NATIONAL WETLANDS INVENTORY

MAP REPORT FOR

SOUTHEASTERN ALABAMA

1 :100,000 Scale Maps

Phenix City NW, Phenix City SW,Dothan NW, Dothan SW

I . INTRODUCTION

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service's NationalWetlands Inventory (NWI) is producing maps showing thelocation and classification of wetlands and deepwaterhabitats of the United States . Classification of Wetlandsand Deepwater Habitats of the United States by Cowardin etal . (1979) is the document used by the NWI to define andclassify wetlands . Photo interpretation conventions, hydricsoils lists and wetland plant lists are also used toimplement the Cowardin classification system .

The purpose of this map report is to :

(1) provideinformation on the production of NWI maps, includingnarrative on imagery and interpretation ; (2) provide adescriptive crosswalk from NWI wetland codes on the map tocommon terminology and to representative plant species foundon specific wetland sites ; and (3) describe local geography,climate, and wetland communities .

II . FIELD RECONNAISSANCE

Field reconnaissance is a key function in the photointerpretation process . Photographic signatures arecorrelated to the wetland habitat in the field . Wetlandidentification is based on the presence of hydrophyticvegetation, evidence of prolonged anaerobic soilconditions, and wetland hydrology . These conditions arefurther evaluated with respect to percent coverage ofvegetation, duration of soil saturation or flooding, andperiods of inundation .

Project Area

The Southeastern Alabama project consists of four adjacent100,000 maps, Dothan SW, Dothan NW, Phenix City SW andPhenix City NW, which are found in southeastern Alabamaalong the Alabama-Georgia state line .(Appendix A, Locator Map)

Field Personnel

Dennis Fowler - U .S . Fish and Wildlife ServiceNational Quality ControlSt . Petersburg, Florida(June 1-5, 1992)

Deborah Manz

- Geonex North American Operations, Inc .St . Petersburg, Florida(June 1-4, 1992)

W . Kyle Odom

- Geonex North American Operations, Inc .St . Petersburg, Florida(June 1-5, 1992)

Phillip Still - Geonex North American Operations, Inc .St . Petersburg, Florida(June 1-5, 1992)

Field Dates

June 1-5, 1992

Aerial Photography

March 09, 1981December 20, 1981March 09, 1982March 26, 1982

Phenix City SW

February 03, 1981February 20, 1981December 20, 1981

Dothan NW

February 03, 1981February 20, 1981February 23, 1981March 03, 1981December 20, 1981

Dothan SW

January 20, 1981February 20, 1981February 23, 1981March 08, 1982

Type : Color Infrared TransparenciesScale : 1 :58,000 NHAP

Dates : Phenix City NW February 03, 1981February 20, 1981

Collateral Data

United States Geological Survey 7'5" TopographicQuadrangles

United States Geological Survey 1 :250,000 Topographic Maps

Bailey, Robert G ., (1980) . Description of the Ecoregionsof the United States , United States Department ofAgriculture .

Cowardin's Classification of Wetlands and DeepwaterHabitats of the United States .

Hydric Soils Lists of the State of Alabama

Wetland Plant List of the State of Alabama

Soil Conservation Service Soil Surveys for the AlabamaCounties of Chambors, Coffee, Covington, Dale, Geneva,Henry, Houston and Early County of Georgia .

III . PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT AREA

According to Bailey, Description of the Ecoregions of theUnited States (1980), the study area is composed of theSoutheastern Mixed Forest Province and the Outer CoastalPlain Province . Both provinces are within the SubtropicalDivision of the Humid Temperate Domain .

The USGS 1 :100,000 scale maps Phenix City NW, Phenix CitySW, and Dothan NW are located in the Southeastern MixedForest Province . The USGS 1 :100,000 scale map Dothan SW islocated in the Outer Coastal Plain Forest Province .

Geography

The topography of the work area varies from nearly levelflats and depressional areas in the southern portion cfDothan SW to sloping hills in the remaining three maps . Thehighest relief is found in the Phenix City NW map . Nearlylevel terraces are found along many of the waterways in thework area including the Chattahoochee River .

