Vascular Plant Flora of the Remnant Blackland Prairies in Oaky Woods Wildlife Management Area, Houston County, Georgia

Abstract

Abstract Blackland prairies are a globally imperiled, rare plant community only recently discovered in central Georgia. A floristic inventory was conducted on six remnant blackland prairie sites within Oaky Woods Wildlife Management Area, 12 km southeast of Warner Robins. The 43 ha site complex yielded 351 species in 219 genera and 89 families. Four species new to Georgia were documented. According to several state and federal rankings, twenty-three rare plant species occur within the study area; these include one federally endangered species (Silene catesbaei) and one candidate for federal listing (Symphyotrichum georgianum). Twelve plant communities are described. The inventory supported the designation of a new ecological association, the Georgia Eocene chalk prairie. Maps of the study area and photographs of the prairies and rare plants are provided.