National Forests in Florida Final Report


East Gulf Coastal Plain Subxeric Longleaf Pine Sandhills



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East Gulf Coastal Plain Subxeric Longleaf Pine Sandhills


Element Identifiers

NVCS association: Pinus palustris / Quercus laevis / Serenoa repens - Clinopodium coccineum Woodland

Database Code: CEGL003601

Formation: Rounded-crowned temperate or subpolar needle-leaved evergreen woodland

Alliance: PINUS PALUSTRIS / QUERCUS SPP. WOODLAND ALLIANCE (II.A.4.N.a.1)

Element Concept

Summary: This East Gulf Coastal Plain community is characterized by a canopy of widely spaced Pinus palustris with a sparse subcanopy of Quercus laevis, above a well-developed shrub layer dominated by Serenoa repens. Openings between Serenoa cover have bare sand with scattered shrubs and herbs. Common herbaceous species include Aristida beyrichiana, Schizachyrium scoparium, Galactia regularis, Pityopsis graminifolia, Rhynchosia cytisoides, and Cyperus retrofractus.

Environment: This xeric woodland occurs on well-drained uplands, over deep, acidic sands.

Vegetation: The canopy at the site from which this type was originally described, on the De Soto National Forest, had a 20- to 22-m high canopy of Pinus palustris. Apparently a range of understory trees were present; among the dominant were Quercus laevis, Quercus incana, Quercus marilandica, and Cornus florida. Shrub dominants were Ilex vomitoria, Vaccinium fuscatum, Vaccinium elliottii, Vaccinium stamineum, Clinopodium coccineum (= Calamintha coccinea), and Smilax pumila (Peet and Allard 1993). In contrast, a plot ascribed to this type from northern Florida had a much less diverse component of woody species, possibly suggesting fire frequency and/or site differences (NatureServe unpubl. data). Dominant understory species reported by Peet and Allard (1993) were Schizachyrium scoparium, Galactia regularis, Pityopsis graminifolia, Rhynchosia cytisoides, and Cyperus retrofractus. Aristida beyrichiana was abundant in a north Florida plot, and several geographically limited species such as Baptisia simplicifolia, Asimina angustifolia, and Liatris chapmanii (NatureServe unpubl. data). Other species recorded in plots of this type include Rhynchosia reniformis, Cyperus plukenetii, Aristida purpurascens, Aristida condensata, Schizachyrium tenerum, Rhynchospora megalocarpa, Ionactis linariifolius, Chamaecrista nictitans, Cnidoscolus stimulosus, Dalea pinnata var. pinnata, Desmodium strictum, Elephantopus elatus, Gaura filipes, Houstonia procumbens, Hypericum hypericoides, Lechea spp., Smilax pumila, Dichanthelium aciculare, Scleria spp., Stylisma patens, Tephrosia chrysophylla, and Toxicodendron pubescens.

Dynamics: See Summary

Similar Associations:

  • Pinus palustris / Quercus laevis / Serenoa repens - Vaccinium stamineum / Aristida beyrichiana Woodland (CEGL004490)

Synonymy:

  • IB6d. Southeastern Coastal Plain Subxeric Longleaf Pine - Saw Palmetto Woodland (Allard 1990)

  • Subxeric Longleaf Pine-Saw Palmetto Woodland (Peet and Allard 1993)

Comments: This community was first described by Peet and Allard (1993) from two sites. Additional surveys have not significantly expanded the geographic distribution, and the type is still known from only a few locations, including the De Soto National Forest in southern Mississippi (Harrison RNA, "Saw Palmetto Ridge") and from the Apalachicola National Forest; it could additionally occur in the lower Gulf Coastal Plain of Georgia. A plot on the Apalachicola National Forest was slightly different than the described type. It had a significant amount of Aristida beyrichiana, and the presence of several plant species not distributed as far west as Mississippi (Baptisia simplicifolia, Asimina angustifolia, Liatris chapmanii). In addition, it lacked many of the woody species described by Peet and Allard (1993) as being important. Rare animal species which may occur in this community include Gopherus polyphemus, Picoides borealis, and Drymarchon corais couperi.

Conservation Ranking & Rare Species

GRank: G2 (97-12-31): This subxeric longleaf pine woodland community has a restricted distribution and is limited to a specific set of habitat conditions. It occurs on well-drained uplands, over deep, acidic sands, and is known from only a few locations in the De Soto National Forest of southern Mississippi (Harrison RNA, "Saw Palmetto Ridge") and from the Florida Panhandle; it could potentially occur in the lower Gulf Coastal Plain of Alabama and Georgia. It is part of the endangered Longleaf Pine Ecosystem, which once dominated the Coastal Plain landscape of the southeastern United States, and depends on frequent, low-intensity, growing-season fires to control understory vegetation and for the reproduction of Pinus palustris. Pinus palustris-dominated woodlands are susceptible to the effects of fire suppression, over-grazing, or conversion to commercial forest plantations or agriculture. Remaining examples are highly threatened by development, conversion, and alteration of fire regimes.

High-ranked species: GOPHERUS POLYPHEMUS (G3), PICOIDES BOREALIS (G3), DRYMARCHON CORAIS COUPERI (G4T3)

Element Distribution

Range: This type is known from the outer Coastal Plain of Mississippi and north Florida, and could occur in Alabama and Georgia.

States: AL? FL GA? MS

Crosswalk to State Classifications:

  • FL: Upland Pine Forest, in part (FL 1992)

  • MS: Subxeric Longleaf Pine - Saw Palmetto Woodland, in part (MS 2000)

TNC Ecoregions: 53:C

USFS Ecoregions: 232Bj:CCC, 232Dc:CCC

Federal Lands: USFS (Apalachicola, De Soto)

Element Sources

References: Allard 1990, Allen 1956, FNAI 1992a, FNAI 1992b, Orzell pers. comm., Peet and Allard 1993, Pessin 1933, Wieland 1994b, Wieland 2000

Longleaf Pine Clayhills




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