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Artpark, Lewiston, New York: Botanical field
notes from 2001 and 2002. P. M.
Eckel Missouri
Botanical Garden Res
Botanica April
3, 2003 |
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Artpark, Lewiston, New York: Botanical field
notes from 2001 and 2002. P. M. Eckel This note is an attempt to identify and describe areas of botanical interest
in the Artpark complex. As the author understands it, the Artpark area is
owned by the New York Power Authority, but administered by the New York State
Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation with another tier
of management that is open for public bidding. Artpark itself is a complex of
areas of vegetational relics amid areas of great disturbance and landscape
alteration, especially after the mid 20th century. Artpark is an area located in New York State, Niagara County,
township of Lewiston on the eastern shore of the Niagara River, partly in the
northern extremity of the gorge of the Niagara River, and partly on the plain
of Lake Ontario. The township of Lewiston is bisected in an east‑west
direction by the north‑facing Niagara Escarpment that is interrupted by
the excavation of the Niagara River gorge but continues westward into the
Province of Ontario. Artpark lies on the lower plain in the village of
Lewiston at the intersection of the Niagara Escarpment and the north‑south
gorge walls of the Niagara River. The bluffs in the angle of this
intersection are matched by similar bluffs in Ontario overlooking the village
of Queenston on the lower lake plain. The imposing
Niagara Escarpment and the gorge of the Niagara River display exposures of
geologic strata with indurated calcareous bedrock at the apex of the geologic
column exposed there, interbedded with softer sandstones, shales and
siltstones. The lower plain at the base of these elevations is formed of
bright red Queenston Shale ("maroon shale with green streaks"). Four areas of
natural interest described below include: 1. Talus slope remnant. 2. Upper
hiking trail. 3. Alvar by old Suspension Bridge abutments, top of the river
embankment. and 4. Scovell's Knoll [description in preparation]. The most evident
impact of disturbance occurs in an area along the face of the north facing
Niagara escarpment which is a multi‑tiered spoil area of rubble that
has been sculped into a high‑speed roadway and multiple level parking
for ongoing public programs at Artpark. The soil here is all transported,
used to cover the rubble and planted to various exotic species of trees and
shrubs, especially exotic evergreens. Disturbance regimes are perpetuated by
mowing, the unmown slopes supporting thickets dominated by landscaping
species and associated invasive taxa. Crown Vetch (Coronilla varia)
has been used to enrich a sterile soil of hard clay with a high fraction of
gravel Both villages
(Lewiston and Queenston) have shared similar land use histories, although
this cannot be detailed here. Although there is much evidence of the presence
of aboriginal people in the Artpark area, and/or land along the Niagara river
in the Lewiston township area, most of the legends pertaining to them involve
activities that have occurred along the New York side of the river, either
indicating I know little of such activities on the Ontario side, or that the
river formed a major political division among these people, as it does today,
being the boundary between the two nations of the United States and the
Dominion of Canada. Major conflicts noted by (popular) history include major
conflicts that occurred in areas east of the Niagara river. Some indication
of land use may be inferred from the following plaque placed near the river's
edge: "Lower landing Archeological District has been designated a
National Historic Landmark. This site possesses national significance in
commemorating the history of the United States of America. The archeological
remains of Joncaire's trading post (1719‑1741) and other archeological
resources document inter‑cultural relations at this key point within
the colonial Niagara historic district. 1998. National Park Service, United
States Department of the Interior." Two major
vegetative features attributed to aboriginal and pre‑colonial
activities at Artpark involve firstly the presence of the ancestor of our
Bing Cherry, Prunus avium L., or "Bird‑Cherry" due to
its major vector of seed dispersal. This European species is everywhere throughout
areas up and downstream of the cataracts. Its canopy, heavy with white
flowers in the spring, is a major visual component in the gorge forest and in
wilderness and semi‑wilderness forest remnants at Buckhorn Island, Navy
Island, the Niagara Escarpment in Ontario and adjacent areas. That these tree
populations are very old is attested to by the large size of their trunks and
the fact that many are senescent, or have reached their ultimate age limits.
