Ilex Glabra Research Articles

Container Size and Planting Zone Influence on Transplant Survival and Growth of Two Coastal Plants

Survival and subsequent growth of two beach species produced in containers of differing volume and depth were evaluated following transplant on Eglin Air Force Base, Santa Rosa Island, Fla. Rooted cuttings of gulf bluestem (Schizachyrium maritimum) were produced in four container types: 1-gal (gallon), 0.75-gal treepot, 1-qt (quart), or 164-mL Ray leach tube (RLT) containers. Root and shoot biomass of gulf bluestem harvested after 12 weeks in container production were greatest for plants grown in treepot containers and root: shoot ratio decreased as container size increased. Regardless of container size, survival of beach-planted gulf bluestem was 100%. Basal area of plants from standard gallon and treepot containers was similar 11 months after transplant and basal area for plants from treepot containers remained greater than plants from quart or RLT containers. Effect of planting zone [92, 124, 170, and 200 m landward of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf)] on transplant survival was also evaluated for inkberry (Ilex glabra). Seedling liners of inkberry were produced in 3-gal treepot or gallon containers. Inkberry was taller when grown in 3-gal treepot containers than when grown in gallon containers. Regardless of container size, all inkberry planted 92 m from the Gulf died. Inkberry survival (>75%) when grown in 3-gal treepot containers was two to six times greater than plants grown in gallon containers (15%, 50%, 40%; 124, 170, and 200 m from Gulf, respectively). After 15 months, inkberry grown in 3-gal treepot containers remained larger with 1.5 times the mean maximum height and twice the mean canopy area compared to those grown in gallon containers.

First Report of Phytophthora cinnamomi on Ilex glabra in Virginia.

During 2002, two nurseries in southeastern Virginia reported losses exceeding 75% of container-grown inkberry holly (Ilex glabra) cv. Shamrock. The development of necrotic leaf spots and blotches followed initial symptoms of leaf yellowing and wilting. Affected leaves rapidly turned brown and fell. Dark brown-to-black roots were washed and plated on agar media. Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands was consistently isolated and identified on the basis of its morphology (2) and single-stranded conformational polymorphism fingerprint (1). The organism had nonpapillate, internally proliferating, noncaducous, ovoid to ellipsoid sporangia that formed only in water. It did not grow at 35°C and had abundant botryose hyphal swellings, coralloid hyphae, and grape-like clusters of chlamydospores. The isolate, determined to be the A2 mating type, produced elongate cylindrical, amphigynous antheridia and oogonia with a tapered base. A pine bark potting mix amended with V8 juicetreated vermiculite colonized by the suspected pathogen was placed in 12-liter containers. Two inkberry holly cv. Shamrock liners were planted in each of three containers and two 1-yr-old plants were planted in each of three additional containers during April 2004. An identical set of six containers of noninoculated plants was also established. During June 2004, inoculated plants exhibited symptoms identical to those observed in nurseries, and P. cinnamomi was isolated. Noninoculated check plants did not develop symptoms. Japanese holly (I. crenata) was previously known as a host, but to our knowledge, this is the first report of inkberry holly (I. glabra) susceptibility.

Auxin Application to Stem Cuttings of Selected Woody Landscape Plants by Incorporation Into a Stabilized Organic Rooting Substrate

Abstract Stem cuttings of Buxus sinica var. insularis ‘Wintergreen’, Elaeagnus x ebbingei, Ficus benjamina, Gardenia augusta ‘Radicans’, Ilex glabra ‘Nigra’, Ilex vomitoria ‘Nana’, Juniperus conferta ‘Blue Pacific’, Ternstroemia gymnanthera, and Trachelospermum asiaticum were inserted into a stabilized organic rooting substrate (plugs comprised of peat and a polymer binder) that had been soaked in water, aqueous solutions of K-IBA (15 to 75 ppm), or K-IBA + K-NAA (15 ppm + 7.5 ppm to 60 ppm + 30 ppm). Rooting and initial shoot growth responses were compared with cuttings receiving a basal quick-dip in K-IBA (1000 ppm) or K-IBA + K-NAA (1000 ppm + 500 ppm). Rooting percentage, number of roots per rooted cutting, and total root length per rooted cutting for cuttings rooted in auxin-treated plugs were similar to or greater than cuttings receiving a basal quick-dip; lesser results were obtained in a few cases with K-IBA + K-NAA. Percent of rooted cuttings with new shoots and shoot length per rooted cutting for cuttings rooted in plugs treated with K-IBA were mostly similar to cuttings receiving a basal quick-dip in K-IBA, while cuttings rooted in plugs treated with K-IBA + K-NAA exhibited similar or lesser results compared to cuttings receiving a basal quick-dip in K-IBA + K-NAA.

