the regular dry site species, such as Chesnut Oak and Black Gum. Even though the aspect, landform and slope position was the same, contributing factors to the presence of these “drier” site species might have been the incline of the slope and the elevation.
Only a few hundred meters from W5, a summit of high elevation, this site was significantly higher in elevation than our first site stop, and it had a slightly more inclined back-slope. Both these factors would affect the amount of moisture that could be retained in this area. This steep slope at high elevation has a major impact on the vegetation that can grow there because of the way the water runs. Not only does the water travel downwards and accumulate in flat areas but nutrients travel with the water. Plants that need a lot of moisture and nutrients from soil will not be found in a back slope environment because of the lack of necessities this environment provides them (Soil).
Warren II, Robert J. "An Experimental Test of Well-described Vegetation Patterns across Slope Aspects Using Woodland Herb Transplants and Manipulated Abiotic Drivers." New Phytologist 185.4 (2010): 1038-049. Print.
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