It should also be mentioned that a third pocosin type , 

 high pocosin, is also present within the natural area. This 

 type is transitional between low pocosin and pond pine forest. 

 Its characteristics are: peat depth of 2-4 feet, saturated 

 organic soils with water tables which drop 1-2 feet below 

 the surface in dry seasons , dense shrub layer dominated by 

 bay species 4-8 feet tall with scattered pond pines to 25 

 feet tall. Areas sampled which match this description are 

 located between the Outfall Canal Road and the Low Pocosin 

 area. There is a gradual increase in pond pine density and 

 height and shrub layer height as one proceeds east from the 

 low pocosin to the pond pine forest along the Outfall Canal. 

 Most areas of high pocosin are included in the Gull Rock pond 

 pine pocosin vegetation association. Because there is a con- 

 tinuum of vegetation types it is not practical to delineate 

 the areal extent of the high pocosin-dominated areas. 



The soils of the low pocosin have been mapped as the 

 Ponzer-Belhaven-Wasda association (SCS 1973) . The deeper 

 organics, i.e. , Ponzer and Belhaven series, probably dom- 

 inate in this area. 



(4) Gull Rock Brackish Marshes 



This vegetation association occupies about 675 acres 

 along the Pamlico Sound shoreline in the southern portion 

 of the natural area. The brackish marsh zone is fairly 

 extensive along the sound and its many small bays, averaging 

 between 1000 and 3000 feet in width. 



Three distinct zones are present which are controlled 

 by flooding frequency and duration. Adjacent to the open 

 water is a zone dominated by almost pure stands of black 

 needlerush ( Juncus roemarianus ) . The needlerush marsh is 

 irregularly flooded by above average high tides and storm 

 tides. Threesquare ( Scirpus americanus ) forms small, dense 

 patches within the needlerush zone. The next higher marsh 

 is dominated by sawgrass ( Cladium jamaicense ) . These plants 

 form a dense layer up to nine feet in height. The separation 

 of the needlerush and sawgrass zones is usually quite distinct. 

 Flooding occurs only occasionally in this zone. These two 

 marsh types are listed as CT 4 in the significance summary 

 and biotic summary tables. 



Further inland the sawgrass grades gradually into a 

 shrub marsh system which contains along with sawgrass 

 various shrubs such as bayberry (Myrica sp.) , groundsel 



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