VEGETATION OF SELECTED UPLAND TEMPORARY
 PONDS IN NORTH AND NORTH-CENTRAL FLORIDA



 Linda V. LaClaire'




 ABSTRACT



 Vegetation was sampled in 13 temporary ponds located in uplands of north and north-central Florida.
The ponds were selected for study because they represented potential breeding sites for 2 rare amphibians,
the gopher frog, Rana capitol aesopus, and the striped newt, Notophthalmus perstriatus. Vegetation in the
non-forested depression ponds was analyzed in order to determine if a set of characteristic species was
present in each. These date then could be used to identify breeding sites for the two species and to provide
information for use in the development of management plans for the sites. The study ponds generally fill
during winter rains and completely dry down during the summer, but, during the period of this research,
Florida was experiencing a relatively dry period, and some ponds did not fill on an annual basis.
 A total of 112 vascular plant species were identified in the pond basins. Panicum hemitomon was the
only species present at each pond. Other common species included Andropogon glomeratus, Rhexia
mariana var. mariana, Eupatorium leptophyllum, Rhynchospora spp., Ilex glabra, Cephalanthus
occidentalis, and members of the family Eriocaulaceae. Similarities between ponds generally resulted from
similarities in hydrologic cycle, defined as the period of time since each had held water, and the proximity of
ponds to each other. The vegetation of each pond reflected a pattern of zonation or banding commonly
described for temporary ponds in other regions. Wetland index values calculated for each pond fit wetland
designation criteria, including a basin that had not formed a pond for 7 years, Dry Pond. Species richness
and diversity were highest in ponds that had recently dried down and lowest in flooded ponds and Dry Pond.


 RESUME



 Se muestre6 la vegetaci6n de 13 estanques temporaries en las tierras altas del norte y norte-centro de
Florida. Se seleccionaron los estanques que representaban potenciales sitios reproductivos de dos species
raras de anfibios, el sapo excavador de Florida, Rana capitol aesopus, y la salamandra rayada,
Notophthalmus perstriatus. Estos estanques, que ocupan bajos en areas no forestadas, se ajustan a un patr6n
general de Ilenado durante las Iluvias de inviero y de complete vaciamiento durante el verano. Florida

1
 The author is a Wildlife Biologist of Herpetology and Avian Ecology at the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 6578 Dogwood View
 Parkway, Suite A, Jackson MS 39213, USA.


 LACLAIRE, L. V. 1995. Vegetation of selected upland temporary ponds in north and north-central Florida.
 Bull. Florida Mus. Nat. Hist. 38, Pt. I(3):69-96.