Freshwater Forested Wetlands Bottomland Forest and Alluvial Forest By: Tiffany Oliver

Definitions  Terrace: A raised bank of earth having vertical or sloping sides and a flat top.  Levee: An elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed fill or wall, which regulates water levels.

Definitions  Alluvial: Made up of or found in the materials that are left by the water of rivers, floods, etc.  Blackwater river: A river with a deep, slow-moving channel that flows through forested swamps and wetlands. As vegetation decays in the water, tannins are leached out, resulting in transparent, acidic water that is darkly stained, resembling tea or coffee.  “Ridge and Swale”: An alternating sequence of narrow sandy ridges and low wetland swales that parallels a shore

What is a Bottomland Forest?

 A deciduous, or mixed deciduous/evergreen, closed-canopy forest on terraces and levees within riverine floodplains and in shallow depressions.

What is a Bottomland Forest? Found between swamps and uplands

What is a Bottomland Forest?  The canopy may be quite diverse with both deciduous and evergreen hydrophytic to mesophytic trees.  Very few evergreen

What is a Bottomland Forest?  Understory either dense shrubs with little ground cover, or open, with few shrubs and a groundcover of ferns, herbs, and grasses.  Also variable in composition and abundance

Resources and Conditions  Soils are a rich mixture of sand, clay, and organic materials  Water table:  High in blackwater/spring fed floodplains  Low in alluvial floodlplains  Inundation:  only during higher floods  Fire insignificant  Limited to individual trees

Resources and Conditions  Trees produce hard and soft mast that wildlife depend on  Seedling establishment variations caused by flooding regimes, windthrows and treefall gaps  Organic debris:  Important nutrient source downstream  Large scale patterns of high water pulses  Every 5-7years along the Apalachicola River  Critical in providing nutrients into the Apalachicola Bay  Correlated with a significant increase in commercial fish abundance.  Major stop over site for many migratory birds

Distribution Found throughout Florida, associated mostly with blackwater and alluvial floodplains. Where limestone is near the surface hydric hammocks often replace bottomlands.

Distribution

Status  G4/S3: secure globally; rare or uncommon in state  Good and unknown trend  84,141 acres total of Bottomland Hardwood  58% conservation or managed areas  5% Florida Forever projects  25% are in SHCA-designated lands.  12% private lands

Characteristic Canopy Water Oak Sweetgum Spruce Pine

Characteristic Canopy Swamp Laurel Oak Red Maple Loblolly Pine

Common Canopy Sugarberry Live Oak Sweetbay Swamp Chestnut Oak

Common Understory American Hornbeam Swamp Dogwood Dahoon Holly

Rare Plants Sweet Shrub Indian Cucumber- root Little Club-spur Orchid

Obligate, Threatened, or Endangered Animals Apalachicola Dusky Salamander Yellow- crowned Night-heron Black- crowned Night-heron Rafinesque’s big- eared bat Northern Long-eared bat Florida long- tailed weasel

Obligate, Threatened, or Endangered Animals Florida Black BearKentucky Warbler Hooded Warbler Copperhead

Considerations  Suffered from timber operations  Soil disturbance  Clearcutting  Pine plantations  Construction that makes use of landfill acts as a dam  Wildlife habitat loss with development  Invasives  Clean and control water

Management and Restoration  Provide funds and tax incentives for private lands  Replant  Concern about local water problems increases demand for restoration  Single tree harvest  Attempt to reestablish hydrolic functions

What Can I Confuse Them With?  Floodplain Swamp: Although bottomland forest may flood and even contain occasional tupelo and cypress trees, it is not dominated by these species, as is floodplain swamp  Hydric Hammock: Closely resembles bottomland forest, but the dominance of evergreen oaks and cabbage palm distinguish the hammock.

What Can I Confuse Them With?  Baygall: Found in areas of high seepage and dominated by bay species  Alluvial Forest: Bottomlands are generally drier and water hickory, overcup oak, and/or green ash are not characteristic unlike in alluvial

Where Can I See Them?  Blackwater River State Forest  Lake Talquin State Forest  San Felasco Preserve State Park  Jennings State Forest  Myakka River State Park

Alluvial Forest

What is an Alluvial Forest?

 A hardwood forest found in river floodplains on low levees, ridges and terraces that are slightly elevated above floodlplain swamp and are regularly flooded for a portion of the growing season.

Resources and Conditions  Soils are variable mixtures of sand, organics, and alluvials, which are often distinctly layered.  The hydroperiod is the primary physical feature of alluvial forests, which are inundated by floodwaters nearly every year for 2 to 50% of the growing season.  Inundation flushes the forest floor  Fire:  Infrequent  Limited to individual trees  Stands that burn in drought sustain heavy damage

Distribution and Status  Florida Panhandle where alluvial rivers create broad floodplains  Not south of Lake Okeechobee  G4/S3: secure globally; rare or uncommon in state

Characteristic Canopy Water Locust Swamp Laurel Oak Green Ash Water Hickory

Characteristic Canopy American Elm Overcup Oak River Birch

Rare Plants Variable- leaved Indian- plantain Canada Honewort Thorne’s Buckthorn

Obligate, Threatened, or Endangered Animals One-toed Amphiuma American Alligator Swallow-tailed kite Barbour’s Map Turtle Northern Long-eared Bat Mississippi Green Water Snake

Obligate, Threatened, or Endangered Animals Hairy Woodpecker Florida Black Bear Gray Bat Louisiana Waterthrush

Considerations  Must be managed as part of the whole of a riverine system  Provide important wildlife habitat  Contribute to water quality  Negative impacts of artificial impoundments, river diversion projects, pesticide use, forest clearcutting, and intensive agriculture  Dam construction limits the health of the systems  Channelization  Hurricanes

Management  Remove small dams to allow for natural hydrology  Hand/mechanical removal of exotics  Minimize and eliminate trails and roads  Replant rapid growing plants to reestablish canopy

What Can I Confuse It With?  Floodplain Swamp: Differ because cypress and/or tupelo are dominant in these swamps because of the longer hydroperiod.  Bottomland Forest: Occupy slightly higher terraces, ridges, and levees, and sometimes have loblolly pine.  Baygall: Dominated by evergreen bay species and lacks the diversity.  Hydric Hammocks: Generally dominated by a mix of evergreen oaks, cabbage palm, and red cedar.

Where Can I See Them?  Torreya State Park  Apalachicola Water Management Area  Gum Landing in Choctawhatchee River Water Management Area  Log Landing and Wanee Conservation Areas