complete agenda - Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Unit Name: Tiger Bay State Forest
Acres: 27,396.68 Managing Agency: FDACS-DOF
Current Management Plan
Approved:
385
8/3/1998
Narrative:
The Tiger Bay State Forest (TBSF) is comprised of more than 27,000 acres. The purchase of this
forest began in 1977 under the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program, with additional major
acquisitions made in 1994 and 2004. In late 1997, the 11,000-acre Rima Ridge Tract was acquired
jointly with the St Johns River WMD using Save Our Rivers funding. Easements to the Cities of
Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach for multiple supply wells and pumping stations exist on the
Rima Ridge Tract. TBSF was severely impacted by the 1998 Summer Wildfire Firestorm.
Approximately 15,000 acres of the forest were burned during these catastrophic wildfires. Pine
islands are dotted throughout the extensive hydric swamp forest that comprises 48% of the
property. The public can access the forest through several open forest roads and equestrian and
hiking trails. TBSF is open to hunting, managed by FWC as the Tiger Bay Wildlife Management Area
(TBWMA). Gopher tortoise is commonly observed in the sandhill areas of the forest. Several listed
plants have been identified on the forest, including the federally-listed Rugel’s false pawpaw, the
state-listed celestial lily, large-flowered rosemary, hooded pitcherplant, Catesby’s lily and garberia.
In an effort to standardize the land management planning and reporting methods implemented by
all state land managers, the LMUAC has established eight common management goals and 32
quantitative measures that should be addressed by all management plans, where they apply to the
specific purposes and mission of each management unit. The Division of Forestry’s progress
towards achieving the common goals and applicable core objectives, as well as additional State
Forest-specific objectives for the TBSF is described in quantitative terms on Tables 1- 8. The
management plan for TBSF was approved prior to July 2008, and does not contain specific
measures and timeframes for the goals, objectives and recommended actions. In the narrative
below, the last two years of applicable outstanding accomplishments, deficiencies and corrective
actions, and other important or clarifying information is provided for each of the LMUAC
management goals.
Prescribed burning on TBSF enhances the habitat of native fauna and flora living on the forest.
Restoration was initiated on approximately 150 acres of scrub habitat that has included the
removal of off-site sand pine, followed by mechanical treatment of the overgrown oak vegetation.
Twenty-five acres of this treatment area was then burned. The Division of Forestry manages the
Forest under the multiple-use concept balancing environmental, recreational and resource use
needs. Recreational activities enjoyed at TBSF include picnicking, hiking, horseback riding,
primitive camping, fishing, hunting, nature study, photography, and mountain bike riding. Since
2008, five road culverts were installed to help restore historic flows into Bennett Field Swamp.
Timber management practices on TBSF are important in the restoration and maintenance of forest
ecosystems and provide a variety of socioeconomic benefits to Floridians. In addition to
implementing a schedule of mostly thinning harvests, the TBSF staff has completed an intensive
forest inventory of nearly 19,000 acres, or 70 percent of the state forest.
TBSF staff have treated 16 acres of non-native, invasive plants including cogon grass and purple
sesbane infestations. Recent treatments by TBSF staff however, have achieved control over
Japanese climbing fern and other invasive plants. There are 12 archaeological and historical sites
known to occur on TBSF and which are listed on the DHR master site file.