Flammability of native understory species in pine flatwood and hardwood hammock ecosystems and implications for the wildland - urban interface

Six understory species from five pine flatwood sites and six understory species from five hardwood hammock sites were harvested for biomass analyses to compare potential flammability between two ecosystems in the south-eastern coastal plain of the United States. Plant components were separated into live and dead foliage, accumulated litter on and under the plant, and small and large stems. Foliar biomass was further analysed for moisture content, volatile solid content, and energy content. Statistical analyses revealed differences among species and between ecosystems. Serenoa repens plants present a wildfire hazard because they contain greater biomass than other species studied. Ilex glabra and Lyonia ferruginea are also hazardous to wildland–urban interface (WUI) structures because they have greater foliar energy content than other species studied. Callicarpa americana plants present the least wildfire hazard to WUI structures. We conclude that differences in flammability among species exist, but the causes of flammability are different among species. In addition, species in the same genus do not always have the same flammability. Based on measured characteristics, understory plants in pine flatwoods have greater ignitability, sustainability and combustibility than understory plants in hardwood hammocks. However, the measurements for consumability were similar between ecosystems.

A Comparison of Irrigation System, Basal Temperature and Auxin Concentration on Rooting of Stem Cuttings of Ilex glabra L.

Abstract Basal stem temperature and auxin treatment effects on rooting percentage, root number, length of the longest root, and basal stem necrosis of hardwood stem cuttings of Ilex glabra L. (inkberry holly) were compared between a recirculating subirrigation propagation system and a conventional intermittent mist propagation system. Recirculating subirrigation maintained basal temperature and medium moisture content better than conventional intermittent mist. While rooting percentages were significantly greater for cuttings rooted in the recirculating subirrigation system, root number, and length of the longest root were higher for cuttings rooted under intermittent mist. A basal temperature of 32C (90F) was supra-optimal, resulting in significantly lower rooting percentages. However, rooting temperature had no effect on root number or basal stem necrosis. Basal stem necrosis of rooted cuttings was greater in the recirculating subirrigation system, and increased with temperature in both irrigation treatments, but appeared to have no significant effect on root number. Increasing auxin concentration increased rooting percentage, root number, and length of the longest root of rooted cuttings, though the response differed with irrigation treatment. Cuttings of Ilex glabra L. can be rooted successfully in a recirculating subirrigation propagation system where the rooting process appears to be less sensitive to rooting temperature and auxin concentration than for cuttings rooted under intermittent mist. However, overall root growth was greater on cuttings rooted under intermittent mist, perhaps because of the lower medium moisture content in that system. This suggests that optimal rooting of hardwood cuttings can be achieved without intermittent mist using a recirculating subirrigation system with modifications to the moisture content of the rooting medium.

Influence of deer, cattle grazing and timber harvest on plant species diversity in a longleaf pine bluestem ecosystem

Despite a recent slowing in the negative historical trend, losses of naturally-regenerated longleaf pine forests currently continue, largely as a result of conversion to plantations of faster growing pine species. Comparing the impacts of type conversion with silvicultural approaches that maintain longleaf pine and ascertaining their interaction with the influence of other resource management practices, such as grazing, on plant species diversity are essential in discerning the effects of these activities on the long-term sustainability of these ecosystems. A flatwoods longleaf pine bluestem ecosystem, which naturally regenerated following timber harvest during the early 20th century, on the coastal plain of southern Alabama was thinned to a residual basal area of 17 m 2/ha or clearcut, windrowed and planted with slash pine ( Pinus elliottii) seedlings in 1972 and then fenced in 1977 to differentially exclude grazing by deer and cattle. Neither grazing by deer alone nor deer in combination with cattle significantly altered vascular plant cover or species diversity; however, substantial differences were noted between the understory plant communities in the thinned forests and clearcut areas. Woody understory vegetation steadily increased through time, with woody plant cover in clearcuts (41%) dominated by the tree seedlings of Pinus elliottii and Quercus spp. being greater than that in thinned forests (31%) which were dominated by shrubs, principally Ilex glabra. While grass cover dominated by Schizachrium scoparium and Andropogon spp. remained stable (∼81%), the foliar cover of all forbs declined through time (from 42 to 18%) as woody plant cover increased. Although the overall species richness and diversity declined and evenness increased through time, understory species richness and diversity were consistently higher in thinned forests than in artificially-regenerated clearcuts. Despite a modest short-term decline in this differential, indicating a partial recovery of the clearcut areas over time, the disparity in understory plant diversity between thinned forests and clearcuts persisted for at least a decade. Whether grazing includes domestic cattle or is limited to native ungulates, such as white-tailed deer, we recommend that longleaf pine forests not be clearcut and replaced by plantations of other pines, if the ecological diversity is to be conserved, high quality habitat is to be maintained and longleaf pine ecosystems are to be sustained.

