Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamp

Ecology and Physical Setting 

Cold, wet, mossy, and verdant, Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps harken to the boreal north. Walking into one of these swamps, with their spruce spires and boreal birds, it is easy to imagine oneself in the wild regions of Labrador. These swamps occur in the colder regions of the state, often in basins with cold air drainage. They may occur in isolation from other wetland types or as part of larger wetland complexes. When occurring in streamside wetland complexes, Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps occupy areas that do not receive flooding or nutrient enrichment from adjacent streams. These swamps range in size from just a few acres to over 100 acres.

Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps have peat soils that are saturated throughout the year due to impeded drainage. These organic soils are variable in depth. The soils and water are acidic, but there can be minor mineral enrichment from surface water runoff or from groundwater seepage near the swamp margins. Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps are associated with acidic bedrock and surficial deposits. The relative abundance of tamarack and red spruce in these swamps is likely related to the degree of mineral enrichment, with abundant tamarack possibly indicating more enrichment. Tamarack is also very shade intolerant and may be more abundant in early to mid-successional examples of this community type. Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps commonly grade into Black Spruce Swamps as peat becomes deeper, and there is greater isolation from surface runoff and the underlying mineral soils.

Wind is the primary source of natural disturbance, tipping the shallow-rooted trees and creating canopy openings. As with other forested wetlands that may occur near streams, beaver impoundments may inundate portions of Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps.

Vegetation 

The interiors of Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps have a distinct structure. The straight, vertical trunks of black and/or red spruce, balsam fir, and tamarack dominate the relatively closed canopy. There is a well-developed tall shrub layer of mountain holly and wild raisin, and a sparser low shrub layer that typically includes sheep laurel. In more boggy conditions, rhodora, Labrador tea, bog laurel, or leatherleaf may be present.

Mosses carpet the low hummocks and shallow hollows. Shreber’s moss —a ubiquitous species of the north—is common, along with knight’s plume moss, windswept mosses, and several species of sphagnum moss. The hollows seldom contain standing water. Scattered delicate herbs mix with tall ferns on the mossy hummocks. Three-seeded sedge, boreal bog sedge, cinnamon fern, three-leaved false Solomon’s seal, and creeping snowberry are among the characteristic species.

Wildlife Habitat

The evergreen canopies of Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps provide winter cover for white-tailed deer. This cover is especially important in the deep-snow areas where these swamps occur. American marten and Canada lynx, both very rare in Vermont, may be found in Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps and other spruce-fir forests of the Northeastern Highlands. 

Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps support many species of boreal birds that reach their southern range limits in northern Vermont. These species include black-backed woodpecker, American three-toed woodpecker, Canada jay, boreal chickadee, and spruce grouse. The yellow-bellied flycatcher is another boreal species that breeds in these swamps. It is our only ground-nesting flycatcher, building its well-hidden, grass and moss lined nest among sphagnum or tree roots. More common breeding birds include Canada warbler, olive-sided flycatcher, northern waterthrush, Nashville warbler, Blackburnian warbler, and both the ruby-crowned and golden-crowned kinglets.

The clamp-tipped emerald and the rare Kennedy’s emerald—dragonflies more typically associated with open peatlands—may also be found in Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps.

Related Communities 

• Black Spruce Swamps are dominated by black spruce and typically have deeper organic soils and even less mineral enrichment. They commonly occur adjacent to and may grade into Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps. 
  
   
• Red Spruce-Cinnamon Fern Swamps typically lack black spruce, tamarack, and bog shrubs like Labrador tea and bog laurel. They have slightly more groundwater flow and can contain seepage indicators.

Conservation Status and Management Considerations 

Because of their sensitive peat soils, logging is not recommended in Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps. Several excellent examples occur on state and private conservation land.

Distribution/Abundance 

Spruce-Fir-Tamarack Swamps occur throughout northern New York and New England, southern Québec, and the Maritime Provinces. Similar communities also occur in the Appalachian Mountains to the south. In Vermont, these swamps are found in the cooler climate areas, primarily in the northern part of  the state.

