ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS - Brit - Botanical Research ...

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NATURAL HISTORY OF BIG THICKET/INTRODUCTION 167 Given the high levels of species richness of East Texas as a whole (see page 225) and the habitat diversity seen in the Big Thicket, relatively high levels of species richness would be expected for the Big Thicket. Unfortunately, “botanically the entire area is understudied and underdocumented” (MacRoberts et al. 2002a), and enough data have not been available to adequately assess levels of diversity. Despite extensive collecting by numerous individuals (particularly Geyata Ajilvsgi, Larry Brown, Barbara and Michael MacRoberts, Geraldine Watson, etc.), no complete fully vouchered published plant list exists for the Big Thicket region or even the Big Thicket National Preserve (MacRoberts et al. 2002a; MacRoberts & MacRoberts 2004a). However, a few lists have been made that can give some idea of the diversity present. Examples include the approximately 1,200 species listed for the Big Thicket National Preserve (National Park Service 1995a, 1995b—based in part on Watson’s work; Harcombe 2004), the 544 species collected in the Nature Conservancy’s 920 hectare (2,273 acre) Larsen Sandylands Sanctuary in Hardin County (Matos & Rudolph 1985, 1986), the 485 species collected in the approximately 260 hectares (642 acres) of the Little Thicket Nature Reserve in San Jacinto County (Peterson & Brown 1983), and the 401 taxa known from the Hickory Creek Savannah Unit of the Big Thicket National Preserve in Tyler County (MacRoberts et al. 2002a). While each of these lists is valuable and can give some idea of local scale species richness, they do not provide even an estimate of the plant diversity of the Big Thicket region as a whole. Several works by the Nature Conservancy also give indirect information on species richness in the Big Thicket (Halstead 2002; Nature Conservancy 2003). Two designated conservation areas within the Big Thicket region, Longleaf Ridge and the Big Thicket- Sandylands Complex, are considered by the Nature Conservancy to be among the top ten richest conservation areas in the West Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregion (richness in the Nature Conservancy studies refers to the number of occurrences of conservation targets including both communities and individual species). Longleaf Ridge is particularly important since it is considered to be the richest of the ten sites (Nature Conservancy 2003). This nearly 200,000 hectare area is located on the northern margin of the Big Thicket in Jasper, Newton, Tyler, and Angelina counties, and occupies a line/ridge of eroded sandstone and volcanic ash hills. As indicated by the name, it supports remnants of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) woodlands, numerous distinctive embedded plant communities, and a large number of species, many considered to be of conservation significance (Halstead 2002). In the absence of any specific study addressing overall species richness in the Big Thicket, we suggest that a reasonable estimate for the number of plant species in the Big Thicket region can be made by totaling all those known to occur in the seven and one-half county area (Fig. 94) comprised of Hardin, Jasper, Liberty (northern half including Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge), Montgomery, Newton, Polk, San Jacinto, and Tyler counties (Diggs et al. 2003). While these counties do not exactly coincide with the boundaries of the “ecological” Big Thicket as delineated by McLeod (1971, 1972), they do correspond reasonably well (Fig. 94). This artificial delineation (at the county level, except for the northern half of Liberty County) was chosen because detailed county level distributional data are available from Turner et al. (2003), supplemented by recent information of which we are aware, (e.g., Brown et al. 2002a; MacRoberts et al. 2002a; Harcombe 2004). Southern Liberty County is excluded, since the extensive area of Coastal Prairie in the southern part of that county would add coastal and even salt marsh species inappropriately. Western Montgomery County has some areas of prairie, but because of the numerous prairie inclusions that were well known in the Big Thicket in presettlement times (particularly on the Beaumont Formation—Watson 1975) and even today (e.g., on the Fleming Formation—Brown et al. 2002b), we do not believe that including all of Montgomery County inappropriately inflates the number of species. On the other hand, eliminating Montgomery County would be removing a significant segment of the Big Thicket. We suggest that, short of a detailed and time-intensive study,
168 INTRODUCTION/NATURAL HISTORY OF BIG THICKET this is probably the best current method of obtaining an estimate of species richness in the Big Thicket region. The data on which it is based are readily available, were compiled in large part by experts on the Texas flora (Billie Turner, Larry Brown, Barbara and Michael MacRoberts), and are, in general, supported by vouchered specimens. When analyzed as outlined above (seven and one-half counties—approximately 6,940 square miles or 2.6% of Texas), the Big Thicket region has 1,826 species (approximately 36% of the total Texas flora) in 174 families. While reasonably high, we believe that this is probably a significant underestimate because of the paucity of collections available. FIG.94/ARTIFICIAL DELINEATION OF THE BIG THICKET (COUNTY LEVEL) TO ESTIMATE SPECIES RICHNESS (OVERLAIN ON A MODIFIED FIG. 88). FIGURE PRODUCED BY BRIT/AUSTIN COLLEGE.