Host Preference of the Federally Endangered Hemiparasite Schwalbea americana L. (Scrophulariaceae)

HELTON, R. C., L. K. KIRKMAN, AND L. J. MUSSELMAN. Host preference of the federally endangered hemiparasite Schwalbea americana L. (Scrophulariaceae) J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 127:300-306. 2000.-We examined the host-preference and optimal hosts of the federally endangered hemiparasite, Schwalbea americana L. We also determined the effects of four fertilizer treatments (NO3-140ppmN, N03-280ppmN, NH4-140ppmN, and NH4280ppmN) on the formation of haustoria of S. americana to two of these host species, Panicum tenue and Pityopsis graminifolia. Results of the host preference study show that Schwalbea americana seedlings are more likely to form haustorial connections with Pityopsis graminifolia and Ilex glabra than with other common associates. We also found that size of Schwalbea americana seedlings played an important role in year to year survivorship independent of host attachment. Regardless of nitrogen form, we observed a greater rate of attachment of Schwalbea americana to Pityopsis graminifolia than to Panicum tenue. Nitrogen treatment had no effect on parasitism of Panicum tenue, although more seedlings of Schwalbea americana survived without haustoria with the NH4-280ppm treatment. Growth (leaf area and stem height) of Schwalbea americana increased with NH4-280 ppm treatment with Pityopsis graminifolia as a host. Panicum tenue had much higher nitrate reductase activity levels in the leaf tissue than Pityopsis graminifolia, and both hosts showed low levels in the root tissue. Low levels of nitrate reductase activity were found in the leaves of Schwalbea americana. Host preference of Schwalbea americana may be related to the host's ability to utilize NH4 as opposed to its ability to reduce NO3. Growth of Schwalbea americana appears to be influenced by the amount of NH4 available to the host.

Long-term effects of dormant-season prescribed fire on plant community diversity, structure and productivity in a longleaf pine wiregrass ecosystem

A flatwoods longleaf pine wiregrass ecosystem, which regenerated naturally following wildfire in 1942, on the Coastal Plain of southern Georgia was treated over a period of four decades with prescribed fire at annual, biennial and triennial intervals during the winter dormant season. Burning caused substantial changes in the understory plant community, with significant reductions in the foliar cover of Ilex glabra in the shrub layer resulting in corresponding increases in the cover of Vaccinium myrsinites, Sporobolus curtissii, Aristida stricta and Andropogon spp. Understory plant species richness, diversity and evenness also increased as a result of periodic fire. Dormant-season burning decreased the cover of litter on the forest floor and significantly increased the standing biomass of A. stricta, S. curtissii, Andropogon spp., all other grasses and all forbs. Recurrent fire also prevented the development of a vigorous midstory, that impedes understory growth and poses a serious fire hazard to the stand. Overstory trees were largely unaffected by burning. Historical light grazing on the site produced no measurable effects on the plant community. Findings suggest that the biennial burning interval results in declines of I. glabra in the shrub layer and litter cover on the forest floor, leading to the largest increases in understory plant species richness and diversity and the biomass productivity of grasses and forbs. Although flatwoods plant communities evolved in environments characterized by growing-season fires of variable frequency, long-term application of dormant-season fire is also recommended as a useful option for sustaining resource values in this and similar longleaf pine wiregrass ecosystems.

Cell-Wall Changes and Cell Tension in Response to Cold Acclimation and Exogenous Abscisic Acid in Leaves and Cell Cultures.

