Print Report
CEGL003811 Serenoa repens - Coccoloba uvifera - Sideroxylon tenax - Myrcianthes fragrans - Myrsine cubana Scrub
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Saw Palmetto - Sea-grape - Tough Bully - Twinberry - Guianese Colicwood Scrub
Colloquial Name: Florida Coastal Strand (Southern Atlantic Temperate Type)
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association represents a "coastal strand" community of south-central Atlantic coast of Florida, ranging from southern Volusia County south to northern St. Lucie County. It consists of a long narrow strip of shrubs, parallel to the coast between the grassy Uniola paniculata dunes on the beach and the maritime forest inland. It is shaped by salt spray borne inland by the prevailing easterly winds off the water. The sandy soils are circumneutral, due to an admixture of shell with the quartz sand. The community is characterized by dense structure and an even, salt-spray-pruned canopy, slanting upward with increasing distance from the coast. The tropical shrub/small tree Myrcianthes fragrans is characteristic of this type, and is not found in coastal strands farther north or south. Nearest the coast, Serenoa repens and Coccoloba uvifera dominate, with dwarfed trees of Sabal palmetto extending above the low 1- to 2-foot high canopy. Further inland is found a mixed dominance of temperate (Sideroxylon tenax, Persea borbonia, Quercus virginiana) and tropical (Myrcianthes fragrans, Myrsine cubana) shrubs or salt-spray-dwarfed trees, often grading gradually upward in height to maritime hammock at increasing distance inland. Other characteristic species include Forestiera segregata, Morella cerifera, Schinus terebinthifolius (exotic), Lantana involucrata, and Zanthoxylum clava-herculis. Coastal strand communities found farther north in Florida in which Ilex vomitoria and Magnolia grandiflora are components are covered by ~Serenoa repens - Sabal palmetto - Ilex vomitoria - Sideroxylon tenax Scrub (CEGL003812)$$; coastal strands composed of tropical species farther south are covered by ~Serenoa repens - Coccoloba uvifera - Pithecellobium keyense - Dalbergia ecastaphyllum Scrub (CEGL003782)$$.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: See Johnson and Muller (1993a) and Johnson et al. (1992b).
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The community is characterized by dense structure and an even, salt-spray-pruned canopy, slanting upward with increasing distance from the coast. The tropical shrub/small tree Myrcianthes fragrans is characteristic of this type, and is not found in coastal strands farther north or south. Unlike many other tropical species, Myrcianthes fragrans is unaffected by the occasional freezes along this coastal segment, probably due to the high concentration of aromatic compounds in its leaves (A. Johnson pers. comm.). Nearest the coast, Serenoa repens and Coccoloba uvifera dominate, with dwarfed trees of Sabal palmetto extending above the low 1- to 2-foot high canopy. Further inland is found a mixed dominance of temperate (Sideroxylon tenax (= Bumelia tenax), Persea borbonia, Quercus virginiana) and tropical (Myrcianthes fragrans, Myrsine cubana (= Myrsine floridana)) shrubs or salt-spray-dwarfed trees, often grading gradually upward in height to maritime hammock at increasing distance inland. Other characteristic species include Forestiera segregata, Morella cerifera (= Myrica cerifera), Schinus terebinthifolius (exotic), Lantana involucrata, and Zanthoxylum clava-herculis.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: The sandy soils on which this type occurs are circumneutral, due to an admixture of shell with the quartz sand. The appearance and structure of this community are shaped by salt spray borne inland by the prevailing easterly winds off the water. Examples are characterized by dense structure and an even, salt-spray-pruned canopy, slanting upward with increasing distance from the coast.
Geographic Range: This type is known from the Atlantic coast of south-central Florida and may possibly also occur in the Bahamas.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: FL
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.686364
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.A Tropical Forest & Woodland Subclass | S17 | 1.A |
| Formation | 1.A.1 Tropical Dry Forest & Woodland Formation | F003 | 1.A.1 |
| Division | 1.A.1.Ea Caribbean-Mesoamerican Dry Forest & Woodland Division | D099 | 1.A.1.Ea |
| Macrogroup | 1.A.1.Ea.2 Gumbo Limbo - Tie-tongue - Stopper species Caribbean Coastal Lowland Dry Forest Macrogroup | M134 | 1.A.1.Ea.2 |
| Group | 1.A.1.Ea.2.b Gumbo Limbo - Tie-tongue - White Stopper Forest Group | G765 | 1.A.1.Ea.2.b |
| Alliance | A2031 False Mastic - Blolly - Sea-grape Forest & Scrub Alliance | A2031 | 1.A.1.Ea.2.b |
| Association | CEGL003811 Saw Palmetto - Sea-grape - Tough Bully - Twinberry - Guianese Colicwood Scrub | CEGL003811 | 1.A.1.Ea.2.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Coastal Strand - Northeast (Johnson and Muller 1993a)
= Coastal Strand - Northeast (Johnson and Muller 1993b)
= Coastal Strand - Northeast (Johnson and Muller 1993b)
- FDEP [Florida Department of Environmental Protection]. 1999. Conservation and Recreation Lands 1999 report. Office of Environmental Services, Division of State Lands, FDEP, Tallahassee.
- FNAI [Florida Natural Areas Inventory]. 2010a. Guide to the natural communities of Florida: 2010 edition. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL. 228 pp. [https://fnai.org/naturalcommguide.cfm]
- Johnson, A. F., J. W. Muller, and K. A. Bettinger. 1992b. An assessment of Florida''s remaining coastal upland natural communities: Southeast Florida. The Nature Conservancy, Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee. 29 pp. plus appendices.
- Johnson, A. F., and J. W. Muller. 1993a. An assessment of Florida''s remaining coastal upland natural communities: Final summary report. The Nature Conservancy, Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee. 37 pp.
- Johnson, A. F., and J. W. Muller. 1993b. An assessment of Florida''s remaining coastal upland natural communities: Northeast Florida. The Nature Conservancy, Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee. 10 pp. plus appendices.
- Johnson, Ann F. Personal communication. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.