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Dog Island behind the dam that creates Lake Talquin, a sign says you have crossed the “Ochlocoknee.” In Georgia, you can turn right on GA 188 in the town of “Ochlocknee” and ride out a mile or so to view the Little “Ochlockonee” River. Oak. Not only is the Ochlockonee a river of many Oak. names, it is also a river of different qualities and lock. uses. Upstream in Georgia, it is an “impaired” stream that functions as sewer, carrying so much fecal coliform, agricultural runoff, and mercury that locals are warned not to swim, drink, or Lock. consume fi sh from its waters. Further south, lock. it is the last refuge—or maybe graveyard—on knee. earth of the federally endangered freshwater mussel Ochlockonee Moccasinshell (Medionidus simpsonianus), which has not been seen for six Knee.by Richard J. Lenz years. After crossing the state line, the river knee. provides recreation and adds to the underlying water supply for metropolitan Three hard nouns. Three door knocks. This is how Tallahassee. Downstream, near the bay of the same locals pronounce the name of the river that rises name, it is a tidally infl uenced river that hosts salt water inauspiciously in the red clay soils of southwest fi sh and serves as nursery Georgia and winds 206 miles to the Florida coast. grounds for marine life, which contribute to Florida’s $20 million seafood industry. chlockonee. Not a pretty O name—in sound or meaning. Spend time As for superlatives, well, if you polled Georgians with the river, and you will fi nd oaks on the to list their state’s rivers, the Ochlockonee might banks, locks at Jackson Bluff Dam in Florida, be the last one named, in contrast to its famous and of course plenty of cypress knees. But the cousin located sixty-fi ve miles to the east—the appellation comes from the Hitchiti Indian Suwannee River featured in Stephen Foster’s language, which is believed to be describing lyrics—which also is born in Georgia coastal a river that traditionally fl owed as lanee or plain swamps and lakni (yellow) oki (water), as it drained the fl oowsws to the yellow and red clay soils of the upland area. FFloridalorida coast. Locals ignore the vowel between lock and knee, but they are forgiven for this short cut, because the river’s name has had many spellings, a tradition that continues to this day. In Florida, when you cross the river into Leon County

Tired Creek 2 Purple Bankclimber 3 But it’s time the Ochlockonee received its due in an aquiline course to fi nish dead east in man-made lakes—can serve as natural The Ochlockonee: A River of Names respect, regardless of its diffi cult name and the brackish waters of Ochlockonee Bay. water treatment plants, and Lake Talquin helps to remove a large percentage of our reckless treatment. The Ochlockonee has In 1540, Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto Between Thomasville and Tallahassee, Florida, unhealthy nutrients that the upper natural qualities which make it unlike any I was the fi rst European to discover the river, the Ochlockonee rolls through the beautiful Ochlockonee River brings to the lake. other river. And like all of our other rivers, which he named Guacuca. During the Spanish and distinctive timberlands and farm fi elds of the Red Hills, drawing along with it the South of the Jackson Bluff Dam, the it affects the quality of life inside its many Mission period of Georgia and Florida, the Spanish called the river Rio Agna, Rio de Lagna, waters of southwestern Mitchell County, river regains its integrity as it is fed by fi ngered grasp. And unfortunately like many and Rio Lana, which may have been Spanish western waters of Thomas County, and most cleaner tributaries and fl ows through of our rivers, it is threatened. renditions of the Muskogean word lanee for of Grady County before crossing into Florida. mostly undeveloped conservation lands “yellow.” When the English replaced the Spanish of the Apalachicola National Forest and Just across the state line and east of the river is in the region, they attempted to reproduce Tate’s Hell State Forest before reaching The Ochlockonee Lake Iamonia, 5,700 acres, one of three major phonetically the Indian names they heard, using a Ochlockonee Bay on the coast. Watershed lakes in Florida that lie within the drainage t 420 feet elevation—not far from Gordy, variety of spellings. Historic maps show the river basin of the river. Iamonia, along with Lake In Florida, the river forms legal boundary Worth County—cars race by, oblivious as Ogeelaguanu, Ochlocononee, Ockatockany, A Jackson, was once a tributary of the river, but as it winds southward, constituting the that nearby a major river is starting its journey O-clock-ney, Okloknee, Ochlochnee, over thousands of years formed connections county lines between Gadsen and Leon to the sea from a wet wooded thicket in a Ochlocknee, Ochlockonee, Ocklockny, and to the underlying Floridan Aquifer, which is counties, Liberty and Leon, Liberty and farmer’s fi eld. Here, the landscape tilts slightly Ocklockony. The Georgia town of Moultrie, pumped out for Tallahassee’s drinking water, Wakulla, and Franklin and Wakulla. to the southeast, which forces water to the established on the banks of the river, was fi rst among other uses. While not obvious, the elevated road bed where it is frustrated. There, named Ocklockney. Of Georgia’s fourteen major two lakes still have a hydrological relationship In total, the Ochlockonee watershed drains the river collects more volume and is forced rivers, twelve have names of Indian origin and with the river. During the normal cycle of 2,416 square miles, of which 1,336 square miles north a few hundred feet until it fi nds a drainage the other two are based on French and Spanish. fl oods, twice a year Iamonia is fed from pipe where it sneaks under GA 112. It continues the river through a connection of sloughs southeast through the cotton and peanut farms and—with 4,325-acre Lake Jackson— of Worth County into Colquitt County and through an underground connection. past more farms until it grazes the western edge of Moultrie, town of 14,387 people. Native Americans called Lake Jackson Okaheepee, or “disappearing lake,” in Early settlers liked to build towns on high reference to its irregular habit of retreating places next to rivers and Moultrie was no into underlying sinkholes during droughts, exception, established on a ridge that defi nes a quality Lake Iamonia shares. the eastern boundary of the watershed. Thirty miles south, Thomasville, population 18,162, Further south, on the western outskirts of the was founded on top of this same ridge. 150,624-resident Florida capital, the river is backed up by Jackson Bluff Dam to create For the fi rst time, because of the change Lake Talquin, an 8,850-acre reservoir which in topography at Moultrie, the river turns was built in 1929 to produce hydroelectric southwest toward Thomasville, instead power, recreation, and waterfront real estate. of keeping its southeastern trend toward Quitman or Valdosta. The Ochlockonee Lake Talquin, like all impoundment lakes, will keep fl owing southwest until it meets traps the river’s sediments, preventing natural Telogia Creek in Florida, where it changes elements from nourishing downstream its mind back and curve toward the southeast ecosystems. However, wetlands—even Hooded Pitcher Plant