Freeze-induced cell tensions were determined by cell water relations in leaves of broadleaf evergreen species and cell cultures of grapes (Vitis spp.) and apple (Malus domestica). Cell tensions increased in response to cold acclimation in leaves of broadleaf evergreen species during extracellular freezing, indicating a higher resistance to cell volume changes during freezing in cold-hardened leaves than in unhardened leaves. Unhardened leaves, typically, did not develop tension greater than 3.67 MPa, whereas cold-hardened leaves attained tensions up to 12 MPa. With further freezing there was a rapid decline and a loss of tension in unhardened leaves of all the broadleaf evergreen species studied. Also, similar results were observed in cold-hardened leaves of all of the species except in those of inkberry (Ilex glabra) and Euonymus fortunei, in which negative pressures persisted below -40[deg]C. Abscisic acid treatment of inkberry and Euonymus kiautschovica resulted in increases in freeze-induced tensions in leaves, suggesting that both cold acclimation and abscisic acid have similar effects on freezing behavior[mdash] specifically on the ability of cell walls to undergo deformation. Decreases in peak tensions were generally associated with lethal freezing injury and may suggest cavitation of cellular water. However, in suspension-cultured cells of grapes and apple, no cell tension was observed during freezing. Cold acclimation of these cells resulted in an increase in the cell-wall strength and a decrease in the limiting cell-wall pore size from 35 to 22 A in grape cells and from 29 to 22 A in apple cells.

DOSE RESPONSE CURVES AND CARRIER EFFECTS ON ROOTING

Auxins are indispensable for vegetatively propagating many woody plants. The rooting of stem cuttings treated with auxin varies with shoot maturation, phenological age and stock plant nutrition. Sensitivity to applied auxin is important both practically and for understanding the physiology of root formation. Applying optimal auxin concentrations is often the key to successful cutting propagation. Auxin dose-response curves for rooting usually show increased rooting with increasing auxin concentration to an optimum, followed by rooting inhibition and phytotoxicity at supra-optimal rates. These curves will be used to analyze dose response kinetics for common rooting hormones and carrier formulations. Dose-response curves were developed, using cuttings of Ilex glabra — inkberry holly, to evaluate IBA and NAA dissolved in 50% aqueous ethanol (EtOH) or 40% aqueous polyethylene glycol (PEG). Few differences were evident in the response curves of auxin dissolved in EtOH or PEG at concentrations of 0 to 75 mM. PEG yielded higher root numbers at the optimal concentrations of 10-20 mM NAA and 30-50 mM IBA. Both the stimulation and inhibition of rooting were more sensitive to NAA than IBA. Decreasing root length and increasing basal rooting inhibition were good indicators of auxin toxicity. These results further our knowledge of carrier effects on rooting and the potential of dose response analysis for studying adventitious root formation in cuttings.

Comparison of Herbicide Treatments for Controlling Common Coastal Plain Flatwoods Species

Abstract A study was conducted to identify optimum picloram-triclopyr combinations for use on the following flatwoods species: gallberry (Ilex glabra [L.] Gray), saw palmetto (Serenoa repens [Bartram] Small), vacciniums (Vaccinium spp.), waxmyrtle (Myrica cerifera L.), fetterbush (Lyonia lucida [Lam.] K. Koch), staggerbush (Lyonia ferruginea [Water] Nutall), and sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana L). More than 70% control of gallberry, saw palmetto, vacciniums, waxmyrtle, and sweetbay was obtained with 4.0 lb a.e./ac of triclopyr alone. At least 1.0 lb of picloram combined with 1.0 lb or more of triclopyr was required to achieve 70% or greater control of fetterbush and staggerbush. The picloram formulation including 2,4-D (Tordon 101®) was more effective than the formulation without 2,4-D (Tordon K®) on saw palmetto, vacciniums and waxmyrtle. South. J. Appl. For. 15(4):187-193.

Influence of Sample Processing Techniques and Seasonal Variation on Quantities of Volatile Compounds of Gallberry, Saw-Palmetto, and Wax Myrtle

Combustible gas analysis was used to study seasonal changes in the quantity of volatiles in foliage of gallberry (Ilex glabra), wax myrtle (Myrica cerifera) and saw palmetto (Serenoa repens). Small). Fresh and freeze-dried samples were compared to determine whether freeze-drying and grinding reduces the quantity of low-temperature volatiles prior to pro- cessing. Seasonal differences in volatile content do seem to occur, particularly in gallberry. Freeze-drying and grinding samples prior to processing did not seem to affect volatile retention.

