Hydrology, Vegetation, and Soils of Four North Florida River Flood Plains with an Evaluation of State and Federal Wetland Determinations
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Hydrology, Vegetation, and Soils of Four North Florida River Flood Plains with an Evaluation of State and Federal Wetland Determinations By Helen M. Light and Melanie R. Darst, U.S. Geological Survey; and Maureen T. MacLaughlin and Steven W. Sprecher, Florida Department of Environmental Regulation Contents U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Water-Resources Investigation Report 93-4033 Prepared in cooperation with the FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION Tallahassee, Florida 1993 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY ROBERT M. HIRSCH, Acting Director Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Geological Survey. For additional information Copies of this report can be write to: purchased from: District Chief U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Geological Survey Earth Science Information Center Suite 3015 Open-File Reports Section 227 North Bronough Street Box 25286, MS 517 Tallahassee, Florida 32301 Denver, Colorado 80225 CONTENTS Contents Glossary ................................................................................................................................................................................... VI Selected scientific and common plant names ........................................................................................................................VIII Abstract.......................................................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction.................................................................................................................................................................................2 Purpose and scope ............................................................................................................................................................2 Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................................................................4 Influence of hydrology on vegetation of river flood plains ........................................................................................................4 Soil saturation ..................................................................................................................................................................4 Inundation .........................................................................................................................................................................6 Flowing water ...................................................................................................................................................................6 Seasonal changes in anaerobic effect of saturation in north Florida.................................................................................7 Air and soil temperatures in the nongrowing season .............................................................................................8 Seasonal changes in plant activity in north Florida ................................................................................................8 Analysis of vegetation-hydrology relations using year-round hydrologic records...........................................................9 Methods of study ........................................................................................................................................................................9 Hydrologic data collection and analysis ......................................................................................................................... 9 Soil sampling and analysis............................................................................................................................................. 10 Vegetation sampling and analysis ................................................................................................................................. 11 Hydrology and topography of the study sites ...........................................................................................................................12 Ochlockonee River flood plain .......................................................................................................................................15 Aucilla River flood plain................................................................................................................................................ 17 Telogia Creek flood plain ...............................................................................................................................................20 St. Marks River flood plain.............................................................................................................................................21 Flood-plain soils and vegetation ..............................................................................................................................................24 Ochlockonee River flood plain .......................................................................................................................................24 Aucilla River flood plain.................................................................................................................................................27 Telogia Creek flood plain ...............................................................................................................................................28 St. Marks River flood plain.............................................................................................................................................28 State and Federal wetland determinations ................................................................................................................................29 Wetland determinations made with and without the benefit of long-term surface-water records..................................30 Wetland indicator status of vegetative strata ..................................................................................................................31 Hydrologic conditions associated with individual plant species ....................................................................................31 National Wetland Inventory classifications ....................................................................................................................37 Summary and Conclusions .......................................................................................................................................................38 References.................................................................................................................................................................................40 Appendix I. Periods of record used from surface-water gaging stations near study sites on four north Florida streams .....................................................................................................................................................................47 Appendix II. Hydrologic conditions on flood-plain plots on four north Florida streams, with duration, frequency, and depth of surface-water flooding, and State and Federal wetland hydrology determinations ......................48 Appendix III. Soil characteristics at flood-plain plots, on four north Florida streams, with taxonomic classifications, soil series, drainage classes, profile descriptions of the soils, and State and Federal hydric soil determinations ....................................................................................................................................................52 Appendix IV. Vegetation on flood-plain plots on four north Florida streams, with species composition of canopy trees, subcanopy trees, and ground-cover plants, weighted averages for each stratum, and State and Federal wetland vegetation determinations ..........................................................................................................63 Appendix V. Duration of average annual longest flood for selected flood-plain plant species on four north Florida streams............................................................................................................................................................88 Plant species index....................................................................................................................................................................91 Contents III FIGURES 1. Location of the study sites..................................................................................................................................................... 3 2. Mean daily stage for four water years (1986-89) near study sites on four north Florida streams ...................................... 13 3. Mean monthly river stage for a long-term period of record and the 2-year study period near study sites on four north Florida streams............................................................................................................... 14 4. Location, study-plot boundaries, and elevation of flood-plain features at the Ochlockonee River primary site, Florida....................................................................................................................... 16 5. Mean daily stage for 40 years