Pineland, otherwise known as pine rocklands, these forests often take root in the exposed limestone substrate of south Florida. Though the rugged terrain is canopied almost entirely by slash pine (Pinus elliottii var. densa), the understory boasts an amazingly diverse assemblage of flora, including numerous endemic species that grow only in the local area. Pine rockland is a savanna-like forest on limestone outcrops with a single canopy species, South Florida slash pine, and a diverse understory of shrubs and herbs. This community is often found in association with rockland hammock and short hydroperiod freshwater wetland communities.
Florida slash pines (Pinus elliotii) occur in a range of elevations, taking root among limestone outcroppings and solution holes containing peat and marl. Surrounded by wet prairies and mangroves, pinelands experience flooding during the summer rainy season for extended periods of time.
Prior to the 1930s, an extensive forest of Florida slash pines (Pinus elliotii densa) covered much of the eastern Everglades. However, due to the increased demand on these forests for construction materials, most of these pines were harvested. This forest is currently limited to sections of the eastern Everglades National Park with another stand on Long Pine Key. Slash pines also provided a source of sap for the manufacture of turpentine and other products. The sap was collected by cutting a diagonal slash into the trunk of each tree, hence the common name “slash pine”. Today the slash pine is grown throughout the state of Florida for use in paper and pulp industries.
Fire is an essential condition for survival of the pine community, clearing out the faster-growing hardwoods that would block light to the pine seedlings. The subcanopy of the pinelands consists of fire-resistant plants species that grow well adapted to a life of frequent fires, such as the saw palmetto and cabbage palm.
Pine rockland occurs on relatively flat, moderately-to well-drained terrain. Because limestone bedrock is at or very near the surface, soils are generally small accumulations of sand, marl, and organic material in depressions and crevices in the rock surface. Drainage varies according to the porosity of the limestone substrate, but it is generally rapid. Consequently, most sites are wet for only short periods following heavy rains. During the rainy season, however, some sites may be shallowly inundated by very slow-flowing surface water for up to 60 days per year.
Each of the three regions where pine rocklands occur in Florida has unique geological attributes. In Miami-Dade County, the community is associated with the Miami Rock Ridge, a formation of Miami oolite limestone which extends for 70 miles from northeastern Miami-Dade County to the Mahogany Hammock region of Everglades NP. The surface is often irregular with solution holes up to several meters in width and depth. Organic materials and humus accumulate in these solution holes
The elevation of the Miami Rock Ridge varies from greater than 7 m above sea level in the Miami area to less than 2 m above sea level in the Long Pine Key area of Everglades NP with an average elevation of approximately 3 m, varying in width from 6.4 to 16 km (4 to 10 miles). Where the ridge is evident in the Mahogany Hammock area of Everglades NP, it is covered largely by marl soil (Snyder, et al. 1990). Elevations in the limestone formations found in the Keys are significantly lower, from 1 to 2 m above sea level.
The depth and composition of pine rockland soils varies from almost nonexistent in the Long Pine Key area, to very little exposed rock found in the Northern Biscayne pinelands. Where soil is present, it is a fine reddish-brown sandy loam, slightly acidic with less than10 percent organic matter. The soils and rooting medium found in solution holes may contain 30 to 50 percent organic matter. Soils in the Northern Biscayne pinelands area are quartz sands classified as Opalocka sand-rock outcrop complex. South of this area, the soils are rockier and classified as Card Sound rock. Soils in the lower Keys pine rocklands are classified as Key Vaca very gravely loam. These soils are well drained with a water table from 1 to 2 m.
Rainfall in the pine rockland community varies from over 163 cm (64 inches) average annual in the northwest portion of Miami-Dade County to between 122 and 143 cm (48 and 56 inches, respectively) average annual in the rest of the county. Mean rainfall in the Florida Keys pine rocklands is 102 cm (40 inches) but is variable from island to island. The majority of this precipitation (75 percent) occurs between June and September.
The hydroperiod in Long Pine Key and Big Cypress pine rocklands can range from about 20 to 60 days/year, but in pine rocklands on the Miami Rock Ridge outside of Everglades NP and most of the pine rocklands on Big Pine Key, the water table seldom reaches the surface. The mean water table in Long Pine Key pine rocklands is reported at 0.6 to 2.0 m below the surface during the dry season and 0.3 to 1.0 m below the surface during the wet season.
Temperature also plays an important role in pine rocklands. Because the large constituent of tropical and subtropical plants that are more exposed to below-freezing temperatures in the relatively open understory, they are more likely to succumb to freeze damage than conspecifics in the sheltered rockland hammocks. Thus, below-freezing temperatures help reduce tropical hardwood encroachment in pine rocklands.
You are at Goulds Pineland Preserve, a “small” hidden jewel within the South East of Miami Dade County. This should be a very simple yet rewarding earth cache, which will offer you the opportunity to enhance your knowledge of our very own ecosystem in South Florida
Please be advice, in order to enjoy this earth cache and the location where is bringing you, there is no need to venture within the preserve itself as all of the requirements can be fulfill from the preserve sign at the posted coordinates as well the way point provided, both of them will allow you to have a great view of this small hidden jewel without having to trespass into the preserve (which is not allow by the county as they are protected lands).
To obtain credit for this earth cache you will need answer a few questions which are as follows:
Web knowledge
- What kind of pine is mostly predominant within South Florida's pinelands?
- Name at least two fire-resistant plants species that grow in the subcanopy of the pinelands?
- Name at least two of the three types of soils commonly found in the South Florida’s pinelands?
- Using the Long Pine Key pine rocklands as a reference, during the wet season what is the level of the water table?
To prove you were here
- From the sign at the posted coordinates: What percentage of pine forest remains outside Everglades National Park?
- At posted coordinates provided for reference point “A” what kind of rock can you see?
- Not required but greatly appreciated: Please provide near the posted coordinates a “NON-SPOILER” photo of you, your group or anything you found interesting while visiting this earth cache!
Reference Sources:
- NPS.gov: Ecosystems Pinelands
- floridamuseum.ufl.edu: South Florida Aquatic Environments Habitats
- fws.gov/southeast: Pine Rocklands