Slash pine and understory interception of micronutrients mineralized from sewage sludge applied to a sandy, acidic forest soil

Sewage sludges vary widely in heavy-metal micronutrients which may persist in soils amended with such elements. In this study, an industrially-enriched municipal sewage sludge was applied to an acid (pH < 4.4) sandy Spodosol in 5-year-old stand of slash pine ( Pinus elliottii Englem. var. Elliotti) with a gallberry ( Ilex glabra L. Gray) and saw palmetto [ Serenoa repens (Bertram) Small] understory. The mean composition of the sewage sludge (expresed as g kg −1) was as follows: 59 N; 33P; 1.88 Cr; 0.27 Cd; 0.57 Cu; 0.35 Mn; and 0.88 Zn. The sludge was top-dressed at rates of 0, 5.5, 11 and 22 t ha −1. Five years later, multiple core samples of the sludge-amended soil were obtained from the Oi, A, E, Bh, and BC horizons at depths of 0–5, 5–15, 15–41, 41–53 and 53–64 cm, respectively. Recovery of all four metals was predominantly in the Oi horizon, and ranged from 46.5% for Zn to 70.7 for Cr. Only Zn was accumulated to any appreciable extent in the slash-pine overstory or saw-palmetto/gallberry understory. The low metal recovery is attributed to deep leaching (> 64 cm). Of the metals remaining in the Oi horizon, Cd and Zn still have some quantity 3n an exchangeable form that is affected by sludge rate. Interception and retention of the metals in the pine overstory or palmetto/gallberry was negligible for Cd, Cr, and Cu, and estimated to be about 5% for Zn.

Inoculation of native woody plants with vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi for phosphate mine land reclamation

Cuttings of Aronia arbutifolia (L.) Ell., Clethra alnifolia L., Cornus foemina Mill., Ilex glabra (L.) Gray, and Viburnum nudum L. were inoculated in a rooting bed with Glomus etunicatum (Nicol & Gerd.) Gerdemann & Trappe, Glomus intraradices Schenck & Smith, or a mixed culture that consisted of several unidentified Glomus spp. After 7 weeks, a low level of root colonization (overall mean of 2%) was recorded for all plant species except V. nudum. These low percentages were sufficient to obtain well-colonized plants (overall mean of 57%) after rooted cuttings were transplanted to potting medium and grown in a shadehouse for 7 months. Inoculation had no effect on plant growth or survival after outplanting to a site that contained abundant clay aggregates and where controls became colonized by vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi. Further studies are needed on sites differing in physical and chemical properties before reliable conclusions can be drawn concerning the use of VAM-fungus inoculation in phosphate minelands reclamation.

Records for the Rosemary Grasshopper, Schistocerca ceratiola Hubbell and Walker, in North Florida (Orthoptera: Acrididae)

