HERBACEOUS PLANTS AND VINES Blackberry, Rubus spp.; Bracken fern,
 Pteridum aquilinum; Creeping beggarweed, Desmodium incanum;
 Deer tongue, Trilisa odoratissima; Dog fennel, Eupatorium
 capillifolium; Gayfeather, Liatris gracilis; Greenbriar, Smilax
 auriculata; Milkwort, Polygala spp.

 GRASSES AND GRASSLIKE PLANTS Chalky bluestem, Andropogon capillipes;
 Broomsedge bluestem, Andropogon virginicus; Yellow indiangrass,
 Sorghastrum nutans; Lopsided indiangrass, Sorghastrum secundum;
 Low panicum, Panicum spp.; Pineland threeawn, Aristida stricta;
 Sedges, Cyperus spp.

 Other plants that are known to occur in this community are found in
 Appendix B.

3. Animals

 The North Florida Flatwoods are host to a diverse and numerous wildlife
 population. Mnay larger animals are found in areas where the flatwoods
 join other communities. These ecotones provide nesting sites, den sites,
 food and cover. Typical animals of the flatwoods are:

 MAMMALS Bobcat, deer, cottontail rabbit, cotton rat, fox squirrel,
 gray fox, raccoon, opossum, skunk

 BIRDS Bachman's sparrow, Bobwhite quail, pine warbler, red-bellied
 woodpecker, red-shouldered hawk, rufous-sided towhee

 REPTILES Eastern diamondback rattlesnake, pygmy rattlesnake

 AMPHIBIANS Chorus frog, cricket frog, grass frog, flatwoods salamander

 Introduced feral hogs are common in much of the flatwoods community.
 Information on animals known to occur in specific ecological communities
 is in Appendix C.

LAND USE INTERPRETATIONS

1. Environmental Value as a Natural System

 Fire and water are the major stress conditions of this community.
 Modification of either condition will change the plant and animal
 composition. Removal of fire will cause a successional move to a hardwood
 community.

 Flatwoods communities are good cellulose producers because of their high
 net productivity. The original areas of predominantly longleaf pine have
 been logged. Extensive areas have been replanted to slash pine.
 Intensive management for pulp production can cause major changes in the
 vegetation. The result is a low diversity of plants and often adverse
 changes in types and amounts of some wildlife.