General information

Provisional. A provisional ecological site description has undergone quality control and quality assurance review. It contains a working state and transition model and enough information to identify the ecological site.

MLRA notes

Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): 234X–Interior Brooks Range Mountains

Geography
The Interior Brooks Range mountains area consists of predominantly steep, jagged mountains and narrow valleys that drain the southern side of the Brooks Range. This area is bordered by the Northern Brooks Range Mountains (Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) 244) to the north, the Western Brooks Range Mountains Foothills and Valleys (MLRA 243) to the west, and the Upper Kobuk and Koyukuk Hills and Valleys (MLRA 233) and the Interior Alaska Highlands (MLRA 231) to the south. The Brooks Range represents a drainage divide that is also the dividing line between MLRA 234 and MLRA 244. Rivers draining to the north wind their way along the North Slope until they reach the Arctic Ocean, while rivers that drain to the south reach the northern Pacific Ocean via the Bering Sea. MLRA 234 covers an area of 22,479 miles and is sparsely populated (USDA, 2022).

Geology
The Brooks Range is the northernmost extension of the Rocky Mountains and the highest range within the Arctic Circle, with high peaks in the eastern part of the range reaching elevations of nearly 9,000 feet. This area falls within the zone of discontinuous permafrost, with the continuous permafrost zone primarily occurring north of the Brooks Range. Wide, U-shaped valleys are evidence of extensive glaciation in the Early and Mid-Pleistocene, with most glaciers retreating to their current, high-elevation positions by the Late Pleistocene. The characteristically sharp upper peaks give way to lower mountain slopes comprised of alluvial and colluvial fans before reaching the gently sloping flood plains and terraces of the valley bottoms. While Paleozoic and Jurassic igneous and volcanic rocks can be found in the eastern part of the range, most of the lower slopes of this area are comprised of modified glacial material, alluvial, and colluvial deposits. Many rivers and streams, such as the Koyukuk, have their headwaters in the Brooks Range and drain to the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ocean via the Yukon River.

Soils
The dominant soils orders in this MLRA are Gelisols, Entisols, and Inceptisols. Soils in the area have a gelic (subgelic) or cryic temperature regime, a udic or aquic moisture regime, and mixed minerology. Gelisols are common on soils that are shallow or moderately deep to permafrost and are somewhat poorly to very poorly drained. Gelisols are more common on cold slopes and stream terraces. In some cases, higher-intensity wildfires lead to loss of insulation when the surface organic layer is burned. This can lead to permafrost loss or active layer expansion and ultimately alter hydrology and taxonomic classification. Entisols and Inceptisols lacking in permafrost range from excessively-well to poorly drained. Entisols and Inceptisols are more common on rocky terrain, warm boreal slopes, and flood plains. Miscellaneous areas such as glaciers, riverwash, rock outcrop, and rubble land make up 63 percent of the MLRA.

Vegetation
The continental subarctic climate of the Brooks Range in conjunction with shallow, rocky soils leads to a sparsely forested landscape in this MLRA. Spruce-hardwood forests and woodlands tend to be relegated to lower elevations where deeper soils form on foot slopes and terraces. This is contrasted by the ericaceous dwarf shrub communities that are abundant on shallow, rocky slopes and ridges. Exposed sites are predominantly covered in lichen and sporadic forbs. Black spruce (Picea mariana) woodlands and tussock-forming sedge communities are on high stream terraces and foot slopes where permafrost occurs, as are wet sedge meadows. Floodplains tend to be dominated by low to tall willow scrub communities.

Land use
Except for areas along the Dalton Highway, access to most of this MLRA is extremely limited, lending itself to intact natural vegetation communities. For this reason, land use primarily takes the form of subsistence hunting, gathering, and fishing by local communities. In additions to subsistence activity, the Brooks Range is also a popular recreation destination, with many users utilizing air taxi and guiding services to access remote parts of the area. As is the case with much of interior Alaska, major resource concerns involve the persistence of permafrost, the degradation of which can lead to various changes in hydrology and nutrient cycling.

LRU notes

This area supports three life zones defined by the physiological limits of plant communities along an elevational gradient: boreal, subalpine, and alpine. The boreal life zone is the elevational band where forest communities dominate. Not all areas in the boreal life zone are forest communities, however, particularly in places where soil is too wet or dry to support tree growth (e.g., bogs or river bluffs). Above the boreal band of elevation, subalpine and alpine vegetation dominate. The subalpine zone is typically a narrow transitional band between the boreal and the alpine life zones, and is characterized by sparse, stunted trees. In the subalpine, certain types of birch and willow shrub species grow at taller than one meter in height (commonly Betula glandulosa and Salix pulchra). In the alpine, trees no longer occur, and all shrubs are dwarf or lay prostrate on the ground. In this area, the boreal life zone occurs below 2,500 feet elevation on average. The transition between boreal and alpine vegetation can occur within a range of elevations, and is highly dependent on slope, aspect, and shading from adjacent mountains.

Within each life zone, there are plant assemblages that are typically associated with cold slopes and warms slopes. Cold slopes and warm slopes are created by the combination of the steepness of the slope, the aspect, and shading from surrounding ridges and mountains. Warm slope positions typically occur on southeast to west facing slopes that are moderate to very steep (greater than ten percent slope) and are not shaded by the surrounding landscape. Cold slopes typically occur on northwest to east facing slopes, occur in shaded slope positions, or occur in low-lying areas that are cold air sinks. Examples of shaded positions include head slopes, low relief backslopes of hills, and the base of hills and mountains shaded by adjacent mountain peaks. Warm boreal slope soils have a cryic soil temperature regime and lack permafrost. In this area, white spruce (Picea glauca) forests are an indicator of warm boreal slopes. Cold boreal slope soils typically have a gelic soil temperature regime and commonly have permafrost. In this area, black spruce forests and woodlands are an indicator of cold boreal slopes. The boreal life zone can occur at higher elevations on warm slopes, and lower elevations on cold slopes.

Classification relationships

Alaska Vegetation Classification
Ericaceous dwarf scrub (II.D.2. – level IV)
(Viereck et al. 1992)

LANDFIRE Biophysical Settings
7616101 – Western North American Boreal Mesic Scrub Birch-Willow Shrubland - Boreal (LANDFIRE biophysical settings, 2009)

Ecological site concept

Key soil and site characteristics
• Occurs in the alpine zone
• Loamy-skeletal soils
• Gentle to moderate slopes (zero to five percent)
• Acidic soils
• Very poorly drained, ponding frequent for long durations

Associated sites

Similar sites

Table 1. Dominant plant species