Characteristic Plants

Trees 

Abundant Species

Red spruce – Picea rubens

Balsam fir – Abies balsamea

Tamarack – Larix laricina

Occasional to Locally Abundant Species

Black spruce – Picea mariana

Northern white cedar – Thuja occidentalis

Shrubs

Abundant Species

Mountain holly – Ilex mucronata

Wild raisin – Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides

Sheep laurel – Kalmia angustifolia

Occasional to Locally Abundant Species

Rhodora – Rhododendron canadense

Labrador tea – Rhododendron groenlandicum

Bog laurel – Kalmia polifolia

Leatherleaf – Chamaedaphne calyculata

Velvetleaf blueberry – Vaccinium myrtilloides

Herbs

Abundant Species

Three-seeded sedge – Carex trisperma

Cinnamon fern – Osmundastrum cinnamomeum

Three-leaved false Solomon’s seal – Maianthemum trifolium

Canada mayflower – Maianthemum canadense

Creeping snowberry – Gaultheria hispidula 

Occasional to Locally Abundant Species

Boreal bog sedge – Carex magellanica

Hoary sedge – Carex canescens 

Bluebead lily – Clintonia borealis

Crested wood fern – Dryopteris cristata

Whorled aster – Oclemena acuminata

Twinflower – Linnaea borealis

Bunchberry – Cornus canadensis

Bryophytes

Abundant Species

Moss – Sphagnum girgensohnii

Moss – Sphagnum angustifolium

Schreber’s moss – Pleurozium schreberi

Occasional to Locally Abundant Species

Knight’s plume moss – Ptilium cristacastrensis

Moss – Sphagnum wulfianum

Windswept moss – Dicranum spp.

Three-lobed bazzania – Bazzania trilobata

Moss – Aulacomnium palustre

Rare and Uncommon Plants 

Mountain fly honeysuckle – Lonicera villosa

Dwarf mistletoe – Arceuthobium pusillum

Moose dung moss – Splachnum ampullaceum

Associated Animals

Moose – Alces americanus

White-tailed deer – Odocoileus virginianus 

Red squirrel – Tamiasciurus hudsonicus 

Southern red-backed vole – Myodes gapperi

Masked shrew – Sorex cinereus

Snowshoe hare – Lepus americanus 

Canada warbler – Cardellina canadensis 

Olive-sided flycatcher – Contopus cooperi

Northern waterthrush – Parkesia noveboracensis

Yellow-rumped warbler – Setophaga coronata

Nashville warbler – Oreothlypis ruficapilla 

Blackburnian warbler – Setophaga fusca 

Northern parula – Parula americana 

Magnolia warbler – Dendroica magnolia 

Ruby-crowned kinglet – Regulus calendula 

Golden-crowned kinglet – Regulus satrapa 

Clamp-tipped emerald – Somatochlora tenebrosa 

Rare and Uncommon Animals

American marten – Martes americana

Canadian lynx – Lynx canadensis

Yellow-bellied flycatcher – Empidonax flaviventris

Black-backed woodpecker – Picoides arcticus

American three-toed woodpecker – Picoides dorsalis 

Spruce grouse – Falcipennis canadensis

Canada jay – Perisoreus canadensis 

Cape May warbler – Setophaga tigrina 

Bay-breasted warbler – Setophaga castanea

Boreal chickadee – Poecile hudsonicus 

Rusty blackbird – Euphagus carolinus 

Northern saw-whet owl – Aegolius acadicus

Red crossbill – Loxia curvirostra

Kennedy’s emerald – Somatochlora kennedyi

Places to Visit 

Nulhegan Basin, Lewis, Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service



Wenlock Wildlife Management Area, Ferdinand, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department (VFWD)



Victory Basin Wildlife Management Area, Victory, VFWD



Bill Sladyk Wildlife Management Area, Norton and Holland, VFWD



Groton State Forest, Marshfield, Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation



Bear Swamp, Wolcott, Sterling College