4 5 theIn Georgia, aquifer is the thinly upper confi Ochlockonee ned, water inwaters the Floridareceives and most parts of of its Georgia, volume Alabama, from runoff, and the formmove ofacross springs the emergeshilly and from rolling the topography ground, of Carolinaswhich distinguisheslie on top of porousit from limestone some of its which creatingthe Tifton creeks Upland and District,rivers that a subdistrict sometimes of the holdsneighbors an irregular that bodyare born of water from belowsprings ground disappearEast Gulf backCoastal into Plain the ground Section. and Because into of knownand asreceive the Floridan signifi cant Aquifer. ground At water places where the aquifer.slope, on The a map aquifer the rivercan feed and rivers,its tributaries andlook rivers like a cantree feed that theonly aquifer, has branches depending growing on regionalits left side, hydrological as almost conditions.all of the major Blackwater, Alluvial, Spring-run tributaries start at a high point west of the and Tidal Rivers Toriver the and east fl ow in thesoutheast Valdosta before Limesink being captured ecoregion,by the main the stream hills areof thelower Ochlockonee. and the rom start to fi nish, the Ochlockonee combines infl uence of underground waters is more the characteristics of four very different kinds pronounced,Tifton Upland with soils more were wet formed depressions, twenty-fi ve F of rivers: blackwater, alluvial, spring-run, and tidal. swamps,million years ponds, ago and during lakes. the More Miocene croplands Age, Blackwater rivers are named for their dark brown areand found are described here than as thewell-drained, Tallahassee brownish, Hills. and loamy, often with iron-rich layers. The water caused by tannic and humic acids. These uplandIn Florida, soils the support Ochlockonee mixed hardwoods drops down and streams originate in pine fl atwoods and acidic swamps pines,a series and of formerthe well-drained, marine terraces sandy as areas it and carry heavy loads of decaying plant materials, harborheads for longleaf sea level pine/xerophytic at the coast. At oak the species. sometimes in a ratio of one part organics to one part MuchCody Scarpof the (a watershed scarp is a has low been steep converted slope inorganics. This creates highly acidic waters (low toproduced agricultural by faulting land where or erosion, crops offrequently cotton, pH) and their own distinctive ecosystems. Blackwater peanuts,along beaches), soybeans, just and north corn of are Lake grown. Talquin, streams have frequent meanders, broad fl oodplains, the river descends to the Gulf Coastal and support low biological diversity, with low oxygen LowlandsSouth of Thomasville District, which and consistsextending of totwo levels due to their slower moving, warmer waters. Tallahassee, the landscape changes to form the The Sopchoppy is the largest blackwater stream in or fi fty-fi ve percent is in Georgia and 1,080 And fi nally, what have humans done to million-year-old Pleistocene and Holocene Tallahassee Hills/Valdosta Limesink District, the watershed. Alluvial streams are more typical of square miles or forty-fi ve percent is in Florida. the ecosystem to change these qualities? soils, formed during the dawn of man. also known as the Red Hills ecoregion. the piedmont. They have sandy bottoms, carry high For the naturalist trying to truly know a river, an In total, the basin holds approximately 1.5 sediment loads and a lower percentage of organics Rivers of Complexity This area has a conjoined name because it has t could be argued that rivers are the most understanding of hydrology is critical, but it also million acres of which the Georgia portion and thus have a higher pH, higher oxygen levels, and two somewhat different characters. In the west, complex ecosystem type on earth due to helps to know geography, geology, chemistry, is mainly cropland and the Florida portion contain greater biodiversity. Many of the tributaries I where the Ochlockonee fl ows, the Tallahassee all of the complex and constantly changing biology, botany, climatology, and human history. is forested. Luckily for the Ochlockonee of the Ochlockonee, especially in the Tifton Upland Hills portion has rolling, hilly topography that infl uences upon them. Where does the water River, much of the landscape it and its region, have alluvial characteristics, which produce a is more forested than the Valdosta Limesink come from? From the sky when it rains, from Like every river on Earth, the Ochlockonee—a tributaries fl ow through in Florida and parts rare biological community untypical in the East Gulf District, and contains soils composed of reddish the landscape in streams, or from underground river of great diversity and beauty—is the of Georgia are conservation lands that help Coastal Plain Section. Spring-fed rivers here are fed sandy loam and rich clays that help retain sources? The ground it fl ows over: is it steep unique expression of these qualities. maintain the natural qualities of the river. by the Floridan Aquifer. While not a major infl uence moisture, which fosters a tremendous diversity or fl at? Does the water fl ow fast or meander Natural communities occupy 1,080,000 acres, of Ochlockonee tributaries, three named springs of plant life. The fi re-dependent longleaf slowly? Is it deep or shallow? What are the The Landscape of the or 71 percent of the basin, and disturbed feed the river: Indian, White, and Crays Rise. Spring pine-wiregrass ecosystem is best expressed in organic and inorganic elements and compounds Ochlockonee communities cover 443,000 acres, or 29 waters are fi ltered by limestone so they have a neutral he river fl ows through a geologically this district. Few streams originating in the that exist in the watershed and make it into percent. Of this last group, shrub and brush pH and generally low oxygen levels. Tidal rivers are youthful region called the East Gulf coastal plain can be considered alluvial, but the stream? As they interact, what chemical T have the largest area, 265,000 acres, followed located near the coastline, are short in length, are Coastal Plain Section of the Coastal Plain the Ochlockonee has a substantial alluvial reactions do they produce? What microscopic by barren land, 101,000 acres, and grass and greatly infl uenced by the tides. The New River has Province. This province was once ocean bottom, fl oodplain and is unlike non-alluvial streams and macroscopic plants and animals live in agricultural land, approximately 76,000 acres. tidal characteristics where it meets the Ochlockonee. and today consists of marine deposits and soils in the area, as it picks up erosion products of and next to the river? What about seasonal that have fl owed down from the mountains sand,Hydrologically, silt and clay the in Ochlockonee the Tallahasssee Hills. weather patterns and temperature changes? and been deposited over the millennia.

6 7 contributions as they run across a karst Downstream, the river disappears into a dark (limestone) landscape that has more direct green tunnel of vegetation, in stark contrast The Ochlockonee Moccasinshell connections with the Floridan Aquifer. to the hard white light on the bridge. ussels are usually hard to identify in the an unusual and complex reproductive life cycle, The Ochlockonee’s variability is remarkable Exploring the banks of the river, you will fi nd M wild. Medionidus simpsponianus measures with fi ve life stages. The male moccasinshell because it depends on rainfall for its water black gum, tulip poplar, red maple, water oaks, less than 2.2 inches long, has a slightly elongated releases sperm into moderate current, where it volume. If you visit the same spot during and bay trees. In wetter areas, cypress dominate. shell, with a broadly curved ventral margin fi nds and enters female moccasinshells. There, different seasons, you will wonder if you are Titi, viburnum and holly impede your way, and and a posterior ridge that is heavily marked the sperm fertilizes the female’s eggs, which looking at the same river. Where earlier you poison ivy, muscadine, and trumpet creeper with irregular ridges. The outer shell is light develop in the female’s shell into larvae called could have jumped across a slow stream, vines drape the natural setting. Openings are brown to yellow-green and sculptured with glochidia. After maturing to a particular stage, now you fi nd a fast-moving torrent that has screened by the webs of golden silk spiders, and dark green rays, and the inner shell surface is they leave the shell into the stream to fi nd a left the banks and spread hundreds of feet behind it, you may hear the plops of nervous bluish white. Found only in the Ochlockonee specifi c host fi sh to parasitize. When they fi nd into surrounding bottomland forests. Floods frogs and river turtles leaving their exposed watershed in Grady and Thomas counties in their “correct” species, they attach to their gills occur when low pressure centers and cold perches. Above your head, perhaps too obscured Georgia, like most mussel species, not much or fi ns where they will feed and grow. After fronts pass through the area during winter to see, is an orchestra of birds fl itting through is know about its life history. Some mussels they metamorphosize into juvenile mussels, and early spring, and drought conditions the canopy. Small ponds hold white wiggling can live up to 200 years. It is a fi lter feeder that they release from the fi sh and settle to the river are more common in late spring and fall. mosquito larvae, the mature of which have consumes plankton and detritus from its aquatic bottom. There, they continue to grow until sexual found you. Welcome to the Garden of Eden! environment. If it is similar to its cousins, it has maturity. Only three live individuals have been Principal tributaries of the Ochlockonee are the Little Ochlockonee River, Tired Creek, If it were possible to canoe the entire length of Barnett’s Creek, Little River, Telogia Creek, the river, from its origin to the Gulf of Mexico, Crooked River, and Sopchoppy River. Each an intrepid visitor would be exposed to a brings its own character and contributions fascinating array of fl ora and fauna in a variety to the river, some being true blackwater of settings: river swamps, shallow streams, sandy streams and others alluvial in nature. Two are banks with fl oodplain hardwood forests, rolling tidally infl uenced. This diversity adds to the pinelands, an empoundment lake, then a deeper, complexity and mystery of the Ochlockonee. faster river with cypress, and fi nally a salt marsh.

