IIB. Prose description of site significance: 



This is the only significant natural area left in the county 

 which is not protected in some manner. It consists of a complex 

 series of sand ridges of various elevations and geologic ages, 

 interspersed with moist depressions. The site is the last remnant 

 in the county of xerophytic, pyrocliraax longleaf pine - turkey 

 oak forest, which was once a major dominant in the area. 



Significant remnants occur only on the Story and Vaughan 

 tracts. Many sandhills - type plant species probably reached 

 their northern limits in the vicinity, but have now been 

 extirpated from the northern part of their range. One documented 

 example is Vaccinium crassifolium (creeping blueberry) . With the 

 exception of this site, longleaf pine as a forest type has been 

 extirpated from the northern 300 km of its original northern 

 range (Frost, unpublished study). 



The following list of significant features is from Lynch 

 (1980), with a few additions. 



1. Presence of the most extensive stand (at least 400 acres) of 

 mature, old-growth loblolly pine ( Pinus taeda ) forest in the 

 state; trees up to 120 ft tall, 3 ft in diameter and 250 yrs 

 old (Radford 1980, Heritage files, this study). 



2. Northernmost natural old-growth stand of longleaf pines 

 ( Pinus palustris ) on the Atlantic Coastal Plain (Frost, 

 unpublished study) . 



3. Presence of exemplary plant communities: Pinus taeda / Quercus 

 laevis- Q. f alcata / Gaylussacia frondosa-Vaccinium vacillans ; 

 Pinus taeda - Pinus palustris / Quercus laevis / Gaylussacia 

 frondosa-Vaccinium vacillans . These communities are 

 significant because of the mature canopy cover, the excellent 

 zonation of the tree-subcanopy-shrub strata, and the high 

 diversity of ericaceous shrubs present (Otte 1978) . 



4. Presence of plant community (Pinus taeda / Quercus laevis / 

 mixed ericaceous shrubs) with unique species composition: 

 9 species of ericaceous shrubs present (Otte 1978) . 



5. Example of possible vegetational determination of soil 

 type (spodosol under the ericaceous shrubs, entisol under 

 areas without ericaceous shrubs (Otte 1978, Risk 1981). 



6. Excellent examples of relict beach ridges along the Chowan 

 River embayment. Geomorphic landform feature formed by 

 receding sea level during periods of previous Pleistocene 

 glacial maxima (Richards 1950, Oaks and DuBar 1974). 



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