They occur in intimate association with forest assemblages considered to be
pristine or nearly so. It has been suggested to me that these trees are the
vestiges of Jesuit father‑aboriginal people interactions as well as
plantings by the French and later British forts and other early settlements
in areas adjacent to the Niagara river as well as portage‑route
plantings on both sides of the river. The rich berries of these escaped trees
do indeed refresh the hiker in June. The second pre‑settlement
vegetative feature is that of the knoll that rises above the lake plain at
the base of the escarpment and is separated or detached from it, due to
resistant rock strata at its apex. It resembles a miniature Niagara gorge
with a talus slope and a rocky summit and a species composition curiously
like and unlike the Niagara escarpment. The top of this knoll is surrounded,
especially on its western rim (facing the river and Ontario) by a low stone
wall that may date from the 19th Century when Judge Clinton referred to it as
"Scovell's place" ‑ referring to its owner, perhaps deceased
by his time. The back, or eastern aspect of this knoll and much of its top is
a dense composition of weedy plant species, with Box Elder (Acer nugundo
L.) and Garlic Mustard (Alliaria officinalis Andrz.) as dominants. The
old residential area at the top also supports a variety of species associated
with abandoned homes but also suspiciously enhanced with a variety of
horticultural species arising from bulbs that seem very recent. One of the
lovliest of these introductions (?) is the Kenilworth Ivy (Cymbalaria
muralis Gaertn., Meyer & Scherb) growing on the stone wall, which is
matched by an unusual display in a generally non‑public area, sprawling
across the rubble along the Niagara river shore on the upstream side of the
collapsed Schoelkopf plant. Another is Ornithogalum, perhaps umbellatum
L., or Star of Bethlehem. The pre‑settlement
vegetation, however, is on the western face, at the base of which lies a
federally recognized Indian burial mound. Here is a rich and old Oak‑Hickory
forest type with many of the same species as grow in the Niagara gorge and
some of its woodlands. This forest, it seems clear, has been scrupulously
maintained throughout history by the owners of the knoll. It is in danger
presently of overuse (excessive paths, picnic facilities and program
facilities) and a subtle culling of its valuable timber trees. In 1851, the
Lewiston and Queenston Suspension Bridge was erected connecting the two
villages. This bridge was destroyed on February 1, 1864 after being left
exposed to strong winds without its protective guy wires. It is of interest
here because historic botanical records by George W. Clinton of Buffalo New
York record his use of this bridge in 1862‑1864 (1863) to gain access
to points across the river in Ontario, particularly in the area around
Brock's Monument on the upper plain, above the lake or lower plain. A
railroad track connecting Niagara Falls and points south with a station at
Lewiston to the north existed at this time, descending the gorge (east) face
in an incline from a point just north of what is presently Niagara University
down to a terminus at what is Artpark today at the base of the escarpment.
This old track incline may be seen today and forms one of the hiking paths
leading from Artpark upstream in the gorge. Another bridge of
the same name was erected 35 years later, in 1899, to connect the electric
railroads on the Canadian and American sides. It appears to have been
constructed from materials obtained from the dismantled Niagara Falls‑Clifton
suspension bridge upstream. "... it contained a single track for
trolleys. The track connected with the Niagara Gorge Railroad on the New York
end and the Park & River Division built a connecting tract from Queenston
to the bridge at the Ontario end." The result was a circular trolley
tour from Niagara Falls (NY)‑Niagara Falls (ONT) upstream to Lewiston‑Queenston
downstream. This Niagara Gorge Belt Line circuit ran on a constructed bed
just above the riparian habitat level of the Niagara River in the gorge in
New York. The Ontario section seems to have run its length along the gorge
rim (the "upper bank" as Clinton would call it). On the New York
side this track lay above the river (lower bank) edge from Lewiston