The Ochlockonee: If it were possible to canoe the entire length of A Birth Place of Diversity the river, from its origin to the Gulf of Mexico, iven the deadfalls, multiple channels you would be exposed to a fascinating array of G with dead ends, and thick river swamps fl ora and fauna in a variety of settings: river of the upper Ochlockonee in Georgia, if you swamps, shallow streams, sandy banks with are an explorer who prefers a certain amount fl oodplain hardwood forests, rolling pinelands, of comfort in your travels, you should leave an empoundment lake, then a deeper, faster the canoe at home, drive to a bridge crossing, river with cypress, and fi nally a salt marsh. park your car, and climb down the banks to see the river. Don’t forget insect repellent. As the trip unfolded, you could discover natural worlds that produce more questions Here you will witness a shallow, tea-colored than answers. In the sandy shallows, your bare river that moves indifferently between feet might fi nd freshwater mussels that exist white sandy banks. Cypress knees thrust nowhere else in the world. Lines in the river up from the ground like a brown-fi ngered bottom lead to freshwater snails, which make giant grasping for something that got away. tracks as they consume river algae. Swimming

8 9 above them might be the bannerfi n and dusky Exploring the adjoining forests, you may shiners, or a spotted bullhead and Suwannee stumble upon the Florida merrybells, a rare bass—all rare species. Protruding above the species known only from the Ochlockonee and refl ective water might be the tiny pipelike Chipola rivers, or endangered botanical species nose of the massive alligator snapping turtle. such as the orange azalea, Ashe’s magnolia, Possibly above the water on a weathered bent golden aster, or wiregrass gentian. log, a motionless Suwannee cooter stretches his neck on alert for intruders while a water Sun fi lters through the Spanish moss draped moccasin drops from a low tree branch and from cypress and tupelo next to the river as you effortlessly swims away. A noise in the willows glide downstream. Near the coast, the Atlantic sturgeon may be coming into the river to spawn, sharing the waters with the endangered West Gopher Tortise Indian manatee. Woodstorks may be feeding in shallows. Nearby, you may fi nd rookeries, where heron, egret, and ibis build nesting colonies, or observe the singular nests of southern bald eagles, Mississippi kites, and ospreys. At the shore, your trip fi nished, you witness pipers, terns, gulls, and other birds looking for food. Rare, Threatened, Endangered Species of the Ochlockonee Some scientists have described the Southeast’s rivers and streams as an evolutionary laboratory. The Ochlockonee watershed, while a much younger landscape than the highlands, contains a great diversity of species and endemics, infl uenced by the diverse landscape through which it fl ows.

A number of plant and animal species in the Ochlockonee basin appear on Federal, Georgia, and Florida lists as threatened, endangered, or of special concern, including two fi sh, eleven growing next to the river might give away amphibians and reptiles, twelve birds, four a Florida black bear, or whitetailed deer, or mammals, four invertebrates, and at least forty- wild hog, using the river as a natural corridor. fi ve plant species. Approximately two-thirds Ducks would gather in quieter water, resting are dependent on the Ochlockonee basin’s from a long fl ight. Above in the trees, you freshwater, wetland, and saltwater communities. might hear pileated woodpeckers make a racket and see a swarm of migrating swallows More than half (242 species) of reptiles and fl ies in and fl ies out in the blink of an eye. amphibians native to North America live in the Southeast, with the Gulf Coastal Plain

10 Confederate Bridge, Thomasville , Georgia 11 Paradise Found Again through which the Ochlockonee fl ows being the which today holds the best remnants of the usually insects, by elaborate mechanical and By John M. Hall most signifi cant area of endemism of reptiles once widespread longleaf pine savanna. Pre- chemical adaptations, such as sticky leaves, and amphibians in the U.S. Of these, 170 Columbian, it stretched from the James River hollow tubular leaves, and traps. With fi fty n 1955, when I was fi ve years old, my father species are native to longleaf pine-wiregrass in southeastern Virginia to the Trinity River four total species, the Southeast contains I moved our family to what was once a small ecosystems that have been greatly reduced from in eastern Texas. This natural community was the world’s greatest diversity of carnivorous farm at the edge of town near the headwaters of the their original abundance and range through characterized by thinly distributed longleaf plants. These plants require particular soils and Ochlockonee River. The river was an easy walk across timbering, development, and fi re suppression, pines occurring in a sea of diverse grasses, wetlands habitats that are quickly disappearing a cow pasture. You never saw anyone at this part of which has signifi cantly reduced populations herbs, wildfl owers, and carnivorous plant due to many factors, including changes in the river. Here the river rose and fell through the and diversity of reptiles and amphibians. communities. The ground cover was one of water quality from fertilizer runoff, pond- year like a slow-moving tide. Every river-swamp the most diverse in the world, where seventy- building and wetlands draining, and hobbyists expedition produced new adventures. It was common Of special mention are the Ochlockonee’s fi ve species of vascular plants could be found who collect these rare species for unproven to fi nd a fox with kits, see a low-fl ying barred owl or threatened and endangered freshwater mussels: in a single one-square-meter quadrat and medicinal uses and fl oral arrangements. watch a giant pileated woodpecker tear apart an old the purple bankclimber, shiny-rayed pocketbook, 130 could be found in a 0.1-hectare plot. dead snag. Even before reaching the river I’d fi nd Gulf moccasinshell, oval pigtoe, Ochlockonee Another well-known species is the gopher pitcher plants to open or shiny black tadpoles by the moccasinshell, and Ochlockonee arc-mussel. Species that inhabit longleaf pine-wiregrass tortoise, a species whose populations have thousands locked in shallows that I just had to inspect. communities exhibit a high incidence of declined by eighty percent in the past one I sometimes took friends along to explore my secret Mussels have been declining in diversity and rarity and endemism, including 191 species hundred years, according to scientists. world at the Ochlockonee’s edge. Like Indiana Jones’s abundance due to pollution, sedimentation, of rare plants, uncommon today due to The “Gopher” as locals refer to them, is a lost tombs, at low water, the river swamp would reveal loss of host fi sh, invasions of non-native species destruction of the original ecosystem. Finding keystone species in longleaf pine ecosystem. giant cathedral rooms with white sand fl oors and high such as Asiatic clams, and changes in river fl ow refuge in the Red Hills community are forty More than 300 species of invertebrates and ceilings formed by the green leaf canopy. As the water due to dams and channelization. Almost ninety three species that are federally listed or of sixty-fi ve species of vertebrates use gophers’ level continued to recede, you could walk from narrows percent of the freshwater mussel fauna of North special concern, as well as one hundred underground burrows, which is a unique and bends into more enormous rooms waiting for America are found in the southeastern U.S., candidate species for federal listing. microhabitat created only by these tortoises discovery. The room’s massive ceiling seemed to be held of which forty-eight percent are considered as an evolutionary response to frequent fi res high by straight columns of tulip poplar and loblolly threatened, endangered, or possibly extinct. The federally listed red-cockaded woodpecker which used to occur in this ecosystem. pine. These great trees shot straight up more than is the best known animal that depends on sixty feet and were commonly more than forty inches The Red Hills Ecoregion longleaf pine forests for its survival. The Over millions of years, naturally occurring here the river leaves the agricultural in diameter. The highest part of the river’s ceiling was small bird requires live old-growth or mature fi res reduced competing hardwoods, creating lands of the upper Ochlockonee always moving with birds and climbing animals. We W second-growth pines for cavity excavation. As an ecosystem dominated by fi re-tolerant pines watershed, it fl ows into the Red Hills ecoregion, enjoyed visiting a place we called “the center of the the longleaf habitat has declined across the and a fi re-adapted ground cover. Historically, earth,” a wild refuge completely hidden by thick, almost Southeast, so has the red-cockaded woodpecker, ten to thirty percent of southeastern pinelands impenetrable walls of green poison ivy and cat claw and today many efforts are being made to burned each year, which reduced forest litter thorns. Year later, in college, I read the accounts of save the species. The Red Hills harbors the and invasion by woody species into the great naturalists like Bartram, Thoreau, and Burroughs largest population (approximately one hundred understory. Fire created the right conditions and felt a powerful and even spiritual connection to clans) of the red-cockaded woodpecker for pine seedlings and many specialized grasses them, recalling my small river swamp ramblings. These found on privately owned land in the U.S. and forbs, which need bare soil and an open were the beginnings of my quest for a life as a modern- canopy for germination and early growth. A fascinating group of plants which have day naturalist. adapted to the acidic soils and aquatics of the When fi res became controlled or prevented, region make their home in the Ochlockonee oak, hickory, and pine replaced longleaf pine on Excerpted from Between Two Rivers: Stories from the Red watershed. Carnivorous plants, like those the Coastal Plain, leading to declines in species Hills to the Gulf., Edited by Susan Cerulean, Janisse found at Doerun Pitcher Plant Bog Natural associated with the ecosystems. Today, less Ray, and Laura Newton., Heart of the Earth and Area, obtain their nutrients from animals, than three percent of old growth the longleaf Red Hills Writers Project, Tallahassee, FL, 2004. Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake

12 13 pine forest remains, a loss comparable with or the region and fished in its waters, foraged and exceeding that of many of the other unique hunted in its fields, and later farmed the rich soils. natural communities in North America. When the first Spanish explorers under Not only are fires suppressed today, but Hernando DeSoto reached the region in much of the former pinelands have been 1539, they found much of the land being converted to crop and commercial timber farmed by the Apalachee Indians, with a population estimated to be 25,000. The Spanish established thirteen missions between the Apalachicola River and St. Augustine, connected by the Royal Road. Mission San Luis de Apalachee, established west of present- day Tallahassee, served as the western capital. Many Indians converted, and the settlement had approximately 1,400 residents, many of whom were converted by the Franciscans.

