AN ALLIANCE LEVEL CLASSIFICATION OF THE VEGETATION OF
SOUTH DAKOTA
CLASS - FOREST
1. Pinus ponderosa Forest Alliance (Ponderosa Pine Forest Alliance)
2. Picea glauca Forest Alliance (White Spruce Forest Alliance)
3. Picea glauca Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance (White Spruce
Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance)
4. Acer saccharum - Tilia americana - (Quercus rubra) Forest Alliance
{Sugar Maple - American Basswood (Red Oak) Forest Alliance}
5. Fraxinus pennsylvanica - (Ulmus americana) Forest Alliance {Green
Ash - (American Elm) Forest Alliance}
6. Quercus macrocarpa Forest Alliance (Bur Oak Forest Alliance)
7. Betula papyrifera Forest Alliance (Paper Birch Forest Alliance)
8. Populus tremuloides Forest Alliance (Quaking Aspen Forest Alliance)
9. Fraxinus pennsylvanica - Ulmus americana - Celtis (occidentalis,
laevigata) Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance {Green Ash - American Elm -
(Hackberry, Sugarberry) Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance}
10. Populus deltoides Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance (Eastern
Cottonwood Temporarily Flooded Forest Alliance)
11. Pinus Ponderosa - Populus tremuloides Forest Alliance (Ponderosa
Pine - Quaking Aspen Forest Alliance)
CLASS - WOODLAND
12. Juniperus scopulorum Woodland Alliance (Rocky Mountain Juniper Woodland
Alliance)
13. Pinus ponderosa Woodland Alliance (Ponderosa Pine Woodland Alliance)
14. Fraxinus pennsylvanica - (Ulmus americana) Woodland Alliance
{Green Ash - (American Elm) Woodland Alliance}
15. Quercus macrocarpa Woodland Alliance (Burr Oak Woodland Alliance)
16. Populus deltoides Temporarily Flooded Woodland Alliance
(Eastern Cottonwood Temporarily Flooded Woodland Alliance)
17. Salix amygdaloides Temporarily Flooded Woodland Alliance (Peach-leaved
Willow Temporarily Flooded Woodland Alliance)
CLASS - SHRUBLAND
18. Ceanothus velutinus Shrubland Alliance (Mountain
Balm Shrubland Alliance)
19. Artemisia filifolia Shrubland Alliance (Sand Sage Shrubland Alliance)
20. Artemisia cana Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance (Silver Sage
Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance)
21. Cercocarpus montanus Shrubland Alliance (Mountain Mahogany Shrubland
Alliance)
22. Salix bebbiana Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance (Beaked Willow
Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance)
23. Salix exigua Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance (Sandbar Willow
Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance)
24. Symphoricarpos occidentalis Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance
(Wolfberry Temporarily Flooded Shrubland Alliance)
25. Betula pumila - (Salix spp.) Saturated Shrubland Alliance {Bog
Birch - (Willow spp.) Saturated Shrubland Alliance}
CLASS - DWARF-SHRUBLAND
26. Juniperus horizontalis Dwarf-shrubland Alliance
(Creeping Juniper Dwarf-Shrubland Alliance)
CLASS - HERBACEOUS
27. Andropogon gerardii - (Calamagrostis canadensis,
Panicum virgatum) Herbaceous Alliance {Big Bluestem - (Canada Bluejoint,
Switchgrass) Herbaceous Alliance}
28. Andropogon gerardii - (Sorghastrum nutans) Herbaceous Alliance{Big
Bluestem - (Indian Grass) Herbaceous Alliance}
29. Andropogon hallii Herbaceous Alliance (Sand Bluestem Herbaceous
Alliance)
30. Calamovilfa longifolia Herbaceous Alliance (Prairie Sandreed Herbaceous
Alliance)
31. Pascopyrum smithii Herbaceous Alliance (Western Wheatgrass Herbaceous
Alliance)
32. Poa (fendleriana, interior) - Sporobolus heterolepis
Herbaceous Alliance (Bluegrass species - Prairie Dropseed Herbaceous Alliance)
33. Shizachyrium scoparium - Bouteloua curtipendula Herbaceous Alliance
(Little Bluestem - Side-oats Grama Herbaceous Alliance)
34. Stipa comata - Bouteloua gracilis Herbaceous Alliance (Needle-and-thread
- Blue Grama Herbaceous Alliance)
