|
Wildlife, Animals, and Plants
|
|
KUCHLER TYPE
KUCHLER TYPE: Southern floodplain forest
KUCHLER-TYPE-NUMBER :
K113
PHYSIOGNOMY :
Dense, medium tall to tall forest of broadleaf deciduous and evergreen
trees and shrubs and needleleaf deciduous trees.
OCCURRENCE :
Floodplains of the southeastern United States, encompassing 13 states.
COMPILED BY AND DATE :
S. A. Snyder, January 1994
LAST REVISED BY AND DATE :
NO-ENTRY
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION :
Snyder, S. A. 1993. Southern floodplain forest In: Remainder of Citation
Kuchler Type Index
FEIS Home
KUCHLER TYPE DESCRIPTION
PHYSIOGRAPHY :
The southern floodplain forest includes bottomland hardwood stands and
deep, alluvial swamps. Boundaries are hard to distinguish, but the type
is found where streams and rivers occasionally flood beyond their
channels and in deepwater swamps that are inundated for most of the
growing season. The southern floodplain forest can range in area from
broad river floodplains to narrow strips along small stream channels.
Many areas are characterized by sloughs, oxbow lakes, and natural levees
of coarse material deposited by flooding. Topographic relief is low,
but these levees form high points on the floodplain [18].
CLIMATE :
The climate of the southern floodplain forest is variable throughout its
range, but rainfall averages 50 inches (1,270 mm) annually. Near the
coast summers are wetter than winters; rainfall is distributed more
evenly inland. In all areas, drying occurs in late summer and early
fall. Average temperature for the southern region is 70 degrees
Fahrenheit (21 deg C). Average number of frost-free days is 240,
ranging from 200 days in the North (Virginia and southern Indiana, Ohio)
to 320 days in the South (Florida and parts of the Gulf Coast) [18].
SOILS :
Southern floodplains have alluvial sediments from 15 to 240 feet (5-80
m) thick. Physiochemical characteristics of soils are listed by zone
[18]. Soils range in texture from silty clay and clay to sand. High
clay content results in greater phosphorus content. Soils are somewhat
acidic, with pH ranges between 5 and 6. Organic matter content is
usually 2 to 5 percent higher than in upland soils. High organic matter
content accounts for higher nitrogen concentrations and may explain, in
part, why bottomland forests tend to be more productive than upland
forests. Organic matter content has been reported as high as 36 percent
in black tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica) swamps. Nutrients are readily
available and are continually replenished by flooding [18].
VEGETATION :
Canopy dominants include one conifer, baldcypress (Taxodium distichum),
and several hardwood species, particularly oaks (Quercus spp.) and water
tupelo (Nyssa aquatica) [12]. This report will refer to both
baldcypress and pondcypress (Taxodium distichum var. nutans) as cypress.
Species composition in southern floodplain forests is a function of
constantly shifting factors like stream migration, soil erosion, and
deposition, which change the substrate. Plant species differ in their
tolerance of flooding and shade and in their colonizing abilities [18].
Recently formed point bars and levees along stream channels are
colonized by black willow (Salix nigra), eastern cottonwood (Populus
deltoides), river birch (Betula nigra), and sugar maple (Acer
saccharinum). River levees are colonized by American sycamore (Platanus
occidentalis) and sugar maple.
Species on older substrates, for example in sloughs, oxbows, and swamps,
support water tupelo, baldcypress, and water-elm (Planera aquatica). On
poorly-drained sites overcup oak (Quercus lyrata), laurel oak (Q.
laurifolia), red maple (Acer rubrum), American elm (Ulmus americana),
green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica), water hickory (Carya aquatica),
sugarberry (Celtis laevigata), and hackberry (C. occidentalis) are
interspersed with black tupelo and cypress. Ridges in low areas with
short hydroperiods and few herbaceous species support sweetgum
(Liquidambar styraciflua), willow oak (Quercus phellos), water oak (Q.
nigra), cherrybark oak (Q. pagoda), swamp chestnut oak (Q. michauxii),
hickories (Carya spp.), and black tupelo [18]. Higher ridges may have
understory species of ferns, orchids, bromeliads, and epiphytic ferns.