The drainage systems generally are well developed and largercreeks are often shallow or sluggish, meandering throughwide, poorly drained bottomlands . A few areas, partic" ilarlyin the southeastern portion of the work area have poorlydeveloped drainage systems which causes ponding for longperiods of time . In these areas draining is often internalthrough underground channels .

Elevations range from 70 to 1,000 feet above sea level .Bodies of water include West Point Lake, Martin Lake, WalterF . George Lake, Challahoochee River, Tallapoosa River andthe Chattahoochee River .

Climate

The Southeastern Mixed Forest Province and the Outer CoastalPlain Forest Province are known as mesophytic or temperateforests which are characterized by mild winters and hot andhumid summers (Critchfield, 1974) . The average annualtemperature is 60° to 70° fahrenheit, and precipitationaverages 40 to 60 inches annually . Precipitation fallspredominantly in the summer months when minor water deficitsoccur due to high evapotranspiration .

Vegetation

Southeastern Mixed Forest Province - The climax vegetationin this region is forests of broadleaf deciduous andneedleleaf evergreen trees . At least half of the stands areloblolly pine, shortleaf pine, or other southern yellowpines, individually or in combination . Common broadleafdeciduous associates include oak, hickory, sweetgum,blackgum, red maple, and winged elm . The main grasses arebluestem, panicums, and longleaf uniola . Dogwood, viburnum,haw, blueberry, American beautyberry, youpon, and numerouswoody vines are common .

Outer Coastal Plain Forest Province - Temperate rainforest,also called temperate evergreen forest and laurel forest ischaracteristic of this region . The trees commonly found inthis area are evergreen oaks and members of the laurel andmagnolia families . The forests usually have a welldeveloped understory that may include tree ferns, smallpalms, shrubs, and herbaceous plants . Lianas and epirhytesare abundant . Spanish "moss" is the most conspicuousepiphyte at low elevations, where it festoons the Evangelineoak, bald cypress, and other trees of the eastern Gulf Coast(Bailey's 1978) .

Soils

Southeastern Mixed Forest Province (Soil Orders)- Ultisolsdominate throughout this region . Ultisols are usually moistsoils which develop under warm climates (Brady, 1974) .These soils are formed on old land surfaces and occurnormally under forest vegetation .

Vertisols formed frommarls or soft limestones are conspicuous locally in thisprovince but are absent from the portion within our studyarea . Inceptisols are young soils which show littleweathering of the horizons . Inceptisols on floodplains ofthe major streams are among the better soils for crops .Entisols are mineral soils with little or no horizondevelopment . Entisols are found infrequently within theSoutheastern Mixed Forest Province .

The Osier-Bibb complex is a common wetland soil in thisregion . It is a poorly drained, nearly level soil that hasa high water table and floods frequently . Permeability ofthese soils is moderate, and the water capacity is high . Itis suited to water-tolerant timber and wetland wildlife .

Cartecay soil is also a very important wetland soil in thisregion . This soil is frequently flooded usually duringshort periods after heavy rains . It is found sustainingmostly low quality hardwoods, loblolly pine and sweetgum .This soil type is suited to woodland or pasture .

outer Coastal Plain Forest Province (Soil Orders)- Ultisolsare common within this province and can occur in savannah orswamp .vegetation communities (Brady, 1974) . These soils arethe most common in the humid southeast . Entisols withinthis province are sandy and may be forested or used forcropland . The Spodosols are mineral soils which occur inhumid areas . Forests are the natural vegetation under whichmost of these soils have developed .

The Grady soil is an important wetland soil in this region .It is deep and poorly drained with the water table at orabove the surface 6-8 months yearly . This complex is foundas small rounded depressions on broad flats . This complexsupports mostly woodland vegetation .

Another important soil complex in this area is the Bibb andOsier association . It consists of deep, poorly drained,moderately permeable soils on floodplains of streams . Thisassociation is suited for wildlife habitat and pasture .

TABLE I .

