ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITY


 NO. 21 SWAMP HARDWOODS


OCCURRENCE

The Swamp Hardwood ecological community occurs throughout Florida except for
the extreme southeast portion of the state. This community is found bordering
rivers and in basins which are either submerged or saturated part of the year.

DESCRIPTION

The vegetation is primarily deciduous trees. Periodic flooding is
characteristic of the community. This community does not include cypress
swamps or bottomland hardwood areas. These are in separate ecological
communities.

1. Soils

 Soils associated with this community are nearly level, very poorly
 drained, dark colored and have coarse to medium textured surfaces
 underlain by finer textured material or are organic. Representative
 soils include: Bayboro, Bladen, Bluff, Dorovan, Grady, Mantachie, Myatt,
 Pantego, and Wesconnett. Appendix A contains information on correlation
 of soils series with the appropriate ecological community.

2. Vegetation

 Swamp hardwood forests are characterized by hardwoods, a high percentage
 of which are deciduous. Common dominants are red maple, elm, black gum,
 water tupelo and cypress. Many areas may have originally been dominated
 by cypress, but when the large cypress were cut out, the hardwoods become
 predominant. The species composition is largely determined by the kind
 of soils that occur. Plants that characterize this community are:

 TREES Bald cypress, Taxodium distichum; Blackgum, Nyssa sylvatica;
 Red maple, Acer rubrum; Water tupelo, Nyssa aquatica

 SHRUBS Buttonbush, Cephalanthus occidentalis; Dahoon holly, Ilex
 cassine;

 HERBACEOUS PLANTS AND VINES Cinnamon fern, Osmunda cinnamomea; Lizard's
 tail, Saururus cernuus; Royal fern, Osmunda regalis; Wild pine,
 Tillandsia fasiculata

 Other plants that occur in the community are found in Appendix B.

 3. Animals

 Animals found in this community are adapted to wet conditions and must
 withstand the flooding that occurs periodically.