In 1704, under threat of attack by the English and their Creek Indian allies, the Spaniards and Mushrooms Apalachees evacuated the missions, and the area was repopulated by Seminole and Creek Indians. Eventually, the fertile soil and abundant production. In the Red Hills region, most lakes and rivers attracted white pioneers who of the land is privately owned, and many of eventually forced out the Indians and converted these individuals and organizations appreciate the area to a thriving cotton production area the value of the rare ecosystem and practiced in the first half of the 1800s. In the 1820s, conservation measures to protect it. the towns of Tallahassee (an Apalachee word meaning “old fields” or “abandoned villages”) and The history of man and the Ochlockonee Thomasville were founded, each with its chief Watershed is one of exploitation of the region’s economy being agriculture and related trade. natural resources going back thousands of years. Tallahassee, which was created in 1824 to serve as Florida state capital, was linked to the coast Humans and the in 1837 when the sixteen-mile, mule-drawn Ochlockonee Tallahassee-St. Marks Railroad was built, the he history of humans and the first in Florida. By the late 1800s, forestry and T Ochlockonee Watershed is one of the naval stores industry flourished in Florida, exploitation of the region’s natural resources thanks to spur rail roads which accessed timber going back for thousands of years. reserves in the flatlands. Thomasville was linked to Savannah in 1861 by the Atlantic and Gulf Humans have lived next to the waters of the Railroad. Trade between the two towns, only Ochlockonee for at least 10,000 years. No twenty-eight miles apart, became important doubt attracted by the warm climate and easy as well, and the two areas in the twenty-first food sources, Native Americans first settled in century are developing toward each other. The Ochlockonee River near Sate Route 90 outside of Tallahassee, Florida.

14 15 During the Civil War, both areas supported decline of the native quail population, a game declared the Ochlockonee River an Outstanding protect our rivers. They help provide clean the Southern cause. Thomasville, which bird that requires open savanna to thrive. Florida Water, and where the Ochlockonee drinking water, control fl oods, and serve initially did not want succession, eventually eventually empties into Apalachee Bay, an as free waste management facilities as they supported the Confederacy and provided When quail populations went into decline, Aquatic Preserve. The bay supports a diversity recycle nutrients and sediments back into the 1,500 troops and supplies. As a rail terminus, wealthy landowners led by Col. Lewis of aquatic habitats, including salt marshes, environment. Rivers support biodiversity and Thomasville was an important shipping point Thompson, Henry Beadel, and Harry Whitney sea grass beds, oyster bars and reefs, and hard downstream ecosystems, which help comprise and briefl y the site of a temporary prisoner organized to fi nd a solution. They initiated bottom reefs. The Aquatic Preserve is the the bottom layer of the food pyramid on which of war camp. Near Tallahassee, a battle was a research project that brought Wisconsin largest in Florida encompassing 450,000 acres. we depend. Rivers serve as transportation fought at Natural Bridge that caused 200 biologist Herbert L. Stoddard to Thomasville. corridors, power generators, and many are casualties. The southerners prevailed, making He realized the importance of fi re to keep Today, the economy in both areas is much a source of spiritual renewal when used for Tallahassee the only uncaptured Confederate the forest healthy and promoted prescribed more diversifi ed than the plantation era, recreation and appreciated for their beauty. capital east of the Mississippi River. Union burning and selective harvest as management with education, government, agriculture, forces raided Confederate salt works near techniques for the hunting plantations. manufacturing, and tourism being large factors. The southern river is not a concrete canal. A the mouth of the Ochlockonee River. Tallahassee and Leon County has been one of southern river will not produce these benefi ts if Eventually, Stoddard’s ideas caught on and the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the it is altered by channelizing (straightening) its After the Civil War, the area fell into decline landowners who shared his appreciation for U.S., doubling its population in thirty years to course, cutting down the fl oodplain forests that like the rest of the South, and many of the the native longleaf pine ecosystem worked more than 240,000 people. This is expected are an integral part of it, pouring sediments and great cotton plantations were abandoned. to preserve it with an emphasis on managing to have a growth effect on Georgia counties wastes into it, introducing plants and animals Beginning in the 1870s, the pine timber property for quail hunting, turning Thomasville to the north where the Ochlockonee fl ows. that don’t belong in it, pumping out the water industry became more important and the area into the “Quail Hunting Capital of the South.” Currently, Worth, Colquitt, Thomas, and that feeds it from below, and damming the river began cutting some of its forested lands. Grady counties have roughly half Tallahassee’s and its tributaries. These threats, to varying Descendants of those families, many now population, with 130,000 residents. degrees, have occurred to the Ochlockonee. From the 1880s to 1910, Thomasville became living in Thomasville year round, still own the “Original Winter Resort of the South.” many of the seventy-one plantations found Why Humans Need Rivers Believing the pine-scented air offered health between Thomasville and Tallahassee, t is not a coincidence that when NASA benefi ts, Northerners came to Thomasville the largest concentration in America. I probes other planets looking for life, during winter and stayed at many luxurious they try to fi nd evidence of water. Scientists Recognizing the importance of plantations and hotels and cottages that were built to understand that water is essential to life. their fi re-maintained habitats to the culture accommodate the tourists. With the extension and ecosystem of the area, many properties of railroads further south into Florida, the Closer to home on Earth, especially in the evolved to become preserves, parks, or research seasonal crowds went with them, but many Southeast, we take our waters for granted. centers. Two internationally famous research northern industrialists had already purchased We seem to be surrounded by waters; and centers dedicated to education, conservation, property and plantations and built magnifi cent when we turn on the tap, out it fl ows. and research of nearby ecosystems make their mansions, and continued to use their property We are disconnected from the landscape homes in the area at former plantations: Tall for hunting, fi shing, and socializing. that gives us this vital element of life. Timbers Research Station and Joseph W. Jones Much of the Red Hills started to change as Ecological Research Center at Ichauway. A naturally fl owing southeastern river forests were cut and the wiregrass groundcover produces many benefi ts, most of which are Concerns over the landscape south of was ploughed for agriculture. Government not appropriately appreciated by humans Tallahassee led to the establishment of the St. programs promoted fi re suppression, which who depends on these ecosystems to live. Marks Refuge in 1931 and the Apalachicola started to convert the landscape from an National Forest in 1936, both of which serve If looked at from a purely selfi sh point of open grassland to a woody, brush-choked Fishing on Lake Talquin to keep the Ochlockonee a better protected view—even ignoring all other living beings groundcover. One deleterious effect was the stream. Eventually, the Florida State Legislature on the planet—we should still cherish and

