Environmental Description:  The most characteristic examples occur as maritime forests on stabilized dunes and other related landforms composed of reworked well-drained coastal sands, which can be deep (>130 cm) (Drew et al. 1998). Inland examples tend to occur on upper to mid slopes, but occasionally on broader uplands with reduced fire frequencies. A range of soils may be present from loamy and clayey to coarse sands, but soils are generally well-drained but not excessively drained. Soils are generally acidic, though calcareous soils occur occasionally. Sites are somewhat protected from most natural fires by steep topography and by limited flammability of the vegetation. Fires that penetrate these forests are generally low in intensity and have fairly limited ecological effect.

Climate: Warm-temperate, humid. Coastal hurricanes and other storms can be an important influence on this vegetation. Soil/substrate/hydrology: This forest group generally occurs on sands, but some occurrences are on calcareous soils. In Georgia, more mesic examples of this system have relatively thin soils (to 50 cm) above clay, while xeric examples occupy deep (>130 cm) well-drained sands (Drew et al. 1998). Topography varies from larger dunes to smaller ridges and swales, upland flat areas, salt domes, or coastal ridges called cheniers (in Louisiana). On the Atlantic coast, these forests occur on the southeast coast of North Carolina and on the Sea Islands, a chain of low islands along the coast of South Carolina, Georgia, and northern Florida, from the Cooper River to the St. Johns River. Where these forests occur along the coast, they are prone to salt spray and storm surge from major hurricanes.