Subtropical Forested Rocklands of Southern Coast and Islands
Scenario model
Current ecosystem state
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Management practices/drivers
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Transition T1A
Fire Exclusion for Greater than 50 years
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Transition T1B
Extreme Vegetation Killing Fire
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Transition T1C
Invasion of Non-Native / Exotic Species
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Transition T1D
Human Alteration / Transportation of Materials
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Transition T2A
Selective Removal of Hardwood and Pine Species / Reintroduction of Fire
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Transition T2B
Extreme Vegetation Killing Fire
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Transition T2C
Invasion of Non-Native / Exotic Species
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Transition T2D
Human Alteration / Transportation of Materials
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Restoration pathway R3A
Established Seedbank / Habitat Management / Time
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Restoration pathway R3B
Established Seedbank / Habitat Management / Time
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Transition T3A
Invasion of Non-Native / Exotic Species
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Transition T3B
Human Alteration / Transportation of Materials
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Restoration pathway R4A
Mechanical / Biological / Chemical Removal of Species
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Restoration pathway R4B
Mechanical / Biological / Chemical Removal of Species
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Restoration pathway R4C
Mechanical / Biological / Chemical Removal of Species
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Transition T4A
Human Alteration / Transportation of Materials
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No transition or restoration pathway between the selected states has been described
Target ecosystem state
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Description
This state depicts forested rocklands consisting of open canopied forests dominated by pine trees. Fire is used to maintain this habitat and will have an open to dense understory of diverse subtropical and temperate species. Exposed limestone rocks can be found throughout the entire area or close to the surface.
Characteristics and indicators
This site is characterized by shallow to exposed bedrock with an open pine woodland similar to pine flatwoods communities. Subtropical species will be present in the understory.
Resilience management
Fire is used to maintain community composition and structure and was historically introduced every 3 to 15 years. In areas of high density urbanization and fragmentation of this habitat, mechanical treatments such as roller chopping or hand removal can be utilized but are less effective than fire treatments.
Submodel
Description
This state depicts forested rocklands consisting of closed canopied forests dominated by hardwood species. This is considered the successional stage of pine rocklands, characterized by long periods of time without fire in the system.
Characteristics and indicators
These rockland hammocks are characterized by closed canopy forests with a high diversity of species assemblage. These communities have shaded understories allowing for a dense assemblage of inflammable species and the creation of high moisture conditions creating a cool interior. Leaf litter accumulation will be present on the ground surface and will increase over time.
Submodel
Description
This state depicts a community that lacks vegetation. This is most often associated with extreme fires that will cause high mortality rates within a vegetative community. This state will also describe the secondary succession pioneer habitat that will become established if left undisturbed.
Characteristics and indicators
It is characteristic of herbaceous and succulent species found on exposed bedrock with little to no soil development.
Submodel
Description
This state consists of Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Non-Native Category 1 Species list . More information on these species list can be found:
https://www.fdacs.gov/content/download/63140/file/Florida%E2%80%99s_Pest_Plants.pdf
or by contacting the UF / IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants (http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/),
the UF / IFAS Assessment of Non-native Plants in Florida's Natural Areas (https://assessment.ifas.ufl.edu/),
or the FWC Invasive Plant Management Section (http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/invasive-plants/).
This community will not represent every possibility of invasive species but rather the most common in these areas.
Characteristics and indicators
Non-Native species include species that exist outside of Florida's natural range and are introduced to the state via people, weather events, or any other means.
Resilience management
This state can be found as a part of any other state and can completely replace the native habitat if not properly managed. Restoration to natural communities after exotic non-native invasion includes practices such as mechanical and chemical removal.
Description
These areas include soils that were intentionally and substantially modified by humans for an intended purpose, commonly for terraced agriculture, building support, mining, transportation, and commerce. The alteration is of sufficient magnitude to result in the introduction of a new parent material (human-transported material) or a profound change in the previously existing parent material (human-altered material). They do not include soils modified through standard agricultural practices or formed soils with unintended wind and water erosion. When a soil is on or above an anthropogenic landform or microfeature, it can be definitely be associated with human activity and is assigned to a unique taxa, usually found as an "Urban land complex" within that communities' natural soil properties (e.g., Pennekamp gravelly muck-Urban land complex, 0-2% slopes, extremely stony).
Characteristics and indicators
Evidence of these areas include soils with manufactured items (e.g. artifacts) present in the profile, human altered-materials (e.g., deeply excavated or deeply plowed soil) or human-transported material (e.g., fill), and position on or above anthropogenic landforms (e.g., flood-control levees) and microfeatures (e.g., drainage ditches). Detailed criteria regarding the identification of anthropogenic (artificial) landforms, human-altered materials, and human-transported material are in the "Keys to Soil Taxonomy" (Soil Survey Staff, 2014).
Submodel
Mechanism
This state transition is driven by an exclusion of fire from the system for greater than 50 years. The absence of fire for this amount of time will allow the understory shrub species to mature and grow in the overstory. This will shade out the understory, losing species diversity and accumulating organic matter over time, creating a cool, moist interior, which helps exclude fire from the area.
Constraints to recovery
As the shrubs grow into the overstory they will shade the understory creating more moist conditions in which fire is unable to pass through. If this state is surrounded by pine rocklands which have a regular fire return interval, there will be a sharp ecotone between these two states. If fire has been excluded from the reference state then there will be a gradual transition into the rockland hammock.
Context dependence
The absence of fire from these systems are largely due to the high levels of urbanization and fragmentation along the Florida Keys.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by an extreme fire which removes all of the existing vegetation, leaving behind bare soil or exposed bedrock.
Constraints to recovery
An existing seedbank must be present in the soil and enough time must be allowed for the establishment of the native species to grow. During the growth of these species proper management must be taken to ensure there is no undesirable invasive or exotic species that become established.