16 17 Most people would agree that these benefi ts due to conversion to farmland, industrial In its watershed, the Ochlockonee River sediments, and properly treating nutrient laden are important and would support river parks, and urban areas. While it is only one is mainly harmed by four destructive runoff before reaching major streams. Most protections, as long as the protections didn’t watershed in the South, the Ochlockonee infl uences: point source pollution, non- of the main tributaries of the Ochlockonee restrict their behavior on “their” stream. Many is an important piece of this landscape. point source pollution, riparian destruction, in Georgia are on the Clean Water Act’s people don’t realize that wherever they live, and stream fl ow alteration due to dams. 303(d) list of impaired waters, meaning the A typical citizen appreciates his nearby river rivers do not meet their designative uses. for aesthetic reasons and doesn’t pay it much Point source pollution comes from a single attention except when fi shing in or boating source, such as a discharge pipe from a factory. The third major water quality issue is riparian on its waters, or when they are impacted The upper watershed has at least seven destruction. Wetlands provide a vital function by its fl oods. Municipalities, industries, municipal wastewater facilities and three to the health of the river ecosystem, but and farms in the Ochlockonee’s watershed industrial inputs that have permits to put they rarely produce crops that can be sold in usually get their water from underground waste water into the Ochlockonee. While it the marketplace. Therefore, in an agrarian sources such as the Floridan Aquifer, so the is easier to control pollution at a pipe, that area, landowners destroy natural wetlands river’s contribution to the water supply is doesn’t mean that it always is controlled. Grady to create more land suitable for growing not obvious and therefore not appreciated. County fi rst used a spray fi eld technology to marketable timber and crops. This makes handle municipal wastes, but the soils were non-point source pollution problems doubly But people start to grow concerned when they too hard to absorb the waste water and it worse, because it brings to the streams more smell strange odors coming from the river, or are fl owed off into streams. Grady County has sediments from land disturbance and more warned not to eat the fi sh they catch, or swim in stopped this approach to their wastes, and pesticides and fertilizers, while at the same the river like they did as children, or in the case now appears to be dumping them directly into time reduces the amount of natural buffers of Moultrie attorney Billy Fallin notice their the river. With grant funds, Grady County to stop them from entering streams. dog emerging from the river covered in grease. plans to build a new wastewater treatment Golden Silk Spider center that will help fi x the problem. Fourth is the problem of capturing or altering Current Threats the natural course of the river. Affecting the they are affecting some unnamed tributary eorgia delivers to Florida a sick, Non-point source pollution is considered the Ochlockonee is a wide range of dams, from that eventually fi nds a named creek or river. G malfunctioning river. Where the nation’s largest water quality issue. In general, the huge concrete barrier at Jackson Bluff It is estimated that eighty percent of these Ochlockonee fl ows into Florida, the water this is when chemicals, nutrients, metals, to the innumerable small earthen levies that small creeks and rivulets, small enough for a quality is so poor—twenty-eight times the oils, fecal matter—and whatever else falls create farm ponds. These impoundments child to straddle, make up the nation’s stream normal amount of nitrates and thirty to fi fty on the ground—is washed into the network cause many problems for rivers, including network. While efforts have gone forward to percent chlorinated wastewater during base fl ow of small streams that make up a watershed destruction of the original stream, changes protect the larger rivers, not much attention conditions—that the Florida state government from innumerable sources: roads, farm in water temperature and natural hydrologic has been given to headwater streams, which has prepared legal documents to sue upstream fi elds, parking lots, roof tops, you name it. cycles, reduction of the volume of water in greatly infl uence the quality of the main river. users. Florida has been complaining about the rivers and thus groundwater, and a reduction pollution for twenty-fi ve years and all they Approximately sixty percent of the Ochlockonee of native species that are intolerant to these An important natural process that plays a have it has left to do is fi le the paperwork. watershed in Georgia is under intensive changes. When water volume is less in a river, leading role in producing these benefi ts are The contamination is so bad that further agricultural cultivation. Every time it rains the pollutants that enter a stream cause greater the periodic fl oods into the surrounding downstream where the Ochlockonee backs up or a fi eld is watered, tremendous amounts of harm. Despite these potential effects on the wetlands of the Ochlockonee River. For to form Lake Talquin, fi sh kills and algal blooms fertilizers, animal wastes, pesticides, and other river, currently in the planning stages in Grady the system to “work,” it especially needs its are common. It’s so bad that the city of Cairo, elements are carried off these fi elds into the County is a 1,200-acre reservoir on Tired riparian buffers or fl oodplain forests and Georgia has been fi ned $1,000 a month for the Ochlockonee. Sediment also fl ows into the Creek, reportedly costing $10 million and wetlands, which act as natural lungs for the past few years for allowing untreated sewage river, which alters water quality. Fixing this being created for recreational uses (swimming, river system. Scientists report that the South into Tired Creek, a tributary of the river. It’s so problem takes many approaches, including boating, and fi shing), as well as drinking water. has the largest remaining areas of riparian bad that research students who study the river changing waste disposal habits, preserving habitats in the U.S. and that it is in decline are advised not to touch it with their bare skin. riparian zones, erecting siltation barriers to catch

