organizing and resilient (Muiller et al. 2000; Muiller and Lenz, 2006). Self-organizing forces

become especially apparent during the understory reinitiation stage of forest succession when the

steady-state mosaic begins to form.

 When identifying patterns of succession along a chronosequence, stand changes caused by

disturbance must also be considered (Frelich, 2002; Pickett and Cadenasso, 1995). The longleaf

pine forest is a pyro-climax ecosystem which relies on short fire return intervals to maintain the

"steady-state" stage over other woody plant species (Wade et al. 2000). In coastal wet pine flats,

wind and precipitation are also maj or "shapers" of longleaf pine communities. Hurricanes

directly affect the canopy structure of longleaf pine stands through gale-forced winds, opening

them up to sunlight and changing the composition of the flora and fauna that occupy them.

Hurricanes also affect longleaf pine stands by the extensive flooding that accompanies the wind.

Extended flooding can cause changes in both the above and below ground productivity (Johnston

and Crossley, 2002; Palik et al. 2002).

 Anthropogenic effects caused by human activities in forests can also change the forest

structure. Timber harvesting, grazing, and prescribed fires can cause changes in the structural

complexity of forests having negative effects by exposing surface soils and reducing biodiversity

(Redding et al. 2004; Van Lear et al. 2005). In addition, climatic changes such as increased

atmospheric CO2 leVOIS may affect the soil biotic community, adding to the potential negative

feedbacks toward the productivity of aboveground plant communities (Peacock, 2001; Frelich,

2002). Measuring forest structural data along a chronosequence will make it possible to evaluate

change along the life cycle of coastal wet longleaf pine flats.

 The obj ective of this study was to examine stand structural attributes and understory plant

species diversity along a 110-year chronosequence. We hypothesized that stand DBH, height,