Backwater Slough Guide - New York Natural Heritage Program

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Summary

Conservation and Management

Range

Identification Comments

Classification

Additional Resources

Backwater Slough

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International Vegetation Classification Associations

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This New York natural community encompasses all or part of the concept of the following International Vegetation Classification (IVC) natural community associations. These are often described at finer resolution than New York's natural communities. The IVC is developed and maintained by NatureServe.

Pickerelweed Marsh (CEGL006191) [NatureServe Explorer]
Open Water Marsh with Mixed Submergents/Emergents (CEGL006196) [NatureServe Explorer]

NatureServe Ecological Systems

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This New York natural community falls into the following ecological system(s). Ecological systems are often described at a coarser resolution than New York's natural communities and tend to represent clusters of associations found in similar environments. The ecological systems project is developed and maintained by NatureServe.

Laurentian-Acadian Freshwater Marsh (CES201.594) [NatureServe Explorer]

Characteristic Species

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Emergent aquatics

Bulb-bearing Water-hemlock (Cicuta bulbifera)
Hairy Swamp Loosestrife (Decodon verticillatus)
Rice Cutgrass (Leersia oryzoides)
Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

Green Arrow-arum (Peltandra virginica)
Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata)
Broadleaf Arrowhead (Sagittaria latifolia)

Floating-leaved aquatics

Lesser Duckweed (Lemna minor)

Submerged aquatics

Broad Waterweed (Elodea canadensis)
Myriophyllum exalbescens

Potamogeton spp.

Similar Ecological Communities

Oxbow lake

An oxbow lake is a stagnant lake or pond that forms when a river meander is cut off from the mainstem by the formation of a levee on both the upstream and downstream ends. A backwater slough is only cut off from the mainstem by an upstream levee.

Vegetation

Emergent aquatics

Floating-leaved aquatics

Submerged aquatics

100

Percent Cover

This figure helps visualize the structure and 'look' or 'feel' of a typical Backwater Slough. Each bar represents the amount of 'coverage' for all the species growing at that height. Because layers overlap (shrubs may grow under trees, for example), the shaded regions can add up to more than 100%.

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© 2004-2012 New York Natural Heritage Program, a partnership between
the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and
the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Please cite this page as:
New York Natural Heritage Program. 2013. Online Conservation Guide for Backwater Slough. Available from: http://www.acris.nynhp.org/guide.php?id=9943. Accessed May 18th, 2013.