downstream to its incline upstream, apparently utilizing an old incline road
leading down to a ferry line operated by what is now the Maid of the Mist,
starting up the gorge face from a point upstream from the Lower Arch Bridge
and ending near where the Schoelkopf Geological Museum, or the old
(collapsed) Schoelkopf electric generating plant, is now, downstream from the
Rainbow Bridge. This second track forms the second hiking trail from Artpark
at Lewiston upstream to near the tailrace and electric generating facility of
the New York Power Authority. Originally, the
Niagara Escarpment arose from a low, naturally ditched area parallel to its
base on the lake plain, contained by a gravelly ridge or abandoned beach,
also parallel to its base, appropriately called Ridge Road. Various people
have indicated to me the presence of boggy conditions at the base of the
escarpment. The hydrology at the base of the escarpment at Artpark is very
complex, and seepage is rather abundant from the base of the hard‑rock
strata near the northern terminus of the Niagara gorge. Wet conditions can
also be observed at the base of the escarpment on the Ontario side. An
example of the enthusiastic botanical response to heightened moisture regimes
from seepage and subsurface hydrology is the ditching parallel to the upper
hiking trail (i.e. the bed of the first railroad incline) and the moist
horizontal ledges. The vegetation here is primarily alien species, with their
typical component of Phragmites and Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria
L.), as well as opportunistic native plants, but the species diversity seems
high here. Natural
vegetational response to this condition is masked by the extraordinary
disturbances that have occurred in this area through time, especially during
the 20th century when a great plateau of excavated rock or fill was dumped in
the Artpark area during construction of the reservoir and forebay of the
Robert Moses Power Plant during the 1950's. This plateau, or "spoil
area" was carefully constructed to provide a second or road parallel to
Lewiston Road, down the face of the escarpment. It was built, or later
modified into a series of tiers or terraces, now a series of stacked parking
lots. The spoil area limits can be seen in sutures as this mass of rubble
abutted onto the south edge of Scovell's Knoll and appears to have buried a
surface stream, such that a small natural pond exists on the west end of the
knoll. This pond may be connected to the drainage of a seasonal stream, which
has developed a ravine with an outfall into the river around midway between
the escarpment and the northern end of the Artpark property limit. The upper
level of the ravine is buried under subsequently constructed parking lots,
local road‑ and walk‑ways adjacent to the large amphitheater for
the performing arts built adjacent to and overlooking the river below the
escarpment. A second suture
between the spoil area and a remnant of the original north‑facing talus
slope just east of the entrance to the upper hiking trail at the western
boundary of the spoil area may be observed. This woods gives an important
clue to the old talus‑slope habitat. The northern
boundary of the Artpark property seems to be the traditional boundary of
centuries of land use development in this area, at least at the river shore,
as certain characteristics of the vegetation that covers the riverbank north
of the boundary appear to be aboriginal, something that probably could not
have redeveloped if the original cover had been stripped. It is very much
different than the riverbank plant community in the Artpark property. This
bank is dominated by a substrate of tufa‑forming mosses, primarily
Didymodon tophaceus (Brid.) Lisa. This is a species that revels in
calcareous seepage. Since it is developed over Queenston shales, which are
presumably of a low pH (acid) character, one might assume this abundant
seepage beyond the northern boundary of Artpark is artesian in character, the
calcareous ions deriving from calcareous rocks in the upper strata of the
Niagara escarpment. As an interesting
experiment in the use of early depictions of the area for early vegetational
character, an image from the Archives of Ontario published in Ralph
Greenhill's 1984 catalogue of the international bridges across the Niagara is
included here (see end of this Web page).