The following are species encountered while field checksitingprior to delineation :

Palustrine Temporary/Saturated Emergents :PEM1A,PEM1B

Juncus spp .

rushLachnocaulon anceps

hairy pipewort

Palustrine Seasonal/Semi-Permanent Emergents :PEM1C,PEM1F

Carex spp .

sedgePanicum hemitomon

maidencaneSagittaria lancifolia

bull tongueSaururus cernuus

lizards tailScirpus cyperinus

woolgrassTvPha latifolia

cattail

Palustrine Permanent and Semi-Permanent Aquatic Bed :PAB3F,PAB4H,

Lemna spp .

duckweedNymphaea odorata

white water lily

Palustrine Temporary/Saturated Scrubshrub :PSSlA,PSSIB,PSS3B,PSS4A,PSS4B

Acer rubrum

mapleClethra alnifolia

sweet pepper bushGleditsia aquatica

water locustMagnolia spp .

bayMyrica cerifera

wax myrtlePinus spp .

pineSmilax spp .

catbrier

Palustrine Seasonal/Semi-Permanent Scrub-shrub :PSSIC,PSSIF,PSS3C

Alnus serrulata

alderCephalanthus occidentalis

button bushCyrilla racemiflora

titiIlex spp .

hollyLvonia lucida

fetterbushSalix nigra

willowSambucus canadensis

elderberry

Palustrine Temporary Saturated Forested :PFO1A,PF01B,PF04A,PF04B

Carpinus carolinianaCarya illinoensisCarya ovataFraxinus pennsylvanicaLiquidambar styracifluaLiriodendron tulipiferaMorus rubraOstrya virginianaPinus elliottiiPlatanus occidentalisQuercus bicolorQuercus niara-Quercus Palustris

Ouercus michauxiiQuercus phellosSalix nigraTaxodium distichum

American hornbeamcommon pecanshagbark hickorygreen ashsweet gumyellow poplarred mulberryironweedslash pinesycamoreswamp white oakwater oakpin oak

Palustrine Seasonal/Semi-Permanent Forested :PF01C,PF01F,PF02C,PF02F,PF01/2C,PF01/2F

swamp chestnut oakwillow oakblack willowbald cypress

Acer barbatumAcer rubrumBetula nigra

Florida maplemapleriver birch

Car a aquatica water hickoryN ssa aquatica water tupeloNyssa sylvatica blackgum

Platanus occidentalisQuercus bicolorQuercus michauxiiQuercus nigraQuercus palustrisQuercus phellosSalix nigr aTaxodium distichum

sycamoreswamp white oakswamp chestnut oakwater oakpin oakwillow oakblack willowbald cypress

TABLE II . OBSERVED WETLAND VEGETATION TABLE

A . EMERGENTCarex spp . sedgeJuncus spp . rushLachnocaulon anceps hairy pipewortPanicum hemitomon maidencaneSagittaria lancifolia bull tongueSaururus cernuus lizards tailTypha latifolia cattail

B . AQUATIC BEDLemna spp . duckweedNymphaea spp . water lily

C . SCRUB-SHRUBAcer rubrum red mapleAlnus serrulata hazel alderCephalanthus occidentalis button bushClethra alnifolia sweet pepper bushGleditsia aquatica water locustMyrica cerifera wax myrtleSalix nigra black willowSambucus canadensis elderberrySassafras albidium sassafras

D . FORESTEDAcer barbatum Florida mapleAcer rubrum mapleBetula nigra river birchCarpinus caroliniana American hornbeamCarya aquatica water hickoryCarya illinoensis common pecanCarya ovata shagbark hickoryFraxinus pennsylvanicaLiquidambar styracifluaLiriodendron tulipifera

green ashsweet gumyellow poplar

Morus rubra red mulberryNyssa aquatica water tupeloNyssa sylvatica black gumOstrya virginiana ironweed

Table III . NWI WETLAND CLASSIFICATION CODES, COWARDIN DESCRIPTION AND COMMON TERMINOLOGY

NWI CODE

COWARDINWATER REGIME

DESCRIPTION

COMMON DESCRIPTION

VEGETATION

open water, settling ponds

Unconsolidated bottom

Deep basins, impoundments,

Aquatic bedsewage treatment

Basins, depressions, marshes,

Scirpus cyperinusmeadows, springs, seeps, oxbows,(woolgrass)or drainage areas

Juncus spp . (rush)Panicum hemitomon(maidencane)

Willow thicket, river banks,

Salix spp .oxbows, drainage areas, or

(willow)wet shrubby areas

Populus deltoides(Eastern cottonwood)

