SPECIAL PUBLICATION NO. 27


the waste piles are removed. The notable exception is that an open body
of water may be present where the peat has been removed.

ENDANGERED SPECIES ASSOCIATED WITH AREAS OF POTENTIAL
 PEAT MINING

 by
 Thomas M. Scott

 Areas of peat accumulation are associated with specific wetland habi-
tats and contain specific faunal and floral communities. The mining pro-
cess, of necessity, removes existing vegetation and significantly alters
the immediate environment of the active mine. As a result of these
altered habitats, indigenous fauna may be forced out and native flora is
destroyed.
 The major wetland habitats in Florida are coastal marshes, freshwater
marshes, wet prairies, cypress swamps, hardwood swamps and man-
grove swamps. These are briefly discussed below using information
taken from Hartman (1978) and Gilbert (1978).
 The coastal marshes occur along shorelines characterized by low wave
energy. Coastal marshes are generally found north of the range of man-
groves but are interspersed with mangroves in some areas. These
marshes may extend into tidal rivers and sometimes exist as a narrow
zone between mangroves and freshwater in south Florida.
 Freshwater marshes consist of herbaceous plant communities in areas
of water-saturated soils which may be characterized by standing water
during portions of the year. Freshwater marshes grade into wet prairies
with the characteristic differences being shallower water and more abun-
dant grasses in the wet prairie.
 Cypress swamps generally have water at or above ground level a sig-
nificant portion of the year. Cypress swamps occur along rivers and lake
margins and may be scattered among other environments. This habitat
contains fewer grasses and significantly more abundant trees.
 Hardwood swamps occur in lake basins and along rivers where the
substrate is saturated or submerged for at least part of the year. Two
important variations of this habitat are the bayhead swamp and the titi
swamp.
 Bayhead swamps are very similar to cypress swamps except the vege-
tation is more dense. The growth may be so dense as to be impenetrable
in some areas. The plants of the bayheads are mostly small trees with
shrubs and cypress. Standing water is present most of the year within
these areas. These swamps are dominated by varieties of bay trees.
 Titi swamps are similar to the bayhead swamps. They are dominated
by the presence of titi rather than bay trees.
 Mangrove swamps occur along low energy coastlines in central and
southern Florida. Mangroves dominate with red mangrove furthest sea-