This study was conducted for the Strategic Environmental Research and Develop ment Program (SERDP) under the SERDP study, "Regional Guidelines for Managing Threatened and Endangered Species Habitats." Brad Smith is Executive Director, SERDP. The technical monitor was Femi Ayorinde, SERDP Conservation Program Manager.
The work was performed by the Natural Resource Assessment and Managment Division (LL-N) of the Land Management Laboratory (LL), U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories (USACERL) and the Natural Resources Division (EL), U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station (WES), Vicksburg, MS. Mary G. Harper was employed as a Research Associate under an interagency agreement with the U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Range and Forest Experi ment Station, and Colorado State University. Ms. Harper was responsible for the ecological description of the community, most general land use impact analyses, and recommendations for management of the community and plant threatened and endangered species (TES) associated with the community. The USACERL principal investigator was Ann-Marie Trame, who was responsible for information pertaining to military activities, and soil erosion and compaction. Dr. Richard A. Fischer and Chester O. Martin (WES) were responsible for information pertaining to animal TES.
Kevin Robertson (USACERL) provided valuable technical assistance and contrib uted information to the appendices. William Whitworth (USACERL) provided valuable technical assistance and made final improvements to the manuscript. Tiffany A. Cook (WES) conducted literature surveys. The USACERL technical editor was Linda L. Wheatley, Technical Information Team.
COL James A. Walter is Commander and Dr. Michael J. O'Connor is Director of USACERL.
Contents
SF 298 1
Foreword 2
List of Figures and Tables 5
1 Introduction 7
Background 7
Objectives 8
Approach 8
Scope 9
Mode of Technology Transfer 10
2 Longleaf Pine-dominated Communities 12
Sandhills 12
Pine Flatwoods 13
Occurrence on Installations 13
3 Biodiversity and TES 17
4 Land Use Practices and Activities 19
Fire Management 19
Agricultural and Forestry Practices 20
Military Training Activities 22
5 Community Quality and Management 25
Baseline Data 25
Monitoring 26
Community Quality 27
6 Indicators of Community Quality 29
Wiregrass/Bunchgrass Dominance 29
Old Growth Pine 30
Other Indicator Species 30
Structural and Compositional Characteristics 32
7 Impacts and Management Recommendations 35
Fragmentation and Land-Use Conversion 35
Fire and Fire Suppression 40
Alteration of Hydrology 47
Groundcover Disturbances 51
Erosion and Sedimentation 69
Soil Compaction 74
Exotic and Pest Species 79
Fertilization 85
8 Summary 98
Fire and Hydrology 99
Soil and Groundcover 100
References 103
Appendix A: An Ecological Description of the Sandhills Community 125
Appendix B: An Ecological Description of the Pine Flatwoods Community 130
Appendix C: Plant TES Occurring in Flatwoods and Sandhills on Military Installations 135
Appendix D: Animal TES Occurring in Flatwoods and Sandhills on Military Installations 145
Appendix E: Class A Foams 151
Distribution