Cottonwood, river banks, oxbows, Populus deltoidesfloodplains, drainage areas,

(eastern cottonwood)swamps, wet forests

Quercus spp . (oak)

PUB Palustrine,(F,H) unconsolidated bottom

PAB4,PAB3 Palustrine,(F,H) aquatic bed

PEM1 Palustrine,(A,C,F) emergent

PSS1,PSS3,PSS4 Palustrine,(A,C,F) scrub-shrub

PFO1,PF02,PF03, Palustrine,PF04,PF01/2 forested(A,B,C,F)

V .

WATER REG IME DESCRIPTION

VI . IMAGERY

(A)

Temporarily Flooded - Surface water present forbrief periods during growing season, but watertable usually lies well below soil surface .Plants that grow .both in uplands and wetlandscharacteristic of this water regime .

(B)

Saturated - The substrate is saturated to thesurface for extended periods during the growingseason, but surface water is seldom present .

(C)

Seasonally Flooded - Surface water is present forextended periods especially early in the growingseason, but is absent by the end of the growingseason in most years . The water table afterflooding ceases is extremely variable, extendingfrom saturated to a water table well below croundsurface .

(F)

Semipermanently Flooded - Surface water persiststhroughout the growing season in most years . Whensurface water is absent, the water table isusually at or very near the land's surface .

(H)

Permanently Flooded - Water covers the landsurface throughout the year in all years .

(K)

Artificially Flooded - Substrate manipulated byman using natural or synthetic materials . Waterlevel is not constant . Depending on needs, thewater is pumped in or out of the reservoir .

A . Emulsion Quality

B . Resolution Clarity

The photography is very clear with no noticeable blurryareas .

are

The NHAP Color Infra-Red photography is good qualityfor the most part . Some of the photography has a veryblue emulsion which made wetland/upland breaksdifficult as well as making degree of wetness (waterregime) difficult to determine . The photography hasvery little glare .

C . Season and Climatic Conditions at Time of Photography

All of the photography was taken in the winter, inJanuary, February, and March of 1981 and 1982 . Thiswas a good time to capture the imagery due to thedeciduous trees being in their leaf off or new budstage . That makes it much easier to distinguishbetween deciduous and evergreen trees .

D . Expectations vs . Ground Verification

The main problem we encountered in the field wasdifferentiating gum ponds from cypress domes . Weidentified them in the field and noticed that thesignatures seemed to be identical . Our decision onthis was to look at the photos under the scope and lookfor the tight "cottonball" crowns for cypress trees .If there were no tight crowns we should assume that thewetland is a gum pond .

VII .

MAP PREPARATION

The classification and delineation of wetlands is inaccordance with Cowardin et al (1979) . National WetlandsInventory photographic and cartographic conventions canprovide more information about the mapping process .Delineations are produced through stereoscopicinterpretation of 1 :58,000 scale color infraredphotography . The dates of photography ranged from 1981 to1982 . The months the mission was flown were Januarythrough March .

Field checks were conducted in each of the four 1 :100,000maps in the study area prior to the delineation ofwetlands . The check sites were selected to clarifywetland/upland breaks and correlate signatures to thevarious vegetative covers .

USGS topographic maps, SCS soil surveys, vegetation,climate, and ecoregional information are all used ascollateral data for wetland delineation .

The user of the map is cautioned that, due to thelimitation of mapping primarily through aerialphotointerpretation, a small percentage of wetlands may beunidentified . Since the photography depicts only onespecific moment in time there may be discrepancies betweenthe maps and current field conditions . Changes inlandscape which occurred after the date of photographywould result in such discrepancies .

Aerial photointerpretation and drafting were completed byGeonex, Inc ., St . Petersburg, Florida with qualityassurance conducted by the United States Fish and WildlifeService .

13

VIII . SPECIAL MAPPING PROBLEMS

al-se-2 .rptWKO/drs .nwi

Field checking proved that photo signatures generallycoincided with true field conditions .

Care had to be taken to use all collateral data (soilsurveys) . Some areas will be checked at draft map toensure accuracy .

IX .

