NATURAL AREA INVENTORY 

 Basic Information Summary Sheet 



1. Natural Area Name: Rocky Point Marl Forest 



2 . County : Pender 



3. Location: The original location of the Rocky Point Marl Forest was 

 north of NC 210 and SR 1516, about 1.5 miles northeast of the village 

 of Rocky Point, and situated on the old McRae property, now owned by 

 Oleander Corporation. This area was examined intermittently from 



1968 until 1980, and a preliminary site description was prepared by Alan 

 S. Weakley. Around 1978 or 1979, the area was timbered, and while 

 none of the threatened species which were known from there were 

 harvested, it may be decades before this tract returns, if ever, 

 to any semblance of its former condition. Being familiar with the 

 original Rocky Point Marl Forest, we searched for other examples of 

 this unique vegetation assemblage in the area, and found two potential 

 candidates. One site, located on Batts property, northeast of the 

 McRae place, is comprised of little more than a small springy drainage 

 with very sparse outcroppings of the Castle Hayne limestone. A second 

 area was located which contains a sizeable population of nutmeg hickory — 

 one of the dominant indicators — and is now described as the Rocky 

 Point Marl Forest. This timber stand is located east of US 117, on 

 both sides (north and south) of SR 1517, beginning just east of Rocky 

 Point School, or about 0.6 miles east of US 117. Coordinates: 34°25'N, 

 77°52'W (FIGURE 23) . 



4. Topographic Quadrangle (s) : Rocky Point, NC 1970, Mooretown, NC 1970 



5. Size: 400 ac 



6. Elevation: 25 ft to 30 ft above mean sea level 



7. Access: Natural area may be reached by travelling east on SR 1517 

 from US 117, a road which is paved as far as Rocky Point School. 

 Continue on this road to a major overhead power line which passes 

 through the natural area, as does the right-of-way for Interstate 40. 



8. Names of Investigators: S. W. Leonard Ricky Davis 



P. 0. Box 3475 126 Duncansby Court 



Wilmington, NC 28406 Cary, NC 27511 



9. Date(s) of Investigation: May-September 1981 



10. Priority Rating: High 



11A. Prose Description of Site: In southeastern North Carolina, outcrops 

 of the Castle Hayne limestone are usually restricted to bluffs along 



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