Old-Growth Deciduous Forests - Southeast
Although forests predominate in the South, less than 585,790 acres
of old-growth forest exist (White and others 1998). The remaining
old-growth forests tend to be on steeper, rockier, or mesic sites
difficult to farm or harvest. Old-growth forest composition varies with
forest type, but characteristics generally associated with old-growth
forests include large, old trees; accumulations of woody debris; and
multi-layered canopies.
|
|
Southern Appalachian Spruce Fir
The spruce-fir community is confined to the highest peaks of
Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Red spruce
communities occur at an approximate elevation of 4,500 feet. In the
northern limit of its range, Fraser fir is replaced with balsam fir.
This community is characterized by relatively high moisture levels,
short growing seasons, acidic soils, and extreme weather conditions.
The flora is distinctive. The community reproduces in small-scale
patches resulting from wind disturbance.
The presettlement extent of the Southern Appalachian spruce-fir
community has been estimated as 30,000-35,000 acres (White and others
1998). These remote forests remained relatively undisturbed until the
widespread harvests of the late 1800's (White and others 1998). In
1934, the majority of the remaining spruce-fir forest went into public
protection with the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National
Park.
|
Bottomland and Floodplain Forests
The
forested wetlands of the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and Continental
Interior provinces include bottomland hardwood forests and deepwater
alluvial swamps. Bottomland hardwoods are located along waterways and
in low-lying areas such as the Mississippi Delta region. Common tree
species include ash, sycamore, water tupelo, cypress, willow,
cottonwood, elm, oaks, river birch, silver maple sweetgum, black
walnut, and pine. Vegetative composition and structure vary with
flooding duration. Trees are vulnerable to prolonged changes in
hydrology and are characterized by rapid growth. Bottomland hardwoods
are found almost exclusively on alluvial soils that are associated with
old riverbeds, existing streams, and impoundments and their terraces.
Soils are saturated year-round or nearly so; the understory is sparse
with vines and shrubby vegetation.
|
Longleaf Pine and Southern Pinelands
Longleaf
pine historically dominated Coastal Plain sites from southern Virginia
to eastern Texas. It also occurred on sites in the Piedmont, Southern
Ridge and Valley, and Southern Blue Ridge provinces (Figure 22). This
community once covered over 40 percent of the entire region, but it has
declined by more than 98 percent (Noss and others 1995).
|
Atlantic White Cedar Swamps
Atlantic white cedar once was distributed
from southern Virginia to interior Georgia and from the Florida
Panhandle along the Gulf of Mexico to Mississippi. Drainage,
development, and harvest without regeneration have reduced Atlantic
white cedar to 10 percent of its original extent.
|
|