Other understory species include buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis),
strangler fig (Ficus aurea), pond apple (Annona glabra), grape (Vitis
spp.), peppervine (Ampelopsis arborea), deciduous holly (Ilex decidua),
water locust (Gleditsia aquatica), Alabama supplejack (Berchemia
scandens), common trumpetcreeper (Campsis radicans), and redbay (Persea
borbonia) [18].
Plant communities in the southern floodplain forest have been classified
across an anaerobic gradient. However, this classification may be
oversimplified and not useful for all wetland ecology [18].
For detailed information on cypress stands not related to fire refer to
Ewel and Odum [5].
WILDLIFE :
A wide variety of invertebrates, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and
mammals occur in the southern floodplain forest. Some include mollusks
and other crustaceans, spiders, minnows, pickerels, salamanders, frogs,
snakes, turtles, herons, egrets, ducks, warblers, woodpeckers, beavers,
otters, nutria, mink, white-tailed deer, bobcats, rabbits, and squirrels
[18].
ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIPS :
Groundwater levels and flooding determine the type and productivity of
vegetation in the southern floodplain forest. Hydroperiod ultimately
limits species composition. Flooding during the growing season has a
greater effect on species survival than during the nongrowing season.
Floodplain forests may be important for providing nutrients to
downstream ecosystems [18].
Climatic climax communities rarely occur in southern floodplain forests
because of the dynamic nature of the ecosystem. Successional trends are
complex, and it is difficult to define distinct seral community stages.
However, newly-formed sandbars along stream and river margins are
generally colonized by black willow, black cottonwood, sugar maple, and
river birch. As these stands mature, sites with short hydroperiods
usually develop into sycamore-sweetgum-American elm or
sugarberry-American elm-green ash stands. Cypress and tupelo stands
grow best on sites inundated for long periods and persist indefinitely
on these sites. On poorly drained sites overcup oak and water hickory
stands can be interspersed with cypress and tupelo. If these sites are
drained they succeed to sugarberry-American elm-green ash. Chestnut oak
and cherrybark oak usually indicate the more stable communities [18].
For more detailed information on ecological relationships of the
individual species mentioned here, refer to Eyre [6].
If the substrate and hydroperiods remain stable, mixed hardwood species
typically form climax communities [23]. Also, black tupelo and slash
pine (Pinus elliottii) may dominate cypress swamps in fire's absence
[3]. Because mature cypress are more resistant to fire than swamp
hardwoods, infrequent fires of low intensity favor cypress dominance
[1,8]. Cypress may dominate in drained areas with periodic surface
fires, although pines invade cypress domes following extended droughts
[4].
Severe fires (usually following drought conditions or drainage and
drying of the peat layer) in cypress-mixed hardwood swamps often
eliminate the prefire vegetation, allowing willow species to invade by
seed. Willow sprouts with frequent fire. If relict cypress and
hardwood species remain in these sites, they will reestablish their
dominance in the absence of fire [3,8].
KUCHLER TYPE VALUE AND USE
KUCHLER TYPE: Southern floodplain forest
FORESTRY VALUES :
About 17 percent of the timberland in the Southeast is southern
floodplain forest. Commercially valuable species include willow oak,
water oak, laurel oak, Nuttall oak (Quercus nuttallii), swamp chestnut
oak, cherrybark oak, water tupelo, black tupelo, sweetgum, and
baldcypress. Timberlands have been lost from conversion to agriculture
and the reduction of undrained areas available for timber production
[18]. For detailed information on logging in southern wetlands refer to
Jackson and Chambers [10].
Sycamore, sweetgum, and American elm can pioneer on logged sites or on
oldfields in riverbottoms. Logging favors sweetgum on sweetgum-willow
oak-dominated sites. When cut, swamp chestnut oak-cherrybark oak may
succeed to sugarberry-green ash-American elm-red maple [18].
