The Southern bottomland forest macrogroup consists of the following habitats:
Atlantic Coastal Plain Blackwater/Brownwater Stream Floodplain Forest
Regional distribution:
VA. 163,607 total acres of habitat, of which 6.2% is conserved.
Description:
A complex of wetland and upland vegetation on floodplains
of coastal plain streams south of the James river in
southeast Virginia. These are narrow but sometimes long dendritic patches of wetland forest dominated by bald cypress and tupelo with oaks and other bottomland hardwoods found in drier areas. Small shrubby sloughs may be present, and shrub and herb layers are generally well- developed. Two variants are recognized. "Blackwater" floodplains originate in sandy soils; their waters are strongly stained by tannins and carry little suspended clay sediment. Depositional landforms are limited. Streams in more nutrient- rich and diverse "brownwater" floodplains carry substantial amounts of silt and clay. Natural levees are often distinctly present.
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pdf for this habitat for information about species, crosswalks to state names, and condition of this habitat.