Name:
Casasia clusiifolia - Guapira discolor - Pithecellobium keyense - Metopium toxiferum Forest
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
These are diverse hammock forests of the Florida Keys, developed not on consolidated rock, but on storm-deposited shell hash of biogenic origin, consisting of limestone sand, shell, and calcareous algal fragments. They are variable in height, from 3 m or less on the coastal edge, to 8 m, but are most typically 5-7 m tall. The canopy and subcanopy are diverse, consisting most frequently of mixtures of <i>Guapira discolor, Eugenia foetida, Metopium toxiferum, Pithecellobium keyense, Casasia clusiifolia, Suriana maritima, Conocarpus erectus, Bursera simaruba, Coccoloba uvifera, Eugenia axillaris, Coccothrinax argentata, Reynosia septentrionalis, Sideroxylon celastrinum, Piscidia piscipula, Erithalis fruticosa</i>, and the exotic <i>Casuarina equisetifolia</i>. Frequent shorter shrubs and herbs include various species associated with coastal dunes and other shore-associated habitats: <i>Lantana involucrata, Solanum bahamense, Hymenocallis latifolia, Lasiacis divaricata, Alternanthera maritima, Opuntia stricta, Sesuvium portulacastrum, Suaeda linearis</i>. These forests can be distinguished from Rockland Hammocks [see ~<i>Bursera simaruba - Coccoloba diversifolia - Eugenia axillaris</i> Forest Alliance (A2030)$$] by the usual presence and abundance of species such as <i>Casasia clusiifolia, Suriana maritima</i>, and <i>Guapira discolor</i>, the frequent presence of shoreline shrubs and herbs [see above], the shoreline landscape position, and the unconsolidated substrate.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:35323-{4CFE0A2F-C1A7-43C5-B98F-7015A2B4E03D}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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