The bridge is the Lewiston and Queenston Suspension Bridge shown in
1850. One can quickly identify some degree of generalization by the artist in
his drawing of a, probably over‑abundant, forest cover. The naked
caprock strata so characteristic of the top of the gorge above the talus
slope is underrepresented but still visible. The artist makes no attempt to
hide the banks stripped to accommodate the structures that held up the guy
wires (without which the bridge was ultimately destroyed). The two story
buildings, perhaps inns, at either end of the bridge termini are shown with
well developed dirt roads leading up to them. Although there appears to be
wharf development on the Lewiston side, this is not evident at Queenston. The
river bank at Lewiston seems unaltered whereas in the depiction the bank is
breached and ramped down to the water's edge. One curiosity is the degree to
which the Niagara escarpment on the Canadian side is denuded of its forest cover
right up to Brock's Monument at the escarpment crest. The zig‑zag of
the road leading up the escarpment is seen on the Queenston side, but the
road up the escarpment is not visible at Lewiston, perhaps because it was at
some distance from the river. There is no railroad incline up the gorge face
from Lewiston to Niagara University. If there were an excavation, this artist
seems to have been interested in illustrating it. What is very
interesting is the deep forest cover of the talus slope on the New York
gorge. Although some sections of the New York gorge wall appear to have never
supported vegetation, apparently due to current velocity dynamics, the river
tending to deposit sediment on the western shore at the expense of the east,
here there appears to have been a rich forest. Today the talus slope, unlike
upstream where cobbles contribute much to the slopes, at the northern end it
is the finer detritus of the sandstone and especially the shale strata that
cover the slope surface. Such a cover seems to sterile to support much
vegetation and today it is nearly naked. Such early pictures indicate the
shale and sandstone dominated talus supported a forest cover that is
completely gone today. The other striking
aspect of this image is the white shoreline strip at the base of the gorge on
both sides of the river. This is an area that was devoid of vegetation during
the mid‑19th Century. Today one might think this area was due to
lowered water levels due to power diversions. More likely what is seen is the
result of the extensive buildup of ice in spring in the gorge that scoured
the riparian substrate clean enough to appear naked. Today, bare rock shelves
at the base of the gorge are actually the result of diversion, as the ice‑boom
at the mouth of the Niagara River at Buffalo‑Fort Erie prevents
significant ice buildup in the Niagara gorge, as does general warming in the
upper lakes. The old riparian habitats depicted in this image are probably
now supporting an extensive shoreline community of recent age, populated by
trees of Poplar, Willow, Amelanchier, and shrubs such as Nine‑bark (Physocarpus
opulifolius (L.) Maxim.), Round‑leaved Dogwood (Cornus rugosa
Lam.), Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana L.). For the moist, black‑soiled
base of the gorge is what supports the richest of its flora. Lack of ice
buildup in spring in the gorge, diminution of the ice pack in Lake Erie has
contributed to a warming and aridification of the gorge environment where
snow that once lasted far into the growing season in basal habitats is now
melted earlier. Lack of ice has probably significantly raised the general
temperature of the gorge, which might have affected fish spawning dynamics
and the presence of amphibian species, especially on the exposed, New York
side. However, lack of ice scour has left riparian habitats free to develop. More early images
of this area are needed to correlate and compare these impressions. General field notes for
areas at Artpark, 2001 and 2002 field season 1. Talus slope
remnant, north‑facing escarpment. May 24, 2002; June 18 (2001). Forest is hidden
within the abutment of the spoil area on its western edge and surrounded by
weedy thicket‑borders. It is approached by the gravel path leading to
the upper train bed, on the left. Numerous animal burrows were noted in the
talus bank toward the bottom of the slope. Note the dry ditch at the base of
the slope. The slope is covered with cobbles to small‑boulders in size.
The canopy is more or less closed (perhaps to 80%). Characterization
of this forest community according to the tally of ecological communities in
New York State (Reschke, 1990) is somewhat problematical apparently lying
somewhere between the Maple‑basswood rich mesic forest with a sloping
habitat in the Forested Uplands category and the Calcareous talus slope
woodland in the Barrens and Woodlands category. That Red Oak is the dominant
tree together with Hop‑Hornbeam seems rather distinctive here Tree
cover: Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
is the dominant tree (13", 18" to 30" dbh) and regenerating;
the species next in dominance is Hop‑Hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana);
Paper‑ or Canoe‑Birch (Betula papyrifera, as at the base
of the gorge and in Whirlpool State Park); much young Sugar Maple (Acer
saccharum), Basswood (Tilia americana, especially at slope‑base),
White ash (Fraxinus americana); Shag‑bark Hickory (Carya
ovata); Black Walnut (Juglans nigra, base of slope); Bitternut
Hickory (Carya cordiformis, base of slope, 9" dbh). There is some
White Oak (Quercus alba), some young and regenerating, and very mature
Bird Cherry (Prunus avium, some fallen and rotten, all age classes;
richly fruiting this day). The dominant
shrub amid these trees is the Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana
L.) with some Round‑leaved
Dogwood (Cornus rugosa); Thimbleberry or Purple‑flowering
Raspberry (Rubus odoratus, base of slope); Red‑berried elder (Sambucus
pubens). This shrub is more characteristic of these slopes than the
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis). The Red‑berried species can be
found also at Scovell's knoll and the forested talus slopes at Whirlpool
Woods upstream from Artpark. Several Currant (Ribes) plants were noted
which were too early to flower and a Black Raspberry (Rubus occidentalis).
