PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 31: Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Species
Thursday, August 11, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall 220 A-E, Level 2, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Comparison of sandhills and mixed pine hardwood communities at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Collins, Beverly*,1, Sharitz, Rebecca1, Madden, Kathryn1, Dilustro, John1, 1 Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Aiken, SC, USA
ABSTRACT- Fall Line sandhills vegetation, which occurs on dry, sandy ridgetops in the southeastern US, supports a suite of rare or uncommon plant species. The distribution of sandhills vegetation within sites is of conservation interest for maintaining habitat for these species. We surveyed nine sandhills sites and 32 matrix mixed pine hardwood stands at Fort Benning, GA, to characterize canopy and groundlayer vegetation patterns and determine the extent of sandhills vegetation over the upland landscape and with land use variation. The relative abundance of longleaf, loblolly, and shortleaf pines contributed to canopy composition differences among the sites. The sandhills communities support a unique set of groundlayer species, including state-listed Chrysoma pauciflosculosa. Although land use and forest management have led to some species overlap, characteristic sandhills species are not widely distributed in mixed pine hardwood stands at Fort Benning. Conservation efforts must focus on maintaining existing sandhills communities.
Key words: sandhills vegetation, rare species, fire-adapted vegetation