Frequent fire (25-year intervals) in the Okefenokee Swamp, combined with
logging, allows mixed hardwoods to dominate over cypress [3]. In south
Florida logging followed by severe fire usually leads to a climax of
hardwoods without cypress [8]. Hackberry-elm-ash is temporary following
logging and fire [16].
RANGE VALUES :
Many southern floodplain forests have been cleared for pastures [18].
WILDLIFE VALUES :
Southern floodplain forests provide valuable wildlife habitat for many
species, especially those that occur in aquatic-terrestrial ecotones.
The ecotones tend to support a greater number of species than aquatic or
terrestrial habitats alone. Four attributes of the southern floodplain
forest have been listed as important to wildlife: the predominance
of woody vegetation for cover; the presence of surface water and soil
moisture for greater food availability; the interspersion of swamps with
forests for greater habitat diversity; and the presence of riparian
forests that provide travel corridors for migration and dispersion [18].
OTHER VALUES :
The southern floodplain forest provides recreation opportunities for
wildlife viewing, camping, hunting, and fishing [18].
MANAGEMENT CONCERNS :
An estimated 69 percent of southern floodplain forests have been lost
since European settlement. Diking and draining severely disrupt
hydrological regimes and alter plant communities, destroying ecological
diversity and integrity. Wildlife habitat has been fragmented due to
agriculture, subdivision, and commercial development. The Bachman's
warbler (possibly extinct), the ivory-billed woodpecker, and the Florida
panther are federally listed as endangered in the southern floodplain
forest [18].
KUCHLER TYPE FIRE ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
KUCHLER TYPE: Southern floodplain forest
FUELS, FLAMMABILITY, AND FIRE OCCURRENCE :
Typically, fires are infrequent in the mixed wetland hardwoods of the
Southeast [1]. In mixed hardwood swamps where hydroperiods last from 6
to 7 months, about two fires occur per century. Where hydroperiods last
from 1 to 6 months, fires may only occur once per century. Fires may be
less frequent on drier sites where rapid decomposition and occasional
floods retard fuel accumulation [3]. Where drainage of swamps
accelerates litter buildup and increases productivity, fires are usually
more severe [4].
Okefenokee Swamp studies indicate that fires follow drought, occurring
every 10 to 50 years [17]. Duever and others [2] hypothesized that
where cypress grows on peats in direct contact with the water table,
fire frequency and severity are low; where cypress grows on peats more
removed from the water table, fires are more severe and frequent.
FIRE EFFECTS ON SITE :
Severe fires reduce the peat depth which can alter water availability,
hydroperiod, and nutrient availability [2]. For detailed information
about the effects of fire on soil chemical and physical properties refer
to Christensen [24].
FIRE EFFECTS ON VEGETATION :
Fire kills many trees of the southern floodplain forest directly and
usually initiates rot in survivors [23]. The thin bark of water tupelo
and black tupelo offers little protection against fire [11,13]. The same
situation exists for most of the oaks found in these forests, including
laurel oak, overcup oak, swamp chestnut oak, water oak, and willow oak.
Bark thickness in relation to fire resistance has been recorded for some
southern wetland species. They are (in order of decreasing resistance)
cypress, sweetbay, red maple, water oak, water tupelo, and sweetgum [9].
All of these species sprout following fire if roots are not killed
[14,16,19,20,21,22,25,26,27]. For more fire information on individual
species refer to species reports in the FEIS database.
Mature cypress survives surface fires better than its hardwood
associates. Survival is better following summer and early fall fires
than following fires in other seasons. Slow-burning peat fires, which
can ignite when moisture levels go below 30 percent, kill cypress roots
and prevent them from sprouting [8].
