Reading the Florida Landscape
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Reading the Florida Landscape Reading the Florida Landscape Edited by Robert Norman Reading the Florida Landscape Edited by Robert Norman This book first published 2020 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2020 by Robert Norman and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-5540-2 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-5540-2 CONTENTS Preface ...................................................................................................... ix Introduction ................................................................................................ 1 1. Reading the Florida Landscape .............................................................. 4 Florida Ecosystems ............................................................................... 5 Disturbance ......................................................................................... 12 Uplands ............................................................................................... 25 Pine Flatwoods .............................................................................. 30 San Felasco Hammock State Preserve .......................................... 42 Scrub ............................................................................................. 44 Sandhills ........................................................................................ 44 Oscar Scherer State Park ............................................................... 51 Coastal ................................................................................................ 53 History of the Park .............................................................................. 60 Weedon Island Preserve ................................................................ 70 Coral Reefs .................................................................................... 76 Freshwater ........................................................................................... 78 Streams and Rivers ........................................................................ 79 Myakka River State Park .................................................................... 84 History ........................................................................................... 84 The Water ...................................................................................... 89 Florida Springs .............................................................................. 95 Wetlands ........................................................................................ 97 Forested Wetlands ......................................................................... 97 Lakes ............................................................................................. 99 Karst .............................................................................................. 99 On the Silver River ...................................................................... 101 History .............................................................................................. 103 Tourism ....................................................................................... 109 Turpentine ................................................................................... 110 Logging ....................................................................................... 117 Steamboats .................................................................................. 120 Railroads ..................................................................................... 123 Mining ......................................................................................... 124 vi Contents Cracker Cowboys ........................................................................ 125 Historical Photographs ................................................................ 129 Historical Documents .................................................................. 132 Fire .................................................................................................... 132 2. Differential Diagnosis in Nature and Ecology .................................... 143 Case 1 ................................................................................................ 143 Case 2 ................................................................................................ 146 Case 3 ................................................................................................ 149 Case 4 ................................................................................................ 151 Case 5 ................................................................................................ 153 Case 6 ................................................................................................ 158 Case 7 ................................................................................................ 163 Case 8 ................................................................................................ 166 Case 9 ................................................................................................ 170 Case 10 .............................................................................................. 175 Case 11 .............................................................................................. 177 Case 12 .............................................................................................. 179 Case 13 .............................................................................................. 181 Case 14 .............................................................................................. 185 Case 15 .............................................................................................. 187 Case 16 .............................................................................................. 192 Case 17 .............................................................................................. 195 Case 18 .............................................................................................. 197 Case 19 .............................................................................................. 200 Case 20 .............................................................................................. 202 Case 21 .............................................................................................. 204 Case 22 .............................................................................................. 206 Case 23 .............................................................................................. 208 Case 24 .............................................................................................. 210 Case 25 .............................................................................................. 212 Case 26 .............................................................................................. 215 Case 27 .............................................................................................. 219 Case 28 .............................................................................................. 221 Case 29 .............................................................................................. 223 Case 30 .............................................................................................. 225 Case 31 .............................................................................................. 228 Case 32 .............................................................................................. 251 Case 33 .............................................................................................. 233 Case 34 .............................................................................................. 235 Case 35 .............................................................................................. 237 Reading the Florida Landscape vii 3. Two Trees ........................................................................................... 239 Glossary of General Ecosystem Terms ................................................... 241 References .............................................................................................. 247 General References ........................................................................... 247 Recommended Web Sites ................................................................. 247 Part 1 ................................................................................................. 248 Part 2 ................................................................................................. 249 PREFACE Reading the Florida Landscape encourages the reader to identify evidence of land use decisions and events that have occurred in the past to better understand how these have influenced the health and function of ecosystems in the present. Using interviews with conservation scientists and historical case studies, Robert Norman has blended skills and knowledge gained from his experiences as a physician and an Advanced Florida Master Naturalist to discuss how to identify, or perhaps diagnose, actions and events that have influenced