31 July 2022.
Monroe County, Alabama, United States
Locality: Plants growing on benches and bluffs along the Alabama River, accessed by boat launched below the lock and dam south of Isaac Creek Campground.
Coordinates: 31.5444, -87.5183
(Map it)
Elevation: 36m.
Habitat: Wild Habitat
Environment description: Plants growing in shade beneath the canopy of the deciduous forest above the scouring zone of the Alabama River ~7 to 10 meters above the normal flow zone. The underlying geology of this area is the Jackson Group undifferentiated. The units of the Jackson Group are the Yazoo Clay and Crystal River and Moodys Branch Formations. Descriptions of the members of the Yazoo Clay follow in descending order. Shubuta Member - in western Alabama consists of light-greenish-gray to white plastic fossiliferous, calcareous clay containing irregular calcareous nodules. From the Tombigbee River eastward, the Shubuta becomes more calcareous and grades into massive clayey glauconitic limestone. Eastward from the Alabama River, equivalent beds grade into the Crystal River Formation. Pachuta Marl Member - light-greenish-grey glauconitic, fossiliferous clayey sand and sandy limestone traceable from western Alabama eastward to Covington County where it grades into the Crystal River Formation. Cocoa Sand Member - yellowish-gray firm calcareous, fossiliferous fine to medium sand or sandy limestone or greenish-grey micaceous, calcareous, very clayey sand. Calcareous and clayey sand equivalent to the Cocoa is traceable from western Alabama to the Conecuh River area.
Number of plants sampled: 20
Associated species: Dirca palustris, Hydrangea quercifolia, Cornus alternifolia, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Platanus occidentalis, Carpinus caroliniana, Salix sp., Liquidambar styraciflua, Cladrastis kentukea, Halesia diptera, Ulmus americana, Phlox floridanum, Muscadinia rotundifolia, Arisaema triphyllum, Arisaema dracontium, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Staphylea trifolia, Vernonia glauca, Toxicodendron radicans, Solidago sp., Campsis radicans, Viola sp., Ampelopsis arborea, Itea virginica, Ruellia sp., Arundinaria gigantea, Boerhmeria sp., Passiflora lutea, Solidago flexicaulis, Celtis laevigata, Adiantum capillus-veneris, Magnolia grandiflora, Callicarpa americana, Catalpa bignonioides, Chasmanthium latifolium, Smilax sp., Pinus echinata, Aesculus pavia, Philadelphus inodorus, Hamamelis virginiana, Viburnum dentatum, Crataegus sp., Elephantopus sp., Equisetum hyemale, Liriodendron tulipifera, Morus rubra, Acer saccharinum, Sideroxylon sp., Acer negundo, Carya sp., Urtica dioica, Frangula caroliniana, Polystichum acrostichoides, Chasmanthium sessiliflorum, Ilex opaca, Hymenocallis occidentalis, Magnolia acuminata, Campanulastrum americanum, Arisamea quinetum, Rhapidophyllum hystrix, Sabal minor, Acer leucoderme, Phytolacca americana, Dryopteris ludoviciana
Comment: Common in woodlands along the Alabama River for several miles downstream from where we put-in.. This is a multi-stemmed, deciduous, rhizomatous shrub with an upright spreading habit. Plants observed, range in size from 0.5-4 meters tall. Leaves are opposite, palmately compound with 5-7 leaflets, finely serrated on the leaflet margins and 10-20 cm long. Foliage is green to dark green above and lighter beneath. Fruit is a pear-shaped capsule, 10 to 15 cm long, bearing 1-2 light brown seeds when ripe and born terminally on a long peduncle, typically bearing 1-5 fruit. Fruit production is frequently sparse on plants, due to deep shade conditions.
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