A December wildfire, following a dry autumn, severely burned two cypress
"dome" sites in Florida. Fires smoldered for several days but did not
expose mineral soil on the two domes. Species composition on both sites
before the fire was given as follows (hardwoods are black tupelo,
sweetgum, and sweetbay):
Site One Site Two
Before: Cypress 52% Before: Cypress 44%
Pines 27% Pines 14%
Hardwoods 21% Hardwoods 42%
Percent decreases in species composition on both sites 1 year after
the fire were given as follows:
Site One Site Two
After: Cypress 18% After: Cypress 22.5%
Pines 96% Pines 96%
Hardwoods 98% Hardwoods 83%
Pines were present because both sites had been drained for several
years. A small percentage of cypress sprouted following this fire. The
organic layer was thicker in the center, where more trees were killed
than around the edges of the swamp. It appears that after long drought
periods fires will do greater damage in the center of swamps where the
organic layer is thicker. Here tree roots are imbedded in peat and,
therefore, not protected from fire by mineral soil [4].
FIRE EFFECTS ON RESOURCE MANAGEMENT :
NO-ENTRY
FIRE USE CONSIDERATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
Fires in logged cypress stands are more detrimental than fires in
unlogged stands. Slash and dense regrowth provide enough fuels for
"hot" fires to consume seed sources and eliminate vegetative regrowth
[8]. Severe burning after logging or draining hardwood swamps may
destroy seeds and roots. In south Florida this may lead to colonization
by willows followed by succession to mixed hardwoods [3].
REHABILITATION OF SITES FOLLOWING WILDFIRE :
NO-ENTRY
REFERENCES
KUCHLER TYPE: Southern floodplain forest
REFERENCES :
1. Christensen, Norman L. 1981. Fire regimes in southeastern ecosystems.
In: Mooney, H. A.; Bonnicksen, T. M.; Christensen, N. L.; [and others],
technical coordinators. Fire regimes and ecosystem properties:
Proceedings of the conference; 1978 December 11-15; Honolulu, HI. Gen.
Tech. Rep. WO-26. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest
Service: 112-136. [4391]
2. Duever, Michael J,; Carlson, John E.; Riopelle, Lawerence A. 1984.
Corkscrew Swamp: A virgin cypress stand. In: Ewel, Katherine Carter;
Odum, Howard T., eds. Cypress swamps. Gainesville, FL: University of
Florida Press: 334-348. [14856]
3. Ewel, Katherine C. 1990. Swamps. In: Myers, Ronald L.; Ewel, John J.,
eds. Ecosystems of Florida. Orlando, FL: University of Central Florida
Press: 281-322. [17392]
4. Ewel, Katherine Carter; Mitsch, William J. 1978. The effects of fire on
species composition in cypress dome ecosystems. Florida Scientist.
41(1): 25-31. [14634]
5. Ewel, Katherine Carter; Odum, Howard T., eds. 1984. Cypress swamps.
Gainesville, FL: University of Florida. 472 p. [14778]
6. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]
7. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others].
1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range
ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]
8. Gunderson, Lance H. 1984. Regeneration of cypress in logged and burned
strands at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Florida. In: Ewel, Katherine
Carter; Odum, Howard T., eds. Cypress swamps. Gainesville, FL:
University of Florida Press: 349-357. [14857]
9. Hare, Robert C. 1965. Contribution of bark to fire resistance of
southern trees. Journal of Forestry. 63(4): 248-251. [9915]
10. Jackson, Ben D.; Chambers, Jim L. 1981. Timber harvesting in wetlands:
Proceedings, 30th annual forestry symposium; [Date of symposium
unknown]; [Place of symposium unknown]. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State
University, Division of Continuing Education. 166 p. [22189]
11. Johnson, R. L. 1990. Nyssa aquatica L. water tupelo. In: Burns, Russell
M.; Honkala, Barbara H., technical coordinators. Silvics of North
America. Volume 2. Hardwoods. Agric. Handb. 654. Washington, DC: U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 474-478. [22203]
12. Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation
of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York:
American Geographical Society. 77 p. [1384]
13. McGee, Charles E.; Outcalt, Kenneth W. 1990. Nyssa sylvatica Marsh.
black tupelo; N. sylvatica Marsh. var sylvatica; N. sylvatica var.
biflora (Walt.) Sarg. In: Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H.,
technical coordinators. Silvics of North America. Volume 2. Hardwoods.