Hubbell & Walker (1928) described the rosemary grasshopper, Schistocerca ceratiola, based on collections from Orlando (TYPE LOCALITY) and Apopka in Orange County, Altamonte Springs in Seminole County, and Tavares in Lake County. Their specimens were found in association with rosemary bushes, Ceratiola ericoides, growing in scrub habitats. Dirsh (1974) provided a distribution map that called attention to additional records from Hernando, Marion, Polk, Putnam, and Volusia counties. The northernmost records shown on this map included two sites near Palatka along the St. John River in Putnam County and two sites near Ocala in Marion County. On 1 September 1983, Robert E. Woodruff and one of us (RF) obtained a large series of this grasshopper on rosemary bushes at the Breezeway Pond site in the Smith Lake Sand Hill area of the Katharine Ordway Preserve-Swisher Memorial Sanctuary, near Melrose, Putnam County, Florida. Grasshoppers were found in association with an Evergreen Shrub habitat, characterized by rosemary, Myrica cerifera, Lyonia lucida, Ilex glabra, and Vaccinium arboreum. This peculiar habitat forms narrow bands around the Breezeway Pond and other temporary and permanent clear water ponds and lakes on the property. Voucher specimens from this infestation are deposited in the Florida State Collection of Arthropods (FSCA), Gainesville, Florida. Subsequent searches for these grasshoppers on rosemary bushes at the Preserve, near Johnson in Putnam County, and in the vicinity of Gold Head Branch State Park and Keystone Heights in southwestern Clay County (approximately 14 km N of the Preserve) in 1984 showed this distinctive grasshopper to be extremely common on southern Trail Ridge and the adjoining, but more southerly, Interlachen Karstic Highland in the northeentral portion of the Florida peninsula. Although these records only extend the known range of S. ceratiola about 35 km NW of the Palatka and 80 km NNE of the Ocala collections, they place this unusual grasshopper on the geologically unique Trail Ridge. This feature, developed as a series of N-S trending sand ridges that parallel the western shore of the St. Johns River, extends southward from southeastern Georgia and merges with the xeric Interlachen Karstic Highland near the town of Interlachen. These droughty ridges are forested with upland communities dominated by High Pine habitats and are isolated from reported sites near Palatka and Ocala by wetter flatwoods habitats that lack rosemary plants. Between 1985-1986, we located additional sites (see SPECIFIC RECORDS) for this grasshopper in Lake, Marion, and Orange counties. Efforts to collect grasshoppers at appropriate sites in Bay, Franklin, and Gulf counties were unsuccessful. We revisited rosemary sites examined by Hubbell and Walker in Alachua (near Archer) and Levy (Cedar Keys) counties and, like them, failed to locate specimens. We found S. ceratiola only in associaion with rosemary bushes. At Gold Head Branch State Park in Clay County and sites in Putnam County, grasshoppers occurred in areas of High Pine (or Sandhill) vegetation while those from the Ocala National Forest in Lake County, and from Rock Springs and Mt. Plymouth in Orange County were at sites dominated by Sand Pine Scrub.

Vegetation and habitat conditions in Western Head Bog, a southern Nova Scotian plateau bog

The southernmost plateau bogs in eastern North America are found in southern Nova Scotia. They are characterized by an extremely wet plateau with high conical hummocks, a partly forested bog slope, and several disjunct species of the Coastal Plain flora.Prevailing water levels on the plateau are high and fluctuate little. They do not start to drop until very close to the plateau margin, and are lowest on the forested parts of the slope. The lagg is wet and has the most strongly fluctuating water levels.Water table location, and thus microtopography of the surface, controls the vegetation pattern of the plateau. A Gaylussacia baccata dwarf shrub heath occupies hummocks 25 cm or more above the 50% summer water table. Utricularia mud bottoms are regularly flooded in summer and the water table never drops more than 5 cm below the surface. The two Scirpus lawn communities occupy an intermediate position.A complex gradient, involving both water level and nutrient regime, controls vegetation changes from the center to the bog border. The bog slope, especially under the forest, is enriched by the detritus cycle. Floristic changes in the vegetation indicate an enrichment of the plateau margin, and possibly also the slope, by drainage water seeping from the plateau. Peat analyses failed to confirm this. Within the lagg, differences in minerotrophy separate the two fen communities, but floristic changes on the hummocks are caused by differences in water table location, nutrient supply, and shading.These plateau bogs are distinguished clearly from those along the west side of the Bay of Fundy by the dominance of mud bottoms rather than lawn communities on the plateau, by the occurrence of many nutrient-demanding species in the ombrotrophic vegetation, and by the presence of Coastal Plain disjuncts, such as Ilex glabra.

Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Fall Movements in a Florida Flatwoods Community

