Here you see where a large fire break was cut, in February of 2022. The first two pictures shows how it looked right after the fire break was cut. The vegetation was cut down, shredded then plowed. These fire breaks serve the purpose of introducing an unnatural disturbance that will help maintain the character of the Upland Pine Flatwoods ecosystem as well as restrict potential fire damage from an uncontrolled fire.
A Pine Flatwoods ecosystem is naturally maintained by disturbance every few years in the form of lightning fires, sparked by thunderstorms, in our spring drought and summer rainy seasons. In the absence of fire, whether natural or suppressed by humans, this ecosystem would undergo succession, and will eventually become a completely different type of ecosystem. Without the presence of natural disturbance, forestry managers intervene to stop this succession. One of the challenges of human management of natural systems is finding the balance between preserving the essence of the ecosystem, the aesthetics of the park and the safety of the surrounding community.
Controlled or prescribed burns are closest to the natural way humans can manage the preservation of a Flatwoods ecosystem. Fire burns off thick brush and kills invasive species. This opens areas so that young pine trees, grasses and wildflowers get more light and can grow. The ash renews the nutrient-poor soil. Elimination of thick, tall shrubs prevents fire from reaching the crowns of the trees preventing a crown fire which can be destructive and dangerous. However, prescribed burns at CHEC are not practical because the buildings and boardwalks could be damaged, and there is a danger to the surrounding residential areas and roads nearby.
Florida's drought and deluge climate is another form of natural disturbance which is based on seasonal weather changes. This station originally featured a small seasonal wetland. During the summer, there was a small creek here filled with tadpoles, fish and crayfish. Typical wetland plants such as the Duck Potato (Sagittaria lancifolia the white flower in the picture) and Virginia Saltmarsh Mallow (Kosteletzkya pentacarpos the pink flower in the picture) grew there. During the dry winter months, the wetland dried up and was replaced with a dry grassy creek bed. This small temporary wetland may have been destroyed, but if the elevation of the area has not been substantially changed, we may see the marsh plants re- establish this summer. The disturbance provided by the seasonal weather changes allows for two different ecosystems to occur in the same space.
We often think of drastic changes to a natural area as destructive or “bad”. However, periodic and/or patchy disturbance facilitates ecosystem health and diversity. It will be interesting to return here and watch how nature renews itself. Look carefully and you will see this renewal already occurring.