18 19 Lake Talquin State Park Bald Point State Park atural Areas, 1022 Desoto Park Dr., Tallahassee, FL (850) 922-6007 Alligator Point, FL (850) 349-9146 N Many Tallahassee fi shermen ply the waters of Lake Talquin for sport fi sh. The lake offers This new state park is located on the eastern tip of the St. James Peninsula in Franklin outstanding recreational opportunities for largemouth bass, shellcracker and speckled perch County, where the Ochlockonee Bay meets the Apalachee Bay. Visitors experience outdoor sport fi shing, nature walks, picnicking and boating. Boaters should take notice because the activities on land as well as in the water at this coastal park. Pristine coastal marshes, maritime lake is inundated with logs and stumps. Nature trails, picnic areas, and restrooms abound. The hammocks, mesic fl atwoods, and oak thickets provide many birding, hiking, and wildlife park is ten miles west of Tallahassee on SR 20 on Jack Vause Landing Road. viewing opportunities. Monarch butterfl ies pause at Bald Point before beginning their yearly Parks,Historic Sites autumn trek across the Gulf of Mexico. Bald Point’s white sand beaches are the setting for Ft. Braden Tract Doerun Pitcher Plant Bog Natural Area Pebble Hill Plantation picnicking, sunbathing, fi shing, windsurfi ng, canoeing, kayaking, and wildlife observation. A twelve-mile equestrian trail and nine-mile hiking trail offers an excellent way to experience Seasonal wildfl ower blooms are abundant throughout the park. In season, bald eagles, osprey, Hwy 133, Doerun, GA Thomasville, GA (912) 226-2344 a rare beech-magnolia hardwood forest. The trailhead and parking area is located on SR 20 and migrating falcons are very common sights. Picnic shelters and restroom facilities are 650 acres containing excellent populations of pitcher plant species, hiking trails, educational The public can tour the 3,000-acre grounds and eighteen-bedroom, twenty-one-bathroom (Blountstown Highway) approximately 9.2 miles west of SR 263. available at Sunrise Beach Access. A newly constructed observation boardwalk overlooks displays. house of this 1820s-era plantation, located fi ve miles south of Thomasville on US 319. Bear Creek Educational Forest and Arboretum pristine marshes which are full of wildlife. Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway Thomasville Rose Garden (850) 627-9064 Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park Route 2, Newton, GA (229) 734-4706 Thomasville, GA The forest consists of more than 500 acres of rolling north Florida hardwoods and pines, This important research, conservation, and education center is based on a former 18,000-acre Located near Cherokee Lake at the corner of Smith Avenue and Covington Drive, the city 550 Wakulla Park Drive, Wakulla Springs, FL featuring a steep ravine, spring-fed streams, pond, and complex mix of native trees, shrubs, plantation and has fi fteen miles of Ichawaynochaway Creek fl owing through it and thirteen rose garden provides a setting to enjoy more than 500 individual rose bushes and hundreds of (850) 224-5950 and wildfl owers. Head west on I-10 to 267 South, follow 267 South for approximately 3.5 At approximately three acres, Wakulla Springs is one of the world’s largest and deepest miles of the Flint River making up its eastern boundary. The Center’s stated mission is “to plants species native to the area. miles until you see the sign for Bear Creek on your left. freshwater springs. Visitors may observe the natural serene beauty of the Wakulla Spring and understand, to demonstrate, and to promote excellence in natural resource management and Birdsong Nature Center river from boat tours offered daily. Two types of boat tours are available. From glass bottom conservation on the landscape of the southeastern coastal plain of the United States.” To Lake Jackson Mounds Archeological State Park boats, fi sh and fossilized mastodon bones can be seen in the spring depths. The pristine river promote excellence in natural resource management and conservation, the Center develops 2106 Meridian Road, Thomasville, GA (229) 377-4408 Tallahassee, FL (850) 385-7071 Located 15 miles south of Thomasville, 565 acres of lush fi elds, forests, and swamp provide and sanctuary provide a natural habitat for an abundance of wildlife. The three-mile riverboat and conducts education and outreach programs for undergraduate and graduate students, The park features two ceremonial Indian mounds from prehistoric times. There is a nature a pristine haven for birds and other native wildlife. There are ten miles of trails, Butterfl y tour offers a chance to observe alligators, birds, turtles and occasionally white-tailed deer and interns, land owners and managers. Much of the ground cover harbors some of the most trail and picnicking areas. The park is located two miles northwest of Tallahassee on US 27. Garden, Bluebird Trail, and original Bird Window. Open to the public. wild turkey. Guest rooms are available for rent. The park is located roughly twelve miles south species-rich habitats in North America, with more than 1,100 vascular plant species and over Alfred B. McClay Gardens State Park of Tallahassee off of SR 61. 280 vertebrate species. Tall Timbers Research Station Tallahassee, FL (850) 487-4556 St Marks, FL. (850) 925-6121. Lapham-Patterson House State Historic Site 13093 Henry Beadel Drive, Tallahassee, FL The park features azaleas, camellias, and rare native species. Other features include a House 65,000 acres of salt marsh, tidal fl ats, hardwood swamps, and pinelands run along the Apalachee 626 North Dawson Street, Thomasville, GA 31792 (850) 893-4153 museum, picnicking, fi shing swimming, and boating on Lake Hall. (912) 225-4004 The mission of Tall Timbers Research Station is to foster exemplary land stewardship through and Ochlockonee bays. Dikes built to produce impoundments to feed migratory birds help research, conservation and education. Their primary research focus is the ecology of fi re and Ochlockonee River State Park attract many of the 272 species of birds that have been identifi ed here, including waterfowl, A Chicago shoe merchant who suffered lung damage during the Great Chicago Fire, C.W. natural resource management including bobwhite quail and other wildlife in the southeastern wading birds, shore birds, marsh species, raptors, and nesting bald eagles. Alligators, deer, and Lapham, moved to Thomasville to improve his health based on the supposed therapeutic effects Sopchoppy, FL (850) 962-2771 coastal plain. Tall Timbers’ conservation efforts are dedicated to helping protect the distinctive The 392-acre park consists of scenic pine fl atwoods and marsh, where Ochlockonee is joined by Florida black bear inhabit the refuge. There is a visitor center, observation tower, extensive of pine-scented air and a milder climate. He built this extraordinary house in 1884-85 in Queen Red Hills landscape of south Georgia and north Florida, and its traditional land uses. Their the Dead River. The park offers a variety of activities, including nature hiking, camping, boating, hiking trails, fi shing, hunting and crabbing in season. Historic features include the St. Marks Anne-style, which is famous for not having any right angles in the design. None of its rooms are education program transfers research and conservation information for resource management. canoeing, picnicking, and wildlife watching. Swimming is available on a small protected beach Lighthouse, built in 1831 of stones from the old fort at San Marcos de Apalachee. Located square and all nineteen have exterior doors because of the owner’s fear of fi re. The asymmetrical In addition to the 4,000-acre grounds of the research station, Tall Timbers has research access on the Dead River. A boat ramp provides access to excellent fi shing, where fresh and saltwater three miles south of US Highway 98 on County Road 59. angles and corners were believed to aid air circulation and be better for health. to two exceptional properties: the Wade Tract Preserve and Pebble Hill Plantation. The Wade species may be caught including largemouth bass, catfi sh, speckled perch, redfi sh, and speckled Apalachicola National Forest Old Confederate Bridge and Confederate Prisoner Tract Preserve in Thomas County, Georgia is a 200-acre conservation easement that provides trout. Rare plants such as grass pine (Calopogon family), ladies tresses (Spranthes eatonii), and Approximately 557,000 acres make up this national forest, the largest in Florida, consisting of War Camp a snapshot of a natural ecosystem as it existed 300 years ago. Pebble Hill Plantation was yellow-fringed orchids (Plantathera ciliaris) can be found, along with red-cockaded woodpeckers, of longleaf and slash pine, hardwood forests, swamps, springs, sinkholes, four rivers, and Thomasville, GA originally an antebellum cotton plantation and later a southern-style shooting plantation, now scrub jays, gopher tortoises, fox squirrels, and white squirrels. a multitude of streams. The forest, with a western boundary at the Apalachicola River, is Approximately fi ve miles north of Thomasville, looking directly to the east where US 19/GA owned and privately operated by the Pebble Hill Foundation. Ochlockonee River (Upper) Canoe Trail divided by the Ochlockonee River into two administrative districts, with the Apalachicola 300 crosses the river, is Old Confederate Bridge, a major river landmark for many locals. Lake Iamonia Boat Ramp The Upper Canoe Trail is twenty-six miles long, beginning near the Georgia state line at SR District to the west and the Wakulla District to the east. Between 1880 and 1920, logging On Wolf Street on the western edge of Thomasville are a historical marker and the remains Travel north of Tallahassee on US 319 for fi fteen miles then go left on C12 for 2.2 miles. 12 and winding south to SR 10 at Lake Talquin. This is a winding trip around cypress trees, and turpentining by timber companies exhausted the area and the lands were purchased by of a seven-acre Confederate prison, where 5,000 Union soldiers were temporarily held to Go left on Lake Iamonia Road for 1.8 miles to ramp. There is a single-lane ramp with willows, and sand bars. If attempted at low water, this section of the offi cially designated the federal government. The national forest was established in 1936. There are numerous avoid Sherman’s armies on their famous “March to the Sea” to Savannah. Remnants of the unimproved parking lot capable of accommodating twenty-fi ve vehicles. Florida statewide system of greenways and trails will require the canoeist to navigate deadfalls recreational opportunities including hiking, wilderness canoeing, and bird watching. trenches are found in the park. Survivors of the camp (500 died of typhoid and smallpox) were and portage in the narrow, blocked parts of the river, especially in the upper section above SR Sportsmen hunt deer and turkey in different seasons, between October and the end of marched sixty miles north to Albany then boarded a train, which arrived at Andersonville Lake Talquin State Forest and Parks 157. Water quality coming from Georgia is very poor and should not be consumed. March and fi sh throughout the year. Most recreation occurs around the two rivers at boat Prison on Christmas Eve. Midway, FL (850) 576-8233 landings and campgrounds. There are several developed recreation areas with picnic areas, Lake Talquin, a man-made lake, was formed in 1927 when the Jackson Bluff Dam was Ochlockonee River (Lower) Canoe Trail Greenwood Plantation fi re pits, water, and restrooms and a dozen developed campgrounds. Contact the ranger constructed on the Ochlockonee River to produce hydroelectric power. It is surrounded by Offi cially designated as part of Florida’s statewide system of greenways and trails, this sixty- Thomasville, GA offi ce for more information on facilities, hunting seasons, and directions to campgrounds. state forest in ten main tracts totaling 16,896 acres. Three wildlife management areas allow fi ve-mile trip begins below Lake Talquin at the Jackson Bluff Dam and ends at Ochlockonee This 5,700-acre plantation, one of the most ecologically signifi cant, privately-held properties Apalachicola Ranger District Offi ce, Bristol, (850) 643-2282. Wakulla Ranger District hunting and camping, and two other parks have hiking and horseback riding trails. State Park near Sopchoppy. The river is more scenic, easier to navigate, and cleaner on the in the Southeastern U.S., holds an unspoiled remnant of the fi re-dependent longleaf pine- Offi ce, Crawfordville, FL, (850) 926-3561. Lower Trail. Overnight camping is required to complete the journey, but campsites are wire grass ecosystem that once was found on ninety million acres across the Southeast. Lake Talquin Wildlife Management Areas numerous. Tate’s Hell State Forest Today, managed by The Nature Conservancy, it contains a 1,000-acre tract known as Big Ochlockonee River Wildlife Management Area is located approximately fi ve miles west of Woods that has trees ranging in age from 200 to 500 years old, and an extremely diverse 290 Airport Road, Carrabelle, FL (850) 697-3734 Tallahassee on US 90. This tract consists of 2,790 acres on the eastern bank of the river. Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory Approximately 185,000 acres of state forest hold twleve major community types and many groundcover. Many techniques of prescribed burning and sustainable forestry were developed Joe Budd Wildlife Management Area is located on the north shore of the lake and Talquin Panacea, FL species types. Recreation activities include thirty-fi ve miles of canoeing, boating, and fi shing here by pioneering foresters Ed and Roy Komarek, Herbert Stoddard, and Leon Neel. The Wildlife Mangement Area is on the southern shoreline north of SR 20. Founded by renowned environmental writer and activist Jack Rudloe, this marine institute rivers and streams, primitive camping, and hunting activities. The forest is located in Franklin plantation house also has seen much history; Jackie Kennedy came to Greenwood to rest after collects specimens for scientifi c research and also serves as an educational facility open to County between the Apalachicola and Ochlockonee Rivers, and is accessed from US 98, CR the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The property has river frontage on the Ochlockonee. the public. 67, or SR 65.

