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CEGL004230 Pinus elliottii / Lyonia lucida / Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis - Nymphaea odorata - Sphagnum spp. Wooded Wet Meadow
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Slash Pine / Shining Fetterbush / Okefenokee Giant Pitcherplant - American White Water-lily - Peatmoss species Wooded Wet Meadow
Colloquial Name: South Atlantic Wooded Freshwater Prairie
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association includes herbaceous vegetation on floating sphagnum mats in permanently to semipermanently flooded parts of basin swamps in southeast Georgia. Typically, stunted trees of Pinus elliottii var. elliottii are rooted in hummocks scattered throughout the community. Gordonia lasianthus and Taxodium ascendens trees may also be present. Lyonia lucida and Smilax laurifolia are also rooted into the hummocks, forming a distinct scattered shrub layer. The vegetation of the sphagnum mats include Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis, Lachnanthes caroliana, Peltandra sagittifolia, Woodwardia virginica, Xyris fimbriata, Nymphaea odorata, Rhynchospora fascicularis var. distans, and Utricularia subulata. This vegetation has been described from Kings Bay, a large peat-filled basin swamp in southeast Georgia, and may also exist in the Okefenokee Swamp.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This association may grade up to ~Pinus elliottii - Taxodium ascendens / Lyonia lucida / Woodwardia virginica - Sphagnum spp. Swamp Woodland (CEGL004625)$$.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: A sparse tree canopy includes stunted Pinus elliottii var. elliottii, Gordonia lasianthus, and Taxodium ascendens. The scattered shrub layer includes Lyonia lucida covered with Smilax laurifolia. Floating sphagnum mats with herbaceous vegetation form the most prominent component of the community. Species rooted into and floating on the sphagnum mats include Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis, Lachnanthes caroliana, Peltandra sagittifolia, Woodwardia virginica, Xyris fimbriata, Nymphaea odorata, Rhynchospora fascicularis var. distans (= Rhynchospora distans), and Utricularia subulata.
Dynamics: Fire may be an important part of maintaining this association, particularly in times of drought. Depending on conditions, fire may be extremely severe in this community, killing woody vegetation and burning into the peat beds.
Environmental Description: This association is found in peat-filled nonriverine basin swamps with permanently to semipermanently flooded hydrologies in southeast Georgia. Similar prairie vegetation of the Okefenokee Swamp is believed to be a result of severe fires that burn away part of the sphagnum substrates (Cypert 1972). Water input in this community is probably from high water tables and precipitation, though some seepage water may come from nearby uplands.
Geographic Range: This association is known from nonriverine basin swamps in southeast Georgia. It is possible in adjacent Florida.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: FL?, GA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.856872
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass | S44 | 2.C |
| Formation | 2.C.4 Temperate to Polar Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Formation | F013 | 2.C.4 |
| Division | 2.C.4.Ne Atlantic & Gulf Coastal Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Division | D322 | 2.C.4.Ne |
| Macrogroup | 2.C.4.Ne.2 Beaksedge species - Spikerush species - Panicgrass species Atlantic & Gulf Coastal Plain Wet Prairie & Marsh Macrogroup | M067 | 2.C.4.Ne.2 |
| Group | 2.C.4.Ne.2.g Beaksedge species - Spikerush species - Yellow-eyed-grass species Pondshore & Wet Prairie Group | G915 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.g |
| Alliance | A3402 Chalky Bluestem - Purple Bluestem - Panicgrass species Wet Prairie & Basin Marsh Alliance | A3402 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.g |
| Association | CEGL004230 Slash Pine / Shining Fetterbush / Okefenokee Giant Pitcherplant - American White Water-lily - Peatmoss species Wooded Wet Meadow | CEGL004230 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.g |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: >< Islands in Open Swamp or Cypress Heads (Wright and Wright 1932)
- Cypert, E. 1972. The origin of houses in the Okefenokee prairies. American Midland Naturalist 87:448-458.
- GNHP [Georgia Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data. Georgia Natural Heritage Program, Wildlife Resources Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Social Circle.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Wright, A. H., and A. A. Wright. 1932. The habitats and composition of the vegetation of Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia. Ecological Monographs 2:111-230+.