9. Site Description: 



Sandhill Creek Impoundment is, like Orton Pond, the man-made 

 lake of am old plantation. The impoundment here is, however, shal- 

 lower than Orton Pond, and relatively little "open" water exists 

 at the site I swamp forest extends well out into the impoundment. 

 The swamp forest thus created is dominated by swamp black gum 

 ( Nyssa sylvatica var, bi flora ) and pond cypress ( Taxodium ascendens), 

 with little else approaching canopy size. In open areas water lily 

 ( Nymphaea odorata ) and duckweed ( Lemna spp.) cover the surface of 

 the water. 



The Sandhill Creek drainage is located within the Orton— Boiling 

 Springs Lakes area Pleistocene bsurrier sand ridge region, and is, 

 therefore, surrounded on all sides by uplsmd pine forest. In the 

 southern portion of this upland pine community the dominant community 

 type is, as might be predicted, Pinus palustr is/ Mixed Oaks ( Quercus 

 incana , £. laevis , and £. margeuretta )/Mixed Pineland Shrubs/ Aristida 

 stricta ; however, it is interesting to note that storax ( Styrax 

 gran di folia ) is abundant among the ericads of the open shrub layer. 



The often broad ecotone area between the impoundment itself, and 

 the surrounding upland longleaf pine community, is dominated by a 

 dense thicket of swamp forest/bay forest type species, including 

 red maple ( Acer rubrum ) , red bay ( Persea borbonia ) , swamp black gum, 

 and poad cypress among the canopy species, and shining fetter-bush 

 ( LyoDla lucida ) , sweet gallberry ( Ilex coriacea ) , and titi ( Cyrilla :'m 

 racemiflora ) in the shrub and "subcanopy" layers. The shrub, sub- 

 canopy, and canopy layers tend to merge in a continuum of si»e classes 

 in this ecotonal area. 



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