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Abstract Detail



Ecological Section

DEVALL , MARGARET S [1], Rodrigues, Guilherme de Assis  [2], Ferreira Fernandes, Lucas Do Nascimento  [2], Smith, Carl G. [3], Hughes, Steven  [4], Hamel, Paul [4].

Succession in the Red Gum Research Natural Area.

The Red Gum Research Natural Area (RNA) is a 16 ha (40 acre) rare old growth forest remnant located in the Delta National Forest, Mississippi, that was set aside for nonmanipulative research and education in 1943. The site is a bottomland hardwood forest with an elevation between 27.4 and 28.9 m above sea level.  The northern three-fourths of the RNA seldom floods, since it is on a clay ridge that drains into a slough at the south end. We collected data on the trees, shrubs and herbaceous vegetation of the RNA in 2011 in order to compare them to baseline data collected previously and to data from the Overcup Oak RNA.  Importance values (IV) were calculated for the trees and shrubs and Shannon’s diversity index and species evenness were calculated.  The dominant species in the RNA are sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), due to its high basal area and box elder (Acer negundo), on account of its high density.  Many of the sweetgum trees are senescent, and there are a number of snags and fallen logs in various stages of decay, a typical old growth feature.  Other common species in the RNA are American elm (Ulmus americana) and sugarberry  (Celtis laevigata).  The major species of the shrub layer include palmetto (Sabal minor) and cane (Arundinaria gigantea) and numerous vines are present, including poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans), trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans), pepper vine (Ampelopsis arborea), greenbriers (Smilax spp., and grapes (Vitis spp.).  Common herbaceous species include blackberries (Rubus spp., sedges (Carex spp., and false nettle (Boehmeria cylindrica).  Most of the previously common bottomland forests between southern Illinois to southern Louisiana have been cut for timber, or drained and converted to farmland or commercial timberland, making this site a unique area.  


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1 - U.S. Forest Service, Center For Bottomland Hardwoods Research, PO Box 227, Stoneville, MS, 38776, USA
2 - Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
3 - U.S. Forest Service, P.O. Box 227, Stoneville, MS, USA
4 - U.S. Forest Service, P.O. Box 227, Stoneville, MS, 38776

Keywords:
Research Natural Area
old growth
bottomland hardwood.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 39
Location: Cottonwoods North/Boise Centre
Date: Wednesday, July 30th, 2014
Time: 2:30 PM
Number: 39005
Abstract ID:521
Candidate for Awards:None


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