ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITY


 NO. 16 SCRUB CYPRESS


 OCCURRENCE

 The Scrub Cypress ecological community occurs in south Florida on marl and
 rock that is frequently flooded. Eastern Collier County and northern Monroe
 County have the largest areas of this community. This region is called "Big
 Cypress."

 DESCRIPTION

 This community appears as a broad area of marshes with dwarf cypress (less
 than 20 feet tall) scattered throughout. It is stressed by the extreme
 seasonal change in water levels, and low level of plant nutrients. These
 factors cause poor growing conditions with a lack of plant diversity and small
 wildlife populations in comparison to the cypress swamp community.

 1. Soils

 Soils associated with this community are nearly level, poorly to very
 poorly drained, with coarse to medium textured surfaces underlain by finer
 textured material or fractured limestone. A representative soil is
 Margate. Appendix A contains information on correlation of soil series
 with the appropriate ecological community.

2. Vegetation

 The vegetation is much like that of the freshwater marsh community.
 Occasional air plants and orchids can be found in the scattered cypress
 trees. Plants which characterize this community are:

 TREES Bald cypress, Taxodium distichum; Pond cypress, Taxodium
 distichum var. nutans

 SHRUBS Waxmyrtle, Myrica cerifera

 HERBACEOUS PLANTS Stiff-leafed wild pine, Tillandsia fasiculata

 GRASSES Blue maidencane, Amphicarpum muhlenbergianum; Clubhead
 cutgrass, Leersia hexandra; Maidencane, Panicum hemitomon

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

3. Animals

 The poor soil and lack of plant nutrients that are responsible for the
 relatively sparse plant life also account for a fairly scattered wildlife
 population.