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ALLIGATQR CREEK - SECOND CREEK SWAMP FOREST 

 NATURAL AREA INVENTORY 



Basic Information Summairy Sheet 



1. Natural Area Name 



Alligator Creek - Second Creek Swamp Forest 



2 . County 

 Tyrrell 



3. Location: Both N and S of US 64 from the junction of US 64 and 

 State Road 1229 to the Alligator River. To reach the southern part 

 of the area, drive E on State Road 1301 until it ends then proceed 

 E and SE on a network of private logging roads. See Figures 1 and 

 21. 



4. Topographic quadrangle 



Fort Landing, 7.5 min; Frying Pan, 7.5 min. ; Columbia East, 7.5 

 min. 



5. Size 

 16,044 acres 



6. Elevation 



1 foot - 3ffet 



7. Access: By car through locked gates at end of State Road 1301. By 

 foot N and S of US 64. By boat from Alligator River, Alligator 

 Creek, and Second Creek. See Figure 22. 



8. Names of investigators 



Charles B. McDonald, East Carolina University 

 Andrew N. Ash, East Carolina University 



9. Dates of investigation 

 5/8/80 



6/12/80 



9A. Prose description of site 



This large area is entirely swamp forest but does contain 

 three different swamp forest community types. The first is a 

 loblolly pine -black gum (Pinus taeda - Nyssa sylvatica ) associa- 

 tion in which loblolly pine is the canopy dominant while black gum 

 is the canopy subdominant as well as subcanopy dominant. This type 

 of swamp forest occupies the highest and driest sites. The second 

 community is a black gum-bald cypress (Nyssa sylvatica -Taxodium 

 distichum ) association. Black gum is by far the dominant component 

 and may occur almost to th exclusion of bald cypress in the most 

 recently logged areas. This association occupies the wettest 

 sites. The third community is an Atlantic white cedar - red 

 maple - black gum (Chamaecyparis thyoides - Acer rubrum-Nyssa 