20 21 Rare, Threatened, and Endangered ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS ANIMALS SPECIES STATUS/RANK Federal FL State FL State GA State GA State Scientifi c name Common name Global Rank Status Rank Status Status Rank Species in the Ochlockonee Watershed AMPHIBIANS Ambystoma cingulatum Flatwoods Salamander T G2G3 S2S3 LS T S2 Ambystoma tigrinum Tiger Salamander None G5 S3 N N/A S3S4 Amphiuma pholeter One-toed Amphiuma None G3 S3 N R S1 Federal Status Key (From: http://species.fws.gov/) FNAI GLOBAL RANK DEFINITIONS (From: www.fnai.org) (CONTINUED) Desmognathus apalachicolae Apalachicola Dusky Salamander None G3G4 S3 N N/A S3 E: Endangered GNR****: This code appears in the chart for Sphodros abboti, however, Haideotriton wallacei Georgia blind salamander None G2 N/A N/A T S1 T: Threatened there is no corresponding code in the key. Hemidactylium scutatum Four-toed Salamander None G5 S2S3 N N/A S3 SAT, T(S/A): Similarity of Appearance to a Threatened Taxon G?: Not yet ranked (temporary) Notophthalmus perstriatus Striped Newt None G2G3 S2S3 N R S2 None: No Federal Status FLORIDA STATE RANK KEY (From: www.fnai.org) Rana capito Gopher Frog None G3 S3 LS N/A S3 Georgia State Status Key S1: Critically imperiled in Florida because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer AMPHIPODS (From: http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/specialconcernplants.asp, and/or From: http:// occurrences or less than 1000 individuals) or because of extreme Crangonyx grandimanus Florida Cave Amphipod None G3G4 S2 N N/A N/A georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/specialconcernanimals.asp/, Georgia Department of Natural vulnerability to extinction due to some natural or man-made factor. Crangonyx hobbsi Hobbs’ Cave Amphipod None G5 S2S3 N N/A N/A Resources web sites) S2: Imperiled in Florida because of rarity (6 to 20 occurrences or less than 3000 individuals) BIRDS The following abbreviations are used to indicate the status of state-protected plants and animals or or because of vulnerability to extinction due to some natural or man-made factor. Accipiter cooperii Cooper’s Hawk None G5 S3 N N/A N/A those proposed for state protection in Georgia. S3: Either very rare and local throughout its range (21-100 occurrences or less than 10,000 Aimophila aestivalis Bachman’s Sparrow None G3 S3 N R N/A E: Listed as endangered. A species which is in danger of extinction throughout all or part of its range. individuals) or found locally in a restricted range or vulnerable to extinction from other factors. Ajaia ajaja Roseate Spoonbill None G5 S2 LS N/A N/A T: Listed as threatened. A species which is likely to become an endangered S4: Apparently secure in Florida (may be rare in parts of range) Ammodramus maritimus peninsulae Scott’s Seaside Sparrow None G4T2 S3 LS N/A N/A species in the foreseeable future throughout all or parts of its range. S5: Demonstrably secure in Florida Aramus guarauna Limpkin None G5 S3 LS N/A S1S2 R: Listed as rare. A species which may not be endangered or threatened SH: Of historical occurrence throughout its range, may be rediscovered (e.g., ivory-billed woodpecker) Ardea alba Great Egret None G5 S4 N N/A N/A but which should be protected because of its scarcity. SU***: This code appears in the chart for Lasiurus cinereus, however, Charadrius alexandrinus Snowy Plover None G4 S1 LT N/A N/A U: Listed as unusual (and thus deserving of special consideration). Plants there is no corresponding code in the key. Charadrius melodus Piping Plover T G3 S2 LT T S1 subject to commercial exploitation would have this status. N/A: Not listed in Florida Cistothorus palustris marianae Marian’s Marsh Wren None G5T3 S3 LS N/A N/A N/A: Not listed in GA FLORIDA STATE LEGAL STATUS (From: www.fnai.org) Egretta caerulea Little Blue Heron None G5 S4 LS N/A S3? Georgia State Rank Key Provided by FNAI for information only. Egretta rufescens Reddish Egret None G4 S2 LS N/A N/A (From: http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/specialconcernplants.asp, and/or http:// For offi cial defi nitions and lists of protected species, consult the relevant federal agency. georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/specialconcernanimals.asp - Georgia Department of Natural Animals: Defi nitions derived from “Florida’s Endangered Species and Species of Special Concern, Egretta thula Snowy Egret None G5 S3 LS N/A N/A Resources web sites) Offi cial Lists” published by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, 1 August 1997, and Egretta tricolor Tricolored Heron None G5 S4 LS N/A N/A S1: Critically imperiled in state because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences). subsequent updates. Elanoides forfi catus Swallow-tailed Kite None G5 S2 N R S2 S2: Imperiled in state because of rarity (6 to 20 occurrences). LE: Endangered: species, subspecies, or isolated population so few or depleted in Elanus leucurus White-tailed Kite None G5 S1 N N/A N/A S3: Rare or uncommon in state (on the order of 21 to 100 occurrences). number or so restricted in range that it is in imminent danger of extinction. Eudocimus albus White Ibis None G5 S4 LS N/A N/A S4: Apparently secure in state (of no immediate conservation concern). LT: Threatened: species, subspecies, or isolated population facing Falco columbarius Merlin None G5 S2 N N/A N/A SX: Apparently extirpated from state. GXC is known only in cultivation/captivity. a very high risk of extinction in the future. Falco peregrinus Peregrine Falcon None G4 S2 LE E S1 SH: Of historical occurrence in the state, perhaps not verifi ed in the LS: Species of Special Concern is a species, subspecies, or isolated population Falco sparverius paulus Southeastern American Kestrel None G5T4 S3 LT N/A S3 past 20 years, but suspected to be still extant. which is facing a moderate risk of extinction in the future. Grus canadensis pratensis Florida Sandhill Crane None G5T2T3 S2S3 LT N/A S1 ?: Denotes questionable rank; best guess given whenever possible (e.g. S3?). N: Not currently listed, nor currently being considered for listing. Haematopus palliatus American Oystercatcher None G5 S2 LS R S2 SP:** This code appears in the chart for Glebula rotundata, however, N/A: No listing found Haliaeetus leucocephalus Bald Eagle T G4 S3 LT E S2 there is no corresponding code in the key. Plants: Defi nitions derived from Sections 581.011 and 581.185(2), Florida Statutes, and the Helmitheros vermivorus Worm-eating Warbler None G5 S1 N N/A N/A N/A: Not listed in GA Preservation of Native Flora of Florida Act, 5B-40.001. FNAI does not track all state-regulated plant Lxobrychus exilis Least Bittern None G5 S4 N N/A N/A FNAI GLOBAL RANK DEFINITIONS (From: www.fnai.org) species; for a complete list of state-regulated plant species, call Florida Division of Plant Industry, Laterallus jamaicensis Black Rail None G4 S2 N N/A S2? G1: Critically imperiled globally because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences 352-372-3505 or see: http://doacs.state.fl .us/~pi/5b-40.htm#.0055. Mycteria americana Wood Stork E G4 S2 LE E S2 or less than 1000 individuals) or because of extreme vulnerability LE: Endangered: species of plants native to Florida that are in imminent danger of Nyctanassa violacea Yellow-crowned Night-heron None G5 S3 N N/A S3S4 to extinction due to some natural or man-made factor. extinction within the state, the survival of which is unlikely if the causes of a Nycticorax nycticorax Black-crowned Night-heron None G5 S3 N N/A S3S4 G2: Imperiled globally because of rarity (6 to 20 occurrences or less than 3000 individuals) decline in the number of plants continue; includes all species determined to be Pandion haliaetus Osprey None G5 S3S4 LS* N/A N/A or because of vulnerability to extinction due to some natural or man-made factor. endangered or threatened pursuant to the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Pelecanus occidentalis Brown Pelican None G4 S3 LS N/A N/A G3: Either very rare and local throughout its range (21-100 occurrences or less than 10,000 LT: Threatened: species native to the state that are in rapid decline in the number of plants within Picoides borealis Red-cockaded Woodpecker E G3 S2 LS E S2 individuals) or found locally in a restricted range or vulnerable to extinction from other factors. the state, but which have not so decreased in number as to cause them to be Endangered. Picoides villosus Hairy Woodpecker None G5 S3 N N/A N/A G4: Apparently secure globally (may be rare in parts of range) N: Not currently listed, nor currently being considered for listing. Plegadis falcinellus Glossy Ibis None G5 S3 N N/A S2S3 G5: Demonstrably secure globally N/A: No listing found Rallus longirostris scottii Florida Clapper Rail None G5T3? S3? N N/A N/A GH: Of historical occurrence throughout its range, may be rediscovered (e.g., ivory-billed woodpecker) SPECIAL ANIMAL LISTINGS - STATE AND FEDERAL STATUS (From: www.fnai.org) Recurvirostra americana American Avocet None G5 S2 N N/A N/A G#?: Tentative rank (e.g., G2?) Pandion haliaetus (osprey): State listed as LS (Species of Special Concern) in Monroe County Rynchops niger Black Skimmer None G5 S3 LS N/A S1 G#G#: Range of rank; insuffi cient data to assign specifi c global rank (e.g., G2G3) only; not listed in rest of state. *Monroe County is not part of the Ochlockonee River watershed. Seiurus motacilla Louisiana Waterthrush None G5 S2 N N/A N/A G#T#: Rank of a taxonomic subgroup such as a subspecies or variety; the G portion Ursus americanus fl oridanus (Florida black bear): State listed as LT but not Sitta carolinensis White-breasted Nuthatch None G5 S2 N N/A N/A of the rank refers to the entire species and the T portion refers to the specifi c applicable in Baker and Columbia counties or the Apalachicola National Forest. Sterna antillarum Least Tern E G4 S3 LT R S3 subgroup; numbers have same defi nition as above (e.g., G3T1) Sterna caspia Caspian Tern None G5 S2 N N/A N/A G#Q: Rank of questionable species - ranked as species but questionable whether it is Sterna maxima Royal Tern None G5 S3 N N/A N/A species or subspecies; numbers have same defi nition as above (e.g., G2Q) Sterna sandvicensis Sandwich Tern None G5 S2 N N/A N/A G#T#Q: Same as above, but validity as subspecies or variety is questioned.

