Coastal Plain (2 slideshows)

Coastal Plain Systems: Forests

LLP

dry coniferous woodlands (lobolly/pine)

mesic forest

oak forest

Coastal Plain Systems: Non alluvial Mineral Wetlands

wet pine savannah

POCOSINS

CAROLINA BAYS
LIMESTONE SINKS

Ecoregions

denote areas of general similarity in ecosystems and in the type, quality and quantity of environmental resources

Pocosins

fresh EVERGREEN shrub wetlands

-low topographic relief (FLAT)

-poorly drained soils (WET)

-peatlands, deep, acidic, nutrient poor (OMBOTROPHIC)

Pocosins: Peatlands

accumulation of organic matter built up over thousands of years (sand underneath)

Pocosins: Hydrology

Characterized by extremely absorbent PEAT soil

Soak up rainwater

When saturated → water seeps out in a thin film

Slow sheetflow into surrounding watersheds

Helps protect estuaries from drastic changes in:

water quality

salinity

Pocosins: Subtypes

high pocosin

low pocosin

atlantic white cedar AWC

pond pine woodland

bay forest

streamhead pocosin

streamhead AWC forest

Pocosin: Benefits

carbon sink

water quality improvement

flood control

organismal support (habitat)

-carnivorous plants, wildlife

High/Tall Pocosin

shrub height: 2-3m tall, shallower nutrient rich

Short/Low Pocosin

shrub height:<1m tall, deep low nutrient

Pocosins H/L: PLANT EXAMPLES

ERICACEOUS shrub species:

Lyonia lucida- fetterbush

Smilax laurifolia-greenbrair

llex glabra, gallberry/inkberry- tea (caff) from leaves, dyes from berries

pinus serotina- scattered pond pine

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

Venus Flytrap

Iconic plant w hinged lobes that shut on prey, found in pocosin bogs w sandy soil and peat

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

Pitcher Plants:

Sarracenia flava (yellow pitcher plant)

common in pocosins, featuring yellow to reddish pitchers

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

Pitcher Plants:

Sarracenia rubra (sweet pitcher plant)

grows robustly at pocosin edges

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

Pitcher Plants:

Sarracenia purpurea (purple pitcher plant)

found in pocosin wetlands, know for its deep, tubular traps

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

Sundews (Drosera spp.)

having sticky, grandular leaves that ensnare small insects, with the thread-leaf sundew (drosea filformis) bring inhabitant

Pocosins H/L: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

BUTTERWORTHS (pinguicula spp.)

similar to sundews, they use sticky, grandular leaves (butterworts) to trap gnats and other small prey

Pocosins H/L: Animal Examples

Birds of prey- Screech owls and Norther harries

Small mammals- Rabbits and mice

Reptiles- eastern diamondback rattlesnake State listed, endangered

Larger mammals- white tailed deer, black bears, grey foxes

Atlantic White Cedar General

southern maine to mississippi (narrow belt)

LARGEST areas in NC

limited pH range: 3.5-5.5

sand under the peat/muck

0.3-0.6 m seasonal flooding with dry summers

AWC trees live over 1000 YEARS! rarely over 200

Atlantic White Cedar: Animal Examples

Food source- deer browse the leaves, fruits have little palatability to birds and mammals

NESTING BIRDS- yellow throated warbler, prairie warbler, and hooded warbler

PILEATEDs nest in cavities

Atlantic White Cedar: Threats

-Timbering

• Lightweight

• Resists decay

• Aromatic

• Easily worked

• → shingles, posts, sliding, boats

Globally threatened: >95% decline, 10,000 acres remain in NC

Collective Threats: forestry and farming

Pocosins: Restoration Examples

Angola Bay Game Land and Pocosin Lakes NWR

Carolina Bays: General

shallow, elliptical depressions

new jersey to florida

oriented NW to SE

often a sandy rim on SE end

formed by wind and water action

Carolina Bays: vegetation

Both high and low pocosins

-Forests

• bay forests- sweet loblolly and red bay trees, the namesake of Carolina Bay

• cypress trees

• mixed tupelo/gum/maple

-Gress/Sedge marshes

• herbaceous

• some w carnivorous plants

-Pond/meadow bays (Lake Maccamaw)

LLP: History

• once >90 million acres across the Southeast

• eastern texas to southern virginia

• home of the worlds most biologically diverse ecosystems: 600 plant and animal species and 29 threatened and endangered species

• development, timbering and fire suppression REDUCED ecosystems range

Dry LLP: Subgroups

Mesic pine flatwoods

uplands, some loblolly pine (Pinus taeda)