The most abundant Hawthorn seen, along the woods edges and near the river was
Crataegus chrysocarpa Ashe. Although
herbaceous cover is sparse, the numbers and diversity of species occur toward
the base of the slope where moisture and soil gravitates through the talus.
Here the abundance of alien herbs, such as Tall Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus
acris); Garlic Mustard (Alliaria officinalis) increases toward the
edge, but lessens in the older areas. Crown vetch (Coronilla varia)
extensively planted throughout slopes denuded by excavation is abundant on
the edges. Thicket species include White Ash (Fraxinus americana), Box
Elder (Acer negundo), Norway Maple (Acer platanoides),
Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)
and various Rosa species (Rosa canina, Rosa eglanteria, Rosa multiflora).
Weed thickets
with opportunistic natives: amid several White Ash trees and some Box Elder (Acer
negundo) grew Viburnum lantana, a species of shrub becoming
increasingly frequent throughout the gorge, dense thickets of Tartarian
Honeysuckle (Lonicera tartarica), Morrow's Honeysuckle (Lonicera
morrowii) and the hybrid Lonicera x bella, Sweetbrier (Rosa
eglanteria L.), Dog Rose (Rosa canina L.), Multiflower Rose (Rosa
multiflora); Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii DC.).
Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) shrubs seem clearly to originate from
landscaping, as does Apple trees (Pyrus malus L.) and young Pear (Pyrus
communis L.). Herbs include a
species of Onion (Allium sp.). Native: Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina).
Entering the older areas these weedy shrubs give way to Chokecherry (Prunus
virginiana), in more shaded natural areas to Poison Ivy (Rhus
toxicodendron, richly fruiting now) and the Zigzag Goldenrod, a characteristic
herb of the slopes and at DeVeaux College woods (Solidago flexicaulis
L.). Herbaceous
diversity increases down slope, but the number of individuals is low: a
species of Monarda was noted, of Narrow‑leaved Goldenrod (Solidago
graminifolia) and White Heath Aster (Aster ericoides); Rough Avens
(Geum virginianum); Early Meadow Rue (Thalictrum dioicum L.),
Star‑flowered False Solomon's Seal (Smilacina stellata (L.)
Desf.); False Solomon's Seal (Smilacina racemosa); Yellow Pimpernel (Taenidia
integerrima (L.) Drude; abundant in the small wood's remnant by the old
Suspension Bridge piers); Wild Crane's‑Bill (Geranium maculatum);
Smooth Rock Cress (Arabis laevigata (Muhl.) Poir.) grows at the bases
of trees much as it does at Whirlpool State Park and on the bluffs
immediately above the talus slope; Arrow‑leaved Aster (Aster
sagittifolius Willd.), an Aster resembling Aster macrophyllus;
sedges appear to be cropped by deer: Carex blanda Dewey, Carex
communis Bailey, Carex laxiflora Lam. var. laxiflora. River grape (Vitis
riparia) becomes a more abundant ground cover, some stems to 2.5 inches
in diameter in festoons. Ground cover includes numerous young, regenerating
trees as shoots, such as young Basswood, Hop‑hornbeam, White Ash, and
Sugar Maple; Poison Ivy and Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus vitacea),
after River grape, are the most abundant ground cover. The diversity of
moss species increases on the rock cobbles here (unlike the cobbles of the
spoil area), with pleurocarpous mats of Amblystegium and Brachythecium
spp. including B. acuminatum (Hedw.) Aust., Anomodon attenuatus
(Hedw.) Hueb. and other Anomodon species
also on moist tree bases; Orthotrichum
anomalum and Grimmia spp. cover
rock surfaces on the slopes as elsewhere in the gorge talus; some pale green
crustose lichens. Fissidens taxifolius Hedw.
is most abundant on heavily shaded soil at the slope base. 2. Upper
hiking trail (train bed), east‑facing Niagara gorge. June 18‑19.
