ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITY


 NO. 10 CUTTHROAT SEEPS

OCCURRENCE

The Cutthroat Seeps ecological community is found mostly in Polk and Highlands
Counties. It occurs to a limited extent in adjoining counties. Individual
size of the community is normally less than 100 acres. Much of the original
community has been destroyed and developed to intensive uses.

DESCRIPTIONS

This community occurs on nearly level to gently sloping or depressed areas
where water seeps from the adjacent Sand Pine Scrub and Longleaf Pine-Turkey
Oak Hills communities. The soil profile is wet most of the time.

1. Soils

 The soils are nearly level to gently sloping, poorly drained, deep and
 coarse textured throughout. The Ona and St. Johns soil series are
 representative of this community. Appendix A contains information on
 correlation of soils series with the appropriate ecological community.

2. Vegetation

 The appearance of this community is distinctive. It has open scattered
 pine trees, isolated sawpalmetto and waxmyrtle and a dense cover of
 cutthroat grass that stays green the year round. Plants which
 characterize this community are:

 TREES Slash pine, Pinus elliottii

 SHRUBS Waxmyrtle, Myrica cerifera

 GRASSES Cutthroat grass, Panicum abscissium; Chalky bluestem,
 Andropogon capillipes; Creeping bluestem, Schizachyrium
 stoloniferum; Maidencane, Panicum hemitomon; Toothache grass,
 Ctenium aromaticum; Low panicums, Panicum spp.

 Information about plants that occur in specific ecological communities is
 in Appendix B.

3. Animals

 Typical animals include:

 MAMMALS Bobcat, cottontail rabbit, deer, raccoon, skunks, opossum

 BIRDS Woodpeckers, several songbirds

 REPTILES Pygmy rattlesnake, yellow ratsnake

 Information on animals know to occur in specific ecological communities is
 in Appendix C.