Everglades Flora Lecture Notes by JW Bailly

EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK

For the introductory Everglades National Park Lecture Notes, please review the following page.

“Adult anhingas are large, dark waterbirds with a long, thin neck, a long, thin, pointed bill, a long tail, and silver patches on the wings…The anhinga is also known as the snakebird because it swims with its body submerged while stretching its head and neck out above the surface of the water, giving it the appearance of a snake about to strike while it glides through the water. Anhingas are also graceful fliers and can travel long distances without flapping their wings…Anhingas are in the darter family, Anhingidae. Like other darters, anhingas hunt by spearing fishes and other small prey with their sharp, slender beaks.” National Park Service

BALD CYPRESS

“Bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) is one of the few temperate trees in south Florida. Cypress trees lose their leaves in winter, leading many first-time visitors to think they’re dead. A long-lived, deciduous wetland species, bald cypress can live as long as 600 years. Cypress domes and strands are valuable to wildlife for food and cover.” National Park Service

BROMELIADS

“Bromeliads are one of the iconic resources of the park. They are found in almost all habitats and in some places their numbers can seem overwhelming. Dwarf cypress forests and cypress domes are excellent habitat for airplants, which also are common in the interior of hardwood hammocks and tree islands as well as in mangrove forests. Lone trees in the middle of sawgrass marshes and other wetlands typically support resident bromeliads. Several species of Tillandsia even perch on the branches of planted trees in most of the parking areas throughout the park.” National Park Service

CYPRESS DOME

FIU students in Everglades National Park (Photo by JW Bailly/© All Rights Reserved)

“Common throughout the southeastern United States, the cypress tree (Taxodium spp.) is a deciduous conifer that can survive in standing water. In the Florida Everglades these trees are often found growing in one of three distinct formations. Where the limestone substrate has given way to circular solution holes, it is common to find a cluster of cypress trees growing in the shape of a dome, with larger trees in the middle and smaller trees all around. Cypress strands occur where the cypress trees grow in an elongate, linear shape, parallel with the flow of water. In areas of less-favorable growing conditions, stunted cypress trees, called dwarf cypress, grow thinly distributed in poor soil on drier land.” National Park Service

SPANISH MOSS
“Spanish moss was given its name by French explorers. Native Americans told them the plant was called Itla-okla, which meant “tree hair.” The French were reminded of the Spanish conquistadors’ long beards, so they called it Barbe Espagnol, or “Spanish Beard.” The Spaniards got back at them by calling the plant Cabello Francés, or “French Hair.” The French name won out, and as time went by Spanish Beard changed to Spanish moss.” Miss Cellania, mentalfloss

TREE ISLAND
The main geological difference between a Cypress Dome and a Tree Island in the Everglades is that the center of a Cypress Dome is in deeper water while the center of a Tree Island is higher elevation and dry.

“Tree islands are important centers of biodiversity in the Florida Everglades; they have two to three times the plant and animal diversity of the surrounding wetlands. This high diversity is due primarily to their higher elevation relative to the adjacent wetlands. In the natural Everglades system, water levels fluctuated seasonally with rainfall, and tree islands were the only sites that escaped flooding during the wet season. These seasonally dry sites provided refugia and nesting sites for animals and allowed tree and shrub communities to flourish.” U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

https://www.nps.gov/ever/learn/historyculture/hm69.htm

Everglades National Park official website

UNESCO World Heritage Foundation whc.unesco.org/