Context dependence
An extreme fire can occur due to high buildup of organic matter (leaf litter) in the understory and presence of ladder fuels into the overstory.
Mechanism
The invasion of non-native or exotic species can be driven by a multitude of different environmental factors such as changes in natural hydroperiods or in fire regimes. Typically once a change in one of the two factors mentioned above occurs, non-native or exotic invasive species become established and begin to compete with native species for habitat and nutrients.
Constraints to recovery
Recovery from non-native or exotic invasive species may be difficult due to many adaptations which allow them to survive and outcompete in intolerable conditions. Localized knowledge for each species must be known for best removal of it without harming the native environment, and often different treatments must be applied over one given area.
Context dependence
Growth of non-native and exotic invasive species can be rapid following a change in a natural stressor such as fire frequency or natural hydroperiods which might have once kept the invasive species at bay.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by the alteration and/ or transportation of materials via anthropogenic means.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by the selective removal or hardwood and pine species to transition the community structure back to a pine rockland state. Once community structure and composition is to the desired criteria a regular fire return interval must be established every 3 to 15 years.
Constraints to recovery
This is a very costly and time consuming process.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by an extreme fire which removes all of the existing vegetation, leaving behind bare soil or exposed bedrock.
Constraints to recovery
An existing seedbank must be present in the soil and enough time must be allowed for the establishment of the native species to grow. During the growth of these species proper management must be taken to ensure there is no undesirable invasive or exotic species that become established.
Context dependence
An extreme fire can occur due to high buildup of organic matter in the understory and presence of ladder fuels into the overstory.
Mechanism
The invasion of non-native or exotic species can be driven by a multitude of different environmental factors such as changes in natural hydroperiods or in fire regimes. Typically once a change in one of the two factors mentioned above occurs, non-native or exotic invasive species become established and begin to compete with native species for habitat and nutrients.
Constraints to recovery
Recovery from non-native or exotic invasive species may be difficult due to many adaptations which allow them to outcompete and survive in intolerable conditions. Localized knowledge for each species must be known for best management of it it without harming the natural habitat, and often different treatments must be applied over one given area.
Context dependence
Growth of non-native and exotic invasive species can be rapid following a change in a natural stressor such as fire frequency or natural hydroperiods which might have once kept the invasive species at bay.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by the alteration and/ or transportation of materials via anthropogenic means.
Mechanism
This restoration strategy to reestablish a pine rockland community cannot be done without an established seedbank. This seedbank may be preexisting in the soil or may be planted via human restoration. Once the seedbank is established the area must continually undergo habitat management to ensure there is no presence of undesirable invasive or exotic species over time.
Context dependence
Maintenance of a pine rockland habitat includes regular fire return intervals every 3 to 15 years to prevent hardwood inclusion into the system, if fire is not present in the system this may gradually transition to a rockland hammock.
Mechanism
This restoration strategy to reestablish a rockland hammock community cannot be done without an established seedbank. This seedbank may be preexisting in the soil or may be planted via human restoration. Once the seedbank is established the area must continually undergo habitat management to ensure there is no presence of undesirable invasive or exotic species over time.
Context dependence
Maintenance of a rockland hammock habitat includes the absence of fire from the system for greater than 50 years while the hammock undergoes development.
Mechanism
The invasion of non-native or exotic species can be driven by a multitude of different environmental factors such as changes in natural hydroperiods or in fire regimes. Typically once a change in one of the two factors mentioned above occurs, non-native or exotic invasive species become established and begin to compete with native species for habitat and nutrients.
Constraints to recovery
Recovery from non-native or exotic invasive species may be difficult due to many adaptations which allow them to survive and outcompete in intolerable conditions. Localized knowledge for each species must be known for best removal of it without harming the native environment, and often different treatments must be applied over one given area.
Context dependence
Growth of non-native and exotic invasive species can be rapid following a change in a natural stressor such as fire frequency or natural hydroperiods which might have once kept the invasive species at bay.
Mechanism
This transition is driven by the alteration and/ or transportation of materials via anthropogenic means.
Mechanism
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal strategies include removing the non-native and exotic invasive species through various mechanisms. Localized knowledge for individual non-native or exotic invasive species is needed for specific management. Sometimes introduction of fire regimes may prevent or stop the growth of non-native or exotic invasive species, but many species are fire tolerant. Mechanical removal might include roller chopping, harvesting, or cutting and removal of invasive species. Chemical removal might include aerial dispersal from planes, or basal bark injection treatments.
Context dependence
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal of non-native and exotic invasive species is a time dependent process, with both removal types taking long times to be considered effective.
Mechanism
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal strategies include removing the non-native and exotic invasive species through various mechanisms. Localized knowledge for individual non-native or exotic invasive species is needed for specific management. Sometimes introduction of fire regimes may prevent or stop the growth of non-native or exotic invasive species, but many species are fire tolerant. Mechanical removal might include roller chopping, harvesting, or cutting and removal of invasive species. Chemical removal might include aerial dispersal from planes, or basal bark injection treatments.
Context dependence
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal of non-native and exotic invasive species is a time dependent process, with both removal types taking long times to be considered effective.
Mechanism
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal strategies include removing the non-native and exotic invasive species through various mechanisms. Localized knowledge for individual non-native or exotic invasive species is needed for specific management. Sometimes introduction of fire regimes may prevent or stop the growth of non-native or exotic invasive species, but many species are fire tolerant. Mechanical removal might include roller chopping, harvesting, or cutting and removal of invasive species. Chemical removal might include aerial dispersal from planes, or basal bark injection treatments.
Context dependence
Mechanical, biological, and chemical removal of non-native and exotic invasive species is a time dependent process, with both removal types taking long times to be considered effective.
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