35. Carex lanuginosa Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Wooly Sedge
Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
36. Carex spp. - Plantago eriopoda Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous
Alliance (Sedge species - Alkali Plantain Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
37. Distichlis spicata - (Hordeum jubatum) Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous
Alliance (Inland Saltgrass - {Foxtail Barley} Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
38. Hordeum jubatum Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Foxtail Barley
Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
39. Spartina pectinata Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Prairie
Cordgrass Temporarily Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
40. Carex (rostrata, utriculata) Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Sedge
species {C. rostrata, C. utriculata} Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
41. Carex aquatilis Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Water Sedge Seasonally
Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
42. Carex atherodes Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Awned Sedge Seasonally
Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
43. Typha spp. - (Scirpus spp. - Juncus spp.) Seasonally Flooded
Herbaceous Alliance (Cattail species- {Bulrush species - Rush species} Seasonally Flooded
Herbaceous Alliance)
44. Scirpus acutus - (Scirpus tabernaemontani) Semipermanently Flooded
Herbaceous Alliance (Hardstem Bulrush - {Softstem Bulrush} Semipermanently Flooded
Herbaceous Alliance)
45. Scirpus martimus Semipermanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Alkali Bulrush
Semipermanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance
46. Typha (angustifolia, latifolia) - (Scirpus spp. ) Semipermanently
Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Cattail {Narrowleaf, Common} - {Bulrush species}
Semipermanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance}
47. Carex interior - Carex lurida Saturated Herbaceous Alliance (Inland
Sedge - Sallow Sedge Saturated Herbaceous Alliance)
48. Carex lasiocarpa Saturated Herbaceous Alliance (Wiregrass Sedge Saturated
Herbaceous Alliance)
49. Carex spp. - Typha spp. Saturated Herbaceous Alliance (Sedge species -
Cattail species Saturated Herbaceous Alliance)
50. Carex spp. Saturated Herbaceous Alliance (Sedge species Saturated Herbaceous
Alliance)
51. Quercus macrocarpa - (Quercus alba) Wooded Herbaceous Alliance (Bur Oak
- {White Oak} Wooded Herbaceous Alliance)
52. Pinus ponderosa Wooded Medium-tall Herbaceous Alliance (Ponderosa Pine Wooded
Medium-tall Herbaceous Alliance)
53. Quercus macrocarpa Wooded Medium-tall Herbaceous Alliance (Bur Oak Wooded
Medium-tall Herbaceous Alliance)
54. Populus deltoides Temporarily Flooded Wooded Herbaceous Alliance (Eastern
Cottonwood Temporarily Flooded Wooded Herbaceous Alliance)
55. Artemisia tridentata Shrub Herbaceous Alliance (Big Sage Shrub Herbaceous
Alliance)
56. Rhus trilobata Shrub Herbaceous Alliance (Fragrant Sumac Shrub Herbaceous
Alliance)
57. Sarcobatus vermiculatus Shrub Herbaceous Alliance (Black Greasewood Shrub
Herbaceous Alliance)
58. Sarcobatus vermiculatus Intermittently Flooded Shrub Herbaceous Alliance (Black
Greasewood Intermittently Flooded Shrub Herbaceous Alliance)
59. Potamogeton spp. - Ceratophyllum spp. - Elodea spp. Permanently
Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Pondweed species - Hornwort species - Waterweed species
Permanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
60. Ruppia maritima Permanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Widgeon Grass
Permanently Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)
61. Salicornia rubra Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance (Slender Glasswort
Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Alliance)