-Four Red-cockaded Woodpeckers from three were radio tracked for 128 hours from October to December 1975 in a pine flatwood community in central Florida. Radio telemetry equipment proved valuable for obtaining data on daily movements, behavior, and range size over a complete dawn to dusk tracking period. The average range of 69.8 ha (172.3 acres) was larger than most previously reported ranges. Foraging was most frequent in pine habitat; longleaf and slashed pine were the main species utilized. The roosting area itself was used as a foraging site only during rainy weather. Based on this study a minimum of 58-91 ha of suitable foraging habitat are necessary to support of 3-4 Red-cockaded Woodpeckers during fall in a pine community.-Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, Wildlife Management Laboratory, 4005 S. Main Street, Gainesville, Florida 32601. Accepted 13 October 1976. Survival of the Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis) within its natural range, the pine woods of the southeastern United States, is uncertain under present day commercial forestry practices. Concern for the future of the species is evident from the endangered status given it by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (U.S. Department of the Interior, 1973). This study to determine critical habitat requirements for the woodpecker in central Florida was undertaken as part of an overall assessment of the impact on wildlife of the proposed Cross Florida Barge Canal. The use of radio telemetry equipment was authorized under interim authority granted by the Office of Endangered Species, U.S. Department of Interior pending final disposition of the applications. When initiated, the intention was to carry out the study more fully than reported here. Final approval for the use of radio telemetry equipment was denied and restrictions were placed on the number of birds that could be color marked. As a consequence, the study was curtailed. To our knowledge this is the first study to employ radio telemetry techniques to study the Red-cockaded Woodpecker. For this reason and because any new information on a species as sensitive as this woodpecker would be important in making sound management decisions related to the species, it seems appropriate to present the results of this study here. STUDY AREA AND METHODS Three clans (Jackson and Thompson 1971) of the Red-cockaded Woodpeckers were studied during the fall of 1975 in Marion County, Florida, about 7 km south of Eureka and 1 km west of the Oklawaha River. The habitat of the area consisted of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) on the higher sites, characterized by an overstory, principally longleaf pine between 50 and 80 years old and 21-25 m tall. This habitat graded to slash pine (Pinus elliottii) or pond pine (Pinus serotina) on the lower, wetter sites. Bayheads occurred on the lowest, wettest sites and long streams with an overstory of loblolly bay (Gordonia lasianthus), sweet bay (Magnolia virginiana), red maple (Acer rubrum), and black gum (Nyssa sylvatica). Scattered throughout the area were several intermittent flatwoods ponds bordered by bay and pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens). Also within the study area were improved pastures, four recent timber clear cuts, and a 10-15-year-old slash pine plantation with an open understory of wire grass (Aristida stricta) and gallberry (Ilex glabra). Figure 1 is a general habitat map of the three ranges. 145 The Auk 95: 145-151. January 1978 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.138 on Thu, 19 May 2016 04:35:02 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 146 NESBITT ET AL. [Auk, Vol. 95 X A E LONGLEAF PINE FLATWOODS N [j` SLASH-POND PINE FLATWOODS o0oo000 L..J BAYHEADS, PONDS, CYPRESS DOMES

Browse and Herbage in Intensively Managed Pine Plantations

When 4 cultural treatments--cultivation alone and cultivation with 3 rates of fertilization-were applied to pine (Pinus spp.) plantations on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, pine basal area on the fertilized plots more than doubled that on the untreated control by age 12. All treatments reduced total browse density and crown cover; however, plots fertilized at medium or high rates contained more browse desirable for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) than the control and had as much crown cover from desirable species as the control. On untreated plots the most abundant browse was gallberry (Ilex glabra), an undesirable species; on treated plots it was yaupon (I. vomitoria), a desirable species. Herbage yields on treated plots were less than half that on the control. Broomsedge bluestem (Andropogon virginicus) was the principal forage species on all plots. Only common carpetgrass (Axonopus affinis) increased in yield with intensive culture. J. WILDL. MANAGE. 39(3):557-562 Southern pine forest ranges commonly provide adequate forage for yearlong grazing by cattle and afford habitat suitable for white-tailed deer. However, the question of how intensive pine culture affects multiple land uses has not been answered. This study was initiated to determine changes in understory vegetation that accompany intensive site preparation for southern pine regeneration. Results apply directly to about 3.2 million hectares of longleaf (P. palustris) -slash pine (P. elliottii) range, where bluestems (Andropogon spp.) are the principal herbaceous species, and indirectly to about 20.2 million hectares of loblolly (P. taeda)-shortleaf pine (P. echinata)-hardwood range, where extensive areas currently are being prepared for regeneration. The study was on the Harrison Experimental Forest near Gulfport, Mississippi. Soils are relatively infertile upland fine sandy loams; slope on the gently rolling land is less than five percent. The site had been stocked with second-growth longleaf pines before it was clearcut in 1959. Little bluestem (A. scoparius) was the predominant grass, but other bluestems and panicums (Panicum spp.) were common. Grassleaf goldaster (Chrysopsis graminifolia) and other composites were the most abundant forbs. Important shrubs included southern waxmyrtle (Myrica cerifera), gallberry, and yaupon.