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G003 Avicennia germinans - Laguncularia racemosa Forest Group
Type Concept Sentence: This group includes tidal mangrove wetlands of the Caribbean basins dominated or codominated by Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and/or Conocarpus erectus.
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Black Mangrove - White Mangrove Forest Group
Colloquial Name: Caribbean Basin Mangrove
Hierarchy Level: Group
Type Concept: This group includes tidal mangrove wetlands of the Caribbean basins dominated or codominated by Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and/or Conocarpus erectus. These forests are in hypersaline flats or lagoons; that is, basins which may have water of various salinities, and tidal brackish areas which are not dominated by Rhizophora mangle. This group also includes short, tidal mangrove forests on seasonally flooded peats of interior depressions in the Florida Keys and southern peninsular Florida. The canopy of these basin mangrove communities is usually 3-12 m high, closed, and consists of a variable mixture of Rhizophora mangle (present but not dominant), Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and Conocarpus erectus.
Diagnostic Characteristics: This group includes mangrove forests in basins dominated or codominated by Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and Conocarpus erectus. It also can include mangrove forests with Rhizophora mangle, but not fringe or riverine mangrove dominated by Rhizophora mangle.
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: At least three broad variants of mangrove vegetation in the Caribbean can be recognized, i.e., fringe (coastal), riverine (here treated as part of fringe), and basin mangrove (including hammock mangrove) (Lugo et al. 1988). This group mainly consists of basin mangrove forests. Fringe and riverine mangrove forests, generally dominated by Rhizophora mangle, are classified in ~Caribbean Fringe Mangrove Group (G004)$$. Tidal mangrove dominated by Avicennia germinans may be slightly above the normal high-tide line and have characteristics of hypersaline flats. No known examples of tidal freshwater mangroves are known from the Neotropics (Lugo pers. comm. 2011). Tidal wetlands dominated or codominated by Conocarpus erectus are currently grouped with fringe mangroves (but this decision needs further review).
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: These are evergreen forests of variable heights. Mangrove trees in south Florida can be up to 60 cm (2 feet) in diameter and 150 years old.
Floristics: This group includes mangrove forests dominated or codominated by Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and/or Conocarpus erectus. It also can include mangrove forests with, but not dominated by, Rhizophora mangle.
Dynamics: Mangroves are limited by the effects of freezing weather, as mangroves are not adapted to freezing (Lugo and Zucca 1977). Hurricanes also reduce mangrove forests. For example, a well-developed mangrove forest with trees up to 60 cm (2 feet) in diameter and 150 years old was destroyed by Hurricane Donna in 1960 (Craighead 1971). Hurricane Andrew in 1992 resulted in areas of mangrove being knocked down by wind. The regeneration of these mangroves since 1992 has been studied. The pulses of the tides and freshwater runoff are also very important factors in the dynamics of mangroves and the distribution of the different mangrove species. This group includes areas which are hypersaline, slightly higher than the areas flushed by regular tides. Lightning is also an important disturbance factor, causing mangrove trees to die in small areas around lightning strikes.
Environmental Description: Climate: Mangroves are essentially tropical species that occur only infrequently in areas where the average annual temperature is below 19°C; fluctuations greater than 10°C and short-duration freezes are detrimental to all species. As frost frequency increases, species substitutions occur; black mangroves move to the fringe, and they become scrubby. The relation of mangroves with salt marshes is inverse to frost frequency (Kangas and Lugo 1990). Low-temperature stress leads to decreased height, leaf area, and increased tree density (Odum and McIvor 1990). Laguncularia racemosa reaches approximately 29°N latitude on both coasts of Florida (Rehm 1976, Odum et al. 1982). However, the northern limits of mangrove species fluctuate due to short-term climatic swings making exact delineations impossible. Soil/substrate/hydrology: Odum and McIvor (1990) show a diagram displaying the community zonation present in Tampa Bay. A narrow high marsh zone of Batis and Juncus grades into low mangrove forests with Laguncularia racemosa, Avicennia germinans, and Rhizophora mangle.
Geographic Range: This group occurs in south Florida and the Caribbean Islands.
Nations: CU,PR,US
States/Provinces: FL
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.835945
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
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.5 Mangrove Formation | F006 | 1.A.5 |
| Division | 1.A.5.Ua Atlantic-Caribbean & East Pacific Mangrove Division | D004 | 1.A.5.Ua |
| Macrogroup | 1.A.5.Ua.3 Black Mangrove - White Mangrove - Red Mangrove Macrogroup | M005 | 1.A.5.Ua.3 |
| Group | 1.A.5.Ua.3.a Black Mangrove - White Mangrove Forest Group | G003 | 1.A.5.Ua.3.a |
| Alliance | A0075 Black Mangrove - White Mangrove Basin Mangrove Alliance | A0075 | 1.A.5.Ua.3.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: No Data Available
- Craighead, F. C., Jr. 1971. The trees of south Florida. Volume I. The natural environments and their succession. University of Miami Press, Coral Gables. 212 pp.
- Faber-Langendoen, D., J. Drake, S. Gawler, M. Hall, C. Josse, G. Kittel, S. Menard, C. Nordman, M. Pyne, M. Reid, L. Sneddon, K. Schulz, J. Teague, M. Russo, K. Snow, and P. Comer, editors. 2010-2019a. Divisions, Macrogroups and Groups for the Revised U.S. National Vegetation Classification. NatureServe, Arlington, VA. plus appendices. [in preparation]
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- Lugo, Ariel. Personal communication. Director, International Institute of Tropical Forestry, USDA Forest Service, USA.
- Mendelssohn, I. A., and K. L. McKee. 1988. Saltmarshes and mangroves. Pages 501-536 in: M. G. Barbour and W. D. Billings, editors. North American terrestrial vegetation. Cambridge University Press, New York. 434 pp.
- Montague, C. L., and R. G. Wiegert. 1990. Salt marshes. Pages 481-516 in: R. L. Myers and J. J. Ewel, editors. Ecosystems of Florida. University of Central Florida Press, Orlando.
- Odum, W. E., C. C. McIvor, and T. J. Smith, III. 1982. The ecology of the mangroves of south Florida: A community profile. USDI Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Biological Services. Report No. FWS/OBS/-81/24. Washington, DC. 144 pp.
- Odum, W. E., and C. C. McIvor. 1990. Mangroves. Pages 517-548 in: R. L. Myers and J. J. Ewel, editors. Ecosystems of Florida. University of Central Florida Press, Orlando.
- Rehm, A. E. 1976. The effects of the wood-boring isopod, Sphaeroma terebrans, on the mangrove communities of Florida. Environmental Conservation 3:47-57.
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