22 23 SPECIES STATUS/RANK SPECIES STATUS/RANK Federal FL State FL State GA State GA State Federal FL State FL State GA State GA State Scientifi c name Common name Global Rank Scientifi c name Common name Global Rank Status Rank Status Status Rank Status Rank Status Status Rank BIVALVES Eumeces anthracinus Coal Skink None G5 S3 N N/A S2 Alasmidonta undulata Triangle Floater None G4 S1 N N/A S1S2 Gopherus polyphemus Gopher Tortoise None G3 S3 LS T S2 Alasmidonta wrightiana Ochlockonee Arc-mussel None GH SH N N/A SX Graptemys barbouri Barbour’s Map Turtle None G2 S2 LS T S2 Amblema neislerii Fat Three-ridge E G1 S1 N E SH Heterodon simus Southern Hognose Snake None G2 S2 N N/A S2 Anodonta heardi Apalachicola Floater None G1 S1 N N/A S1 Lampropeltis calligaster Mole Snake None G5 S2S3 N N/A N/A Anodontoides radiatus Rayed Creekshell None G3 SH N N/A S2 Lampropeltis getula pop. 1 Apalachicola Kingsnake None G5T2Q S2 N N/A N/A Elliptoideus sloatianus Purple Bankclimber T G2 S1S2 N T S2 Lepidochelys kempii Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle E G1 S1 LE E S1 Glebula rotundata Round Pearlshell None G4G5 S3 N N/A SP** Macrochelys temminckii Alligator Snapping Turtle None G3G4 S3 LS T S3 Lampsilis subangulata Shiny-rayed Pocketbook E G2 S1S2 N E S2 Nerodia clarkii clarkii Gulf Salt Marsh Snake None G4T3 S3? N N/A N/A Medionidus penicillatus Gulf Moccasinshell E G1 S1 N E S2 Pituophis melanoleucus mugitus Florida Pine Snake None G4T3? S3 LS N/A S3 Medionidus simpsonianus Ochlockonee Moccasinshell E G1 S1 N E SX Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis Suwannee Cooter None G5T3 S3 LS N/A S1 Megalonaias nervosa Washboard None G5 S3 N N/A N/A SPIDERS Pleurobema pyriforme Oval Pigtoe E G2 S1S2 N E S2 Sphodros abboti Blue Purse-web Spider None GNR**** S4 N N/A N/A Utterbackia peggyae Florida Floater None G3 S3 N N/A S2 DECAPODS Cambarus pyronotus Fire-back Crayfi sh None G2 S2 N N/A N/A Procambarus horsti Big Blue Spring Cave Crayfi sh None G2G3 S1 N N/A N/A Procambarus orcinus Woodville Karst Cave Crayfi sh None G3G4 S1 N N/A N/A Procambarus youngi Florida Longbeak Crayfi sh None G2 S2 N N/A N/A DRAGONFLIES & DAMSELFLIES Cordulegaster sayi Say’s Spiketail None G2 S1S2 N N/A S2 FISH Acantharchus pomotis Mud Sunfi sh None G5 S3 N N/A S3 Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi Gulf Sturgeon T G3T2 S2 LS N/A SH Agonostomus monticola Mountain Mullet None G5 S3 N N/A N/A Ameiurus brunneus Snail Bullhead None G4 S3 N N/A N/A Ameiurus serracanthus Spotted Bullhead None G3 S3 N R S2 Cyprinella callitaenia Bluestripe Shiner None G2G3 S2 N T S2 Cyprinella leedsi Bannerfi n Shiner None G4 S3 N N/A S3S4 Etheostoma parvipinne Goldstripe Darter None G4G5 S2 N R S2 Luxilus zonistius Bandfi n Shiner None G4 S1S2 N N/A N/A Micropterus cataractae Shoal Bass None G3 S1 LS N/A S3 Micropterus notius Suwannee Bass None G3 S3 LS R S1 Moxostoma sp. 1 Apalachicola Redhorse None G3 S2 N N/A S? Notropis cummingsae Dusky Shiner None G5 S4 N N/A N/A MAMMALS Corynorhinus rafi nesquii Rafi nesque’s Big-eared Bat None G3G4 S2 N R S? Lasiurus cinereus Hoary Bat None G5 SU*** N N/A N/A Mustela frenata olivacea Southeastern Weasel None G5T4 S3? N N/A N/A Mustela vison halilimnetes Gulf Salt Marsh Mink None G5T3 S3 N N/A N/A Myotis austroriparius Southeastern Bat None G3G4 S3 N N/A S3 Myotis grisescens Gray Bat E G3 S1 LE E S1 Neofi ber alleni Round-tailed Muskrat None G3 S3 N T S3 Podomys fl oridanus Florida Mouse None G3 S3 LS N/A N/A Sciurus niger shermani Sherman’s Fox Squirrel None G5T3 S3 LS N/A S? Trichechus manatus Manatee E G2 S2 LE E S1S2 Ursus americanus fl oridanus Florida Black Bear None G5T2T3 S2 LT N/A S2 MAYFLIES Baetisca rogersi A Mayfl y None G4 S3 N N/A N/A REPTILES Agkistrodon contortrix Copperhead None G5 S2 N N/A N/A Alligator mississippiensis American Alligator T(S/A) G5 S4 LS N/A S4 Caretta caretta Loggerhead T G3 S3 LT T S2 Chelonia mydas Green Turtle E,T G3 S2 LE T S1 Clemmys guttata Spotted Turtle None G5 S3? N U S3 Crotalus adamanteus Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake None G4 S3 N N/A S4 Dermochelys coriacea Leatherback Sea Turtle E G2 S2 LE E S1 Drymarchon corais couperi Eastern Indigo Snake T G3 S3 LT T S3 Ochlockonee Bay

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