2001. September 23, 2001. The upper hiking
trail is on an old railroad bed built essentially along the top of the talus
slope with ditching characteristics parallel to it and between it and the
base of the caprock. Ditching is necessary due to the extensive seepage flow
at the base of the more indurated (calcareous) strata toward the top. Various
modifications have been instituted along the bed to direct this water
downslope and into the river below. Most of the
substrate examined is composed of small, soft fragments in the form of chips
eroded out of the shale strata. Strong prevailing westerly winds, without
seepage at the slope apex would otherwise make these exposures more sterile
than they are. Such wind can give the hiker wind‑burn and the shale
chips may become air‑borne and strike ones skin. Slopes are relatively
unstable and steep and the lower slopes have little vegetation. It is mostly
in the ditching and the wet calcareous ledges and in minor coving areas that
vegetation is more well developed. In the topmost,
dolomitic strata numerous White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) trees are
visible growing amid the fern Smooth Cliff Brake (Pellaea glabella). A category of
community, Shale cliff and talus community in the Open Uplands section as
described by Reschke (1990), might be reserved for this site, were evidence
of disturbance not so evident from earlier railroad development. One picture
from 1850 was discussed above where the author depicted this area with a
dense forest cover. There is little or no forest cover and the substrates are
fully exposed. Shrubs are sparse but a relatively high frequency of
herbaceous vegetation exists. Trees observed:
White Ash (Fraxinus americana), Red Ash (Fraxinus pensylvanica)
in the ditching and cove areas, young Cottonwood (Populus deltoides);
Common Pear (Pyrum communis). Occasional young trees of White Cedar (Thuja
occidentalis) line the path. Shrubs include Staghorn Sumac (Rhus
typhina), Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica); Panicled Dogwood (Cornus
racemosa); a great hedge of Purple‑flowering Raspberry (Rubus
odoratus, a native shrub usually found in wooded situations); Virginia
Creeper (Parthenocissus vitacea), festoons of Poison Ivy (Rhus
toxicodendron as a ground cover, as a vine or even a semi‑shrub),
River Grape (Vitis riparia) is richly fruiting in September. One shrub
of New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus) was observed, a few
individuals of Nine‑bark (Physocarpus opulifolius). Phragmites (P.
communis) is conspicuous here, as is Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum
salicaria). That is habitat is wet is also noted by the presence of the
willow Salix eriocephala and Bebb's Willow (Salix bebbii). Herbs: Common
Burdock (Arctium minus); Sweet‑clover (Melilotus sp.),
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara); Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca);
Centaurium spp., C. nigrescens; Narrow‑leaved Goldenrod (Solidago
graminifolia), Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis); White Sweet
Clover (Melilotus alba); various white asters (Aster sagittifolius,
A. simplex, A. ericoides, A. lateriflorus); various morphological
expressions of Hairy Aster (Aster pilosus) were found and the pale
blue Smooth Aster (Aster laevis); Hawkweed Picris (Picris
hieracoides); Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus); Field
Sow‑thistle (Sonchus arvensis); Small‑leaved Willow‑herb
(Epilobium parviflorum, see Eckel 2002); Common Beggarticks (Bidens
frondosa); Bird's‑foot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus); Curly
Dock (Rumex crispus); Common Evening‑primrose (Oenothera
biennis); Butter and Eggs (Linaria vulgaris); Crown Vetch (Coronilla
varia); Ox‑eye Daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum), Sand
Rocket (Diplotaxis muralis), the rarer Wall Rocket (Diplotaxis
tenuifolia) occurs more on the slopes, the previous species on more level
areas. A striking plant with deep blue flowers in a large population is
Viper's Bugloss (Echium vulgare). In a small,
rounded cove‑feature much resembling Devil's Hole (here dubbed Little
Devil's Hole) occurred a weedy forest of White Ash (Fraxinus americana),
one Basswood (Tilia americana), several Norway Maple (Acer
platanoides), Box Elder (Acer negundo). The seepage or stream that
hollowed this feature appears to have been reduced perhaps by highway