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ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS
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ALLDREDGE, LINDA & JACK BATTERBAE,
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We would like to recognize and expr
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ISSN 0833-1475 ISBN 1-889878-12-X S
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“DEEP EAST TEXAS IS AN OLD, QUIET
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Elray S. Nixon E lray Nixon was bor
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ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS TAB
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TABLE OFCONTENTS/ PAGE APPENDICES A
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Hymenocallis liriosme
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ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS OVE
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4 INTRODUCTION/GEOGRAPHIC AREA OF E
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10 INTRODUCTION/MAJOR RIVERS OF EAS
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12 INTRODUCTION/PLANTS TREATED The
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14 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO ARRANGEMEN
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16 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO SOURCES OF
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18 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO GEOGRAPHIC
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20 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO ENDANGERED
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22 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO GLOSSARY,
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24 INTRODUCTION/GUIDE TO ABBREVIATI
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26 INTRODUCTION/SUMMARY DATA ON FLO
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28 INTRODUCTION/ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Kar
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30 INTRODUCTION/AUTHORS’ NOTE Pre
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32 INTRODUCTION/GENERAL GEOLOGY OF
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46 INTRODUCTION/SOILS SOIL ORDER DE
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48 INTRODUCTION/SOILS, EAST TEXAS B
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50 INTRODUCTION/SOIL-RELATED GEOLOG
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60 INTRODUCTION/SOILS OF BLACKLAND
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66 INTRODUCTION/CLIMATE OF EAST TEX
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Forests define East Texas, and to a
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78 INTRODUCTION/GEOLOGY OF PINEYWOO
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80 INTRODUCTION/PRESETTLEMENT, EARL
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88 INTRODUCTION/PRESETTLEMENT VEGET
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90 INTRODUCTION/CURRENT VEGETATION
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106 INTRODUCTION/POST OAK SAVANNAH
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108 INTRODUCTION/POST OAK SAVANNAH
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110 INTRODUCTION/GEOLOGY AND SOILS
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112 INTRODUCTION/SOILS, FIRE, AND T
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114 INTRODUCTION/SOILS, FIRE, AND T
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Page 143 and 144: 126 INTRODUCTION/POST OAK SAVANNAH
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Page 147 and 148: 130 INTRODUCTION/BLACKLAND PRAIRIE
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Page 167 and 168: 150 INTRODUCTION/CADDO LAKE LOCATIO
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Page 171 and 172: 154 INTRODUCTION/PRESENT AND FUTURE
Page 173 and 174: 156 INTRODUCTION/BIG THICKET THE BI
Page 175 and 176: 158 INTRODUCTION/BIG THICKET GEOGRA
Page 177 and 178: 160 INTRODUCTION/NATURAL HISTORY OF
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218 INTRODUCTION/ORIGIN AND DIVERSI
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228 INTRODUCTION/CONSERVATION IN EA
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234 INTRODUCTION/HISTORY OF BOTANY
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244 INTRODUCTION/BOTANY IN NORTH CE
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246 INTRODUCTION/BOTANY IN NORTH CE
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248 INTRODUCTION/BOTANY AT UNIVERSI
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250 INTRODUCTION/BOTANY AT TEXAS A&
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252 INTRODUCTION/BOTANY AT TEXAS A&
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254 INTRODUCTION/OTHER CONTRIBUTION
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256 INTRODUCTION/CURRENT BOTANICAL
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258 INTRODUCTION/BOTANICAL ART IN E
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