Agric. Handb. 654. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Forest Service: 482-489. [22202]
14. Curtis, James D. 1946. Preliminary observations on northern white cedar
in Maine. Ecology. 27: 23-36. [19804]
15. Myers, Ronald L. 1984. Ecological compression of Taxodium distichum var.
nutans by Melaleuca quinquenervia in Florida. In: Ewel, Katherine
Carter; Odum, Howard T., eds. Cypress swamps. Gainesville, FL:
University of Florida Press: 358-364. [14858]
16. Penfound, William T. 1952. Southern swamps and marshes. The Botanical
Review. 18: 413-446. [11477]
17. Rykiel, Edward J., Jr. 1984. Okefenokee Swamp Watershed: water balance
and nutrient budgets. In: Ewel, Katherine Carter; Odum, Howard T., eds.
Cypress swamps. Gainsville, FL: University of Florida, University of
Florida Press, Center for Wetlands: 374-385. [22201]
18. Sharitz, Rebecca R.; Mitsch, William J. 1993. Southern floodplain
forests. In: Martin, William H.; Boyce, Stephen G.; Echternacht, Arthur
C., eds. Biodiversity of the southeastern United States: Lowland
terrestrial communities. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc: 311-372.
[22014]
19. Schlaegel, Bryce E. 1990. Quercus phellos L. willow oak. In: Burns,
Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H., tech. coords. Silvics of North America.
Vol. 2. Hardwoods. Agric. Handb. 654. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service: 715-720. [18954]
20. Toole, E. Richard. 1965. Fire damage to commercial hardwoods in southern
bottom lands. In: Proceedings, 4th annual Tall Timbers fire ecology
conference; 1965 March 18-19; Tallahassee, FL. Tallahassee, FL: Tall
Timbers Research Station: 144-151. [8715]
21. Vince, Susan W.; Humphrey, Stephen R.; Simons, Robert W. 1989. The
ecology of hydric hammocks: A community profile. Biological Rep.
85(7.26). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and
Wildlife Service, Research and Development. 82 p. [17976]
22. Vozzo, J. A. 1990. Quercus nigra L. water oak. In: Burns, Russell M.;
Honkala, Barbara H., tech. coords. Agric. Handb. 654. Silvics of North
America. Vol. 2. Hardwoods. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service: 701-703. [18957]
23. Wright, Henry A.; Bailey, Arthur W. 1982. Fire ecology: United States
and southern Canada. New York: John Wiley & Sons. 501 p. [2620]
24. Christensen, Norman L. 1987. The biogeochemical consequences of fire and
their effects on the vegetation of the Coastal Plain of the southeastern
United States. In: Trabaud, L., ed. The role of fire in ecological
systems. Hague, The Netherlands: SPB Academic Publishing: 1-21. [17285]
25. Boyer, William D. 1990. Growing-season burns for control of hardwoods in
longleaf pine stands. Res. Pap. SO-256. New Orleans, LA: U.S. Department
of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station. 7 p.
[14604]
26. Waldrop, Thomas A.; Van Lear, David H.; Lloyd, F. Thomas; Harms, William
R. 1987. Long-term studies of prescribed burning in loblolly pine
forests of the Southeastern Coastal Plain. Gen. Tech. Rep. SE-45.
Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,
Southeastern Forest Experiment Station. 23 p. [11596]
27. Walters, Russell S.; Yawney, Harry W. 1990. Acer rubrum L. red maple.
In: Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H., technical coordinators.
Silvics of North America. Vol. 2. Hardwoods. Agric. Handb. 654.
Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 60-69.
[13956]
Index
FEIS Home Page
Related categories for Kuchler Type: Southern floodplain forest
|
 |
