Native Plant Communities
Floodplain Swamp
Floodplain with organic/alluvial substrate; usually inundated; subtropical or temperate; rare or no fire; vegetation characterized by cypress, tupelo, black gum, and/or pop ash.
Probably the best Florida example is the Apalachicola River Floodplain in Torreya State Park. Others include the Choctawhatchee River, Yellow River, and Escambia River floodplains. Peninsula examples occur along the Hillsborough River, Manatee River, Peace River, and Fisheating Creek.
References:
Duever, Linda. 1984 (September). Florida's Natural Communities: Floodplains. The Palmetto 4, #3:8-10. http://fnps.org/assets/pdf/palmetto/duever_linda_conway_natural_communities_of_floridas_floodplains_vol_4_no_3_fall_1984.pdf
Florida Natural Areas Inventory (FNAI) and Florida Department of Natural Resources. 1990. Guide to the natural communities of Florida: 2010 edition. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL. http://fnai.org/PDF/Natural_Communities_Guide_1990.pdf
Light, H.M., and M.R. Darst. 1993. Hydrology, vegetation, and soils of four north Florida river flood plains with an evaluation of state and federal wetland determinations. Water Resources Investigation Report 93-4033. United States Geological Survey, Tallahassee, Florida.
Sharitz, R.R., and W.J. Mitsch. 1993. Southern floodplain forests. Pages 311-372 in W.H. Martin, S.G. Boyce, and A.C. Echternacht, editors. Biodiversity of the Southeastern United States: Lowland Terrestrial Communities. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York.
USDA Soil Conservation Service. 1986. 26 Ecological Communities of Florida. http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00000110/00001
Whitney, E.N., D. B. Means, A. Rudloe. 2004. Priceless Florida: Natural Ecosystems and Native Species. Pineapple Press.
Date Updated 2020-05-17 11:52:01
Chipola River floodplain at Florida Caverns State Park, Jackson County. Photo by Shirley Denton.
Floodplain swamp along the Apalachicola River in Torreya State Park. Image by Shirley Denton.
Floodplain swamp along the Pithlachascotee River in Pasco County. Photo by Shirley Denton.