AZ

NM

MEXICO

BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS [20]:

7 Lower Basin and Range

KUCHLER [82] PLANT ASSOCIATIONS:

K018 Pine-Douglas-fir forest
K019 Arizona pine forest
K021 Southwestern spruce-fir forest
K023 Juniper-pinyon woodland
K031 Oak-juniper woodlands

SAF COVER TYPES [46]:

210 Interior Douglas-fir
211 White fir
220 Rocky Mountain juniper
237 Interior ponderosa pine
239 Pinyon-juniper
240 Arizona cypress
241 Western live oak

SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES [118]:

504 Juniper-pinyon pine woodland

HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES:

Arizona pine is a dominant species in ponderosa pine and pine-oak (Pinus-Quercus spp.) communities of southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northern Mexico. It is dominant or codominant in higher-elevation, mixed montane coniferous forests. Madrean oak woodland species are common plant associates in lower-elevation (< about 6,000 feet (1,800 m)) portions of Arizona pine forest. At higher elevations of Arizona pine forest, Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca), Rocky Mountain white fir (Abies concolor var. concolor), and Mexican white pine (P. ayachuite) are common overstory associates. Arizona pine forest ascends to interior Douglas-fir-white fir forest around 7,500 feet (2,300 m) [47,98,101], and fingers into Madrean oak and pinyon-juniper (Pinus-Juniperus spp.) woodlands and riparian communities at Arizona pine's lower elevational limits [101].

In southeastern Arizona, Arizona pine is common in and just above Madrean oak and pine-juniper woodlands. Madrean hardwood associates include Emory oak (Q. emoryi), Arizona white oak (Q. arizonica), silverleaf oak (Q. hypoleucoides), Arizona madrone (Arbutus arizonica), and Arizona sycamore (Platanus wrightii). Conifer associates include alligator juniper (Juniperus deppeana), Apache pine (Pinus engelmannii), and Chihuahua pine (P. leiophylla var. chihuahuana) [19]. Pointleaf manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens) and longtongue muhly (Muhlenbergia longiligula) are common in the understory [24].

In the Chiricahua Mountains of southeastern Arizona, Arizona pine forest lies on elevation and moisture gradients between lower-elevation, drier Mexican pinyon (P. cembroides), Chihuahua pine, and Apache pine communities, and moister, higher-elevation southwestern white pine (P. strobiformis) communities [16]. Interior ponderosa pine sometimes codominates with Arizona pine.  Arizona pine is generally more common at lower elevations, with interior ponderosa pine occupying upper portions of ponderosa pine forest [101]. Brady and Bonham [24] found that in the Huachuca Mountains, which span the Arizona-Mexico border, Arizona pine assumed dominance at 7,498 feet (2,285 m). It codominated with silverleaf oak down to 6,989 feet (2,130 m) elevation, where silverleaf oak became dominant. Arizona pine became subdominant to Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir above 8,038 feet (2,450 m), and was not reported above 8,531 feet (2,600 m) elevation. Along with Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir, corkbark fir (Abies lasiocarpa var. arizonica) and/or Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii) may co-occur with Arizona pine in high elevation, mixed-conifer sites [95].

In Madrean oak woodland of northern Mexico, Arizona pine is usually subdominant to oaks. Netleaf oak (Quercus rugosa) and Chihuahuan oak (Q. chihuahuensis) are the most common community dominants; Chihuahua and Apache pines share subdominant status with Arizona pine [51]. At mid-elevations (5,440-7,250 ft (1,650-2,200 m)), Madrean oak-pine woodland ascends to higher-elevation montane forest. Handbasin (Q. pennivenia), Mexican white (Q. epileuca), silverleaf, netleaf, and/or Chihuahuan oaks join a pine-dominated, mixed formation with Arizona, Chihuahua, Apache, Durango (P. durangensis), and/or weeping (P. lumholtzii) pines. Arizona cypress (Cupressus arizonica), Arizona madrone, and Texas madrone (A. texana) are characteristic community components [25]. Pure to nearly pure stands of Arizona pine occur further south in Mexico [107].

Publications describing plant communities dominated by Arizona pine are listed below.

AZ [25,97,98,101,140]
NM [101]
Mexico [47,98,101]

---

Related categories for SPECIES: Pinus ponderosa var. arizonica | Arizona Pine

• Introductory
• Distribution and occurrence
• Botanical and ecological characteristics
• Fire ecology
• Fire effects
• Fire case studies
• Management considerations, value and use
• References
• All pages together [for printing]