construction near the gorge rim above as little evidence occurs and is even
more arid late in the season (September). Moss communities in the seepage
that does occur are either Didymodon tophaceus or Hymenostylium
recurvirostrum or both. There is a significant rubble pile‑up in
the ravine in the cove and a bridging structure along the railroad bed
indicating heightened stream flow in previous decades. The feeder stream or
extensive seepage is missing, as it is in Devil's Hole upstream. Cursed
Crowfoot (Ranunculus scleratus, typical of level areas along the gorge
base) and Spotted Touch‑me‑not (Impatiens biflora) grow in
the moister areas of this ravine, with a population of White Snakeroot (Eupatorium
rugosum) a native species that can be an aggressive colonizer (see Second
Sister Island adjacent to Goat Island in the upper river) but not usually
encountered in the gorge except in this cove. Dense stands of Poison Ivy (Rhus
toxicodendron) occur in the drier boundaries. Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum
salicaria), Bitter Nightshade (Solanum dulcamara) can be seen, and
Virgin's Bower (Clematis virginiana) on the rubble in the moist basal
area, again, often encountered in ballasted areas on Goat Island upstream. South or upstream
of this feature is a broad concave seepage wall musical from dripping water
and lush with exotic and native opportunistic taxa in a marshy catchment area
by the path inward to the base of the cliff face with more White Snakeroot (Eupatorium
rugosum), Joe‑pye Weed (Eupatorium maculatum); the Spotted
Jewel‑weed or Touch‑me‑not (Impatiens biflora)
climbing the seepage wall, an abundance of the mat‑forming grass
Creeping Bent (Agrostis stolonifera) on dripping ledges as in the
spray zones of the falls upstream in the lower gorge. Similar vegetation
could be seen growing on the horizontal calcareous ledges near the top of the
gorge wall. One striking grass could be seen far up on the ledges, resembling
Rye (Secale cereale), which is unlikely as it is not a hardy species.
It is probably Stout Nodding Wild Rye (Elymus canadensis), which is
big enough. A concerted
effort was made to spot Gentianopsis procera, a rare Gentian with
vivid blue flowers in the wet upper ledges reported from the 19th century
from "Lewiston." One ledge with a vivid array of blue flowers could
be spotted with binoculars, but without sufficient resolution. A single stem
on the wet ditching below proved to be the Great Lobelia (Lobelia
siphilitica) and that is what probably was on display in the upper
ledges. This striking plant can also be found in the wet river margin at the
base of Devil's Hole and between the First Sister Island and Goat Island at
the brink of the cataracts. 3. Alvar by
old Suspension Bridge abutments, top of the river embankment. May 24, 2002.
Alvar is used
here in a general, rather than technical sense, to categorize a plant
community of diminutive plants and mosses growing on very thin soil on the
dolomite ledges and pavements at the rim of the gorge,
on various kinds of table rock, shelving or terraces that occur in the upper calcareous strata along the Niagara gorge. These
nearly bare‑rock surfaces are mostly dry, although two other
occurrences are wet (in the spray zone of the Horseshoe Falls at Terrapin
Point on the southwestern edge of Goat Island) or are exposed to riverine conditions
during some part of the year (upstream ends of islands at the brink of the
cataracts, notably the Second Sister Island). Another
qualification that may distance these habitats and their plant communities
from alvars as understood in the United States and Canada (see Brownell and
Riley, 2000), is the similarity of the species assemblages to a spring flora
of extremely diminutive plants that occur in exposed, desiccated soils,
including hard, clay soils with a significant gravel fraction along the gorge
rim and the western side of Navy Island, Ontario, in the Niagara River (Eckel
2001). The Alvar grassland described by Reschke (1990) seems to match in
several ways the habitat about to be described, were it not for the long
period of extensive disturbance regimes all along the Niagara gorge in
similar habitats and the intrusion of alien taxa with the loss of native taxa
once reported for the gorge, such as Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja
coccinea). Other taxa noted by Reschke may be found in similar habitats
in the same situations on both sides of the gorge. The area examined