Dry LLP: Subgroups

Pine/scrub oak sandhill

rolling/steep slopes, well drained/ dominant in Sandhills

Dry LLP: Subgroups

Coastal fringe

near coast, some oaks and lichens

WET LLP: Subgroups

Sandhill seep

wet sands on slopes

WET LLP: Subgroups

Wet pine flatwoods

seasonally wet, flat outer/mid CP

WET LLP: Subgroups

Pine savannah

wet, flap, outer CP embedded among peatlands/rare plants

True or false

LLP is both the same name of the system and the organism, Pinus palustrus and fire is a critical element to maintain this species

TRUE

Succession

the gradual change in community structure through time

Sere

sequence of communities from grass to forest

Seral Stage

point along the sere continuum, often recognized as a distinct community

Early Successional species (pioneer)

-SMALLER size

-HIGH degree of dispersal

-HIGH rates of somatic and population growth

Late Successional Species

-LONGER lifespans

-LARGER size

-LOWER degree of dispersal

-LOWER rates of somatic and population growth

climax community

the community present when steady state is needed

True or False

Succession is both directional and deterministic

TRUE

Primary Succession occurs…

on a site previous unoccupied by a community

Examples:

lava field, sand dunes, newly exposed glacial tilt

Secondary Succession occurs…

on previously occupied sites (previously communties) after disturbance

Examples:

abandoned crop field, post fire, post clear cutting

Pinus palustrus

long lived

reproductive maturity

group seeds every 3-4 y, MAST episodes every 7-10 y

winged seeds, only disperse short distances

most fall within 20 m of the parent tree

sees readily germinate on many surfaces

Greatest survival: bare mineral soils exposed by fire

Pinus palustrus MAST

-bummper crop of cones and seeds

-periodic events

-synchronized regionally

True or False

LLP are high in fats and are thus highly prized by seed predators like mice, birds, squirrels, and ants

TRUE

Pinus palustrus: Human Uses

Timber- ship masts, sunk valued (beams)

Heartwood (fatwood):

• burned under piles of Earth releasing tar (soaked ropes and snails)

• Tar thickened to pitch (coated boat hulls)

• Stripped tree bark released resin (distilled into turpentine)

Narval stores

Plants: (Carolina) Wiregrass

• Found in very dry → seasonally saturated pinelands

• Cannot tolerate being wet all year

• LLP + pond pine understory

• High transpiration → dries soil

• Flammable foliage → facilitates spread of fire

• Reproductive strategy uncertain

• Does not re-establish when decimated (even with nearby population)

• South Florida: uses rhizomes

• NC: not true

• Species is in decline

Plants: Pitcher Plants

-Hooded PP, Sarraceinia minor- LLP

-Yellow Trumpet PP, Sarracenia flava

-Crimson PP, saccacenia leucophylla

mostly in wetter areas

Pitcher Plant

Hooded Pitcher Plant Sarraceinia minor

bring new nutrients to the soil, signal declines in nutrients

insect population control

mutualistic relationships

ECONOMIC: plant trade

Animals: Eastern diamond rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus)

• State listed endangered

• Extirpated from most of NC range

• Under federal review

• Highly venomous

• Largest species of rattlesnake in the world

• Ambush predator → rodents & rabbits

• RELUCTANT TO STRIKE

Animals: Eastern coral snake (Micrurus fulvius)

• State listed endangered

• Largely extirpated in NC range

• Highly venomous

• Often confused with non-venomous Scarlet kingsnake

• Aposematic coloration (“advertising”)

• Confused with Scarlet kingsnake

Animals: Eastern tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum)

• Largest terrestrial salamander in the world (13”)

• State threatened

• Generalist predator →

  • zooplankton

  • crayfish

  • other salamanders

  • mice

• Need nearby breeding pond

  • ideally ephemeral

• Threat: habitat loss

Animals: Carolina Gopher Frogs (Rana [=Lithobates] capito)

• State endangered

• Generalist predator →

  • zooplankton

  • crayfish

  • other salamanders

  • mice

• Secretive → live underground

  • use burrows (gopher tortoises → name)

  • NC: stumps, root tunnels, burrows

• Need nearby breeding pond

  • fishless

• Threat: habitat loss

Animals: Red Cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis)

• Endangered until 2024 → now threatened (nationally)

• Keystone species

• Territorial, non-migratory

• Social system → cooperative breeding

• Feed on insects

• Unusual → seeks live trees

  • prefer LLP

• 1–6 years to make cavity

• Fungus → red heart fungus

• Resin → protects against insects & snakes

• 1 individual per cavity

  • some used 6 generations

Threats to LLP Systems

Human impacts:

fire suppression; development; certain forestry practices; conversion to agriculture (mostly former); draining wet sites; pine straw raking

Invasive exotic species:

feral hogs; cogon grass (Imperata cylindrica); Rose Natal Grass (Melinis repens ssp. repens); Old World Climbing Fern (Lygodium microphyllum); Chinese Tallow-tree (Triadica sebifera, wetter sites)