occurred by the old piers that once supported the suspension bridges
mentioned in the introduction above. These piers occur just before the
entrances to both of the hiking trails, particularly the lower one. Starting
here and extending downstream several hundred yards, at the bank of the river
occurs an old thicket of White Oak (Quercus alba) with some Red Oak (Quercus
rubra), Black Cherry (Prunus serotina). On the edges occur some native
Juniper (Juniperus virginiana) and in vertical outcrops White Cedar (Thuja
occidentalis). Deeply intermixed with this native woods are Buckthorn (Rhamnus
cathartica) shrubs deriving from adjacent landscaping on the wood's edge
and Tartarian Honeysuckle (Lonicera tartarica). Along a chain fence
separating this habitat from the alvars occurs Fragrant Sumac (Rhus
aromatica, such as at Devil's Hole and Whirlpool Point); Poison Ivy (Rhus
toxicodendron) is a ground cover and there is a good population of Yellow
Pimpernel (Taenidia integerrima). As in the talus slope forest
described above, the Hawthorn growing here is Crataegus chrysocarpa
Ashe. and there was one or two shrubs of Dryland Bluebarry (Vaccineum
pallidum Ait. = V. vacillans Torr., also found in Ontario at
Wintergreen Flats above Niagara Glen). Garlic Mustard (Alliaria
officinalis) grows here, Onion (Allium sp.), and carpets of
Cleavers (Galium aparine), a species that thrives in park areas whose native
vegetation has been removed. On the woods edge grew Red Dead‑nettle (Lamium
purpureum), Dog Mustard (Erucastrum gallicum) and two plants of
Smoke Tree (Cotinus coggygria Scop., a horticultural species not
reported as escaped into the local flora, but established here. The transition to
the rock ledges is poor gravelly soil over limestone with a flora of tiny
species that extends onto the open ledges: a minute Forget‑me‑not:
Myosotis micrantha Pall. not described for our flora until recently,
but covering the Artpark lawns in spring with their small blue flowers; Thyme‑leaved
Sandwort (Arenaria serpyllifolia); Mouse‑eared Cress (Arabidopsis
thaliana); Whitlow Grass (Draba verna); Storksbill (Erodium
cicutarium), a tiny species in the Geraniaceae that might be easily
confused with Geranium bicknellii or G. carolinianum were it
not for its distinctive leaves. Gravelly soils also included the moss Tortula
truncata (Hedw.) Mitt. (= Pottia truncata var. major).
On the ledges
themselves grew Thyme‑leaved Sandwort, Mouse‑eared Cress and Myosotis micrantha, but also Downy
Brome‑grass (Bromus tectorum), as at Whirlpool State Park, Bastard Toad‑flax (Comandra umbellata), Gromwell (Lithospermum officinale) and
Early Saxifrage (Saxifraga virginiensis), a species characteristic of
ledges in the upper strata of the Niagara gorge. In dense mats of the moss Thuidium
abietinum (Hedw.) BSG. grew Mossy Stonecrop (Sedum
acre). In mats of the moss Syntrichia ruralis (Hedw.) Web.
& Mohr. grew Sedum sarmentosum
Bunge, two escapes from rock gardens. Weedy taxa also include Sheep's Sorrel
(Rumex acetosella), Shepherd's Purse (Capsella
bursa‑pastoris) and the moss Ceratodon purpureus (Hedw.)
Brid.
The mosses Syntrichia ruralis and Ceratodon purpureus 4. Scovell's
Knoll: see Notes On the Limits
of the Sacred Precinct on Scovell's Knoll (Oak
Hill), Lewiston, Niagara County, New York. References Brownell, Vivian
R. & John L. Riley. The Alvars of Ontario. Significant Alvar Natural
Areas in the Ontario Great Lakes Region. Federation of Ontario Naturalists. Eckel, P. M.
2001. Tiny species: Myosotis stricta Link, a rare component of some
vernal microfloras in New York and Ontario along the Niagara River. Clintonia
(16(1):4. ‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑.
2002. Epilobium parviflorum, a rare European introduction along the Niagara
River. New York Flora Association Newsletter 13(2):3‑5. Greenhill, Ralph.
1984. Spanning Niagara. The International Bridges 1848‑1962. University
of Washington Press, Seattle and London. Reschke, Carol.
1990. Ecological Communities of New York State. New York Natural Heritage
Program. N.Y.S. Dept. Environmental Conservation. Latham, NY. Thompson, Gordon
J. (ed.) 2000. The Niagara Gorge Belt Line. A Pictorial Album. Niagara
Frontier Chapter, National Railway Historical Society. North Tonawanda, NY. |
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The shoreline of the Niagara river at Artpark shows a forested character. Looking upstream to the Lewiston-Queenston Bridge and the Robert Moses Power Plant in the far distance.