MAP ACQUISITION

To discuss any questions concerning these maps, pleasecontact :

Regional Wetland CoordinatorU .S . Fish and Wildlife Service - Region 4R .B . Russell Federal Building75 Spring Street SWMail Stop 1276Atlanta, GA 30303

To order maps call 1-800-USA-MAPS .

Maps are identified by the name of the corresponding USGS1 :24,000 scale topographic quadrangle name . Topographicmap indices are available from the USGS .

X .

LITERATURE CITED

Bailey, R .G ., 1978 . Description of The Ecoregions of TheUnited States . United States Department ofAgriculture, Forest Service .

Brady, N .C ., 1974 . The Nature and Properties of Soils .Macmillan Publishing Co ., Inc . New York . 639pp .

Cowardin, L .M ., V . Carter, F .C . Golet, and E .T . LaRue,1979 . Classification of Wetlands and DeepwaterHabitats of The United States . United StatesDepartment of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service,FWS/PBS - 79/81 .

Critchfield, H . J ., 1974 . General Climatology . PrenticeHall, Inc . Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey . 446pp .

APPENDIX ALOCATOR MAP

1 :250,000 SCALE

1 :250 000 SCALE

,.-!STAIrr- r,,- LAWA'RE,Zql W- 66-1- VIR601i~6gr Vir OT

1

jDC)O-1

YK

csc)-~Q

-Loi501

__~II Vit"~

LJ ~~~ ~

V

2-

-lWa. 00 LASt

co 7-9 D

413(0- -7A2

-)Z9 i..e .̂ G 3~ ` ~'`~~ ~ I ~X52, v717

cc) Z0A *73

I-N L

65-1 CP

b--_5 -7

toLO to 1% 2,(q 3

off.%

D 3,-7

vl' S7-7

TVL '-T) LCj-~)v-* -TTLPID7,,S 0

WEST-.V HK6 1 IN I P\ 2-0 ~~ b i `=? I MAW(Q 01' ul--*, Wr

"G072-v"'66765 &074 &A

I LOL 60 730'. 0 (oQI'S v 6441LO b07

LO o-6 (05 / bQZ~ 121~ f"l- L4 -V5(~Z.~q_

j ~G~ ~ -~ `

X73 . . i, ..: 330% .~__ . .

6'/so ~ &~/ 11-5, V--.

L--,ball-~ ------ --6lZr,471/ z

6IS2

6-16- 17

6-31q ,~~ LI;bz

6/0l.~/~/

i~j i.

.1,

6-32-3- 11

~;~ 9i ~~

~~ ~ ../A-A29'

~,B

,q<6 V-

L~-

963b L"--

&61(-3 L,---

6W? __._,/ i

6 (v0 '--/ 6.61 - v-~i 132 V

MD PLOT #'S

6547612661276108612861146102612261246130611761106116610061066621661666286125662461186153614861416142613361406145611961386134613561466150614361526104610361136123614961376131613261396480648261446636

EXISTING CHESAPEAKE BAY PLOTS

631966236112661761216618661566206774610961016111610566256630610766226129

PA

PLOT U S

6075606160786074607060636069606260576059607660646058605660726079657265746573657163256568633563396561655963346567655863376330633365626570656463186432643864586449644364266447644164556436645464356444

EXISTING CHESAPEAKE BAY PLOTS

WV PLOT #'S

6293627762786284628862856291629262876214628262836281629562966279629062946280

EXISTING CHESAPEAKE BAY PLOTS

. .,p, : .:,-; :: " : : :., . . . .

..

..... .

.. . . . . . .

"" '

. . .. . . . . . . . . . . .: . ; "" ;'.r":.t""";: ;: :;:";i'r":jR "'v':+':j";:::""}:'r :y,: . ::v:",".

. . . . . ' ::.t.. :.. ..

- :

NATIONAL TREND UPDATE PLOT REPLACEMENT FORM

STATE :

TYPE OF QC :

DATE OF QC :

PERFORMED BY :

" yo uRq

ZT "

-D a0\1PAGE :

1 OF

DROPPLOT # ZONE # REASON

REPLACEMENTPLOT #

+-{ a3 3Co Ov er~~..p w~'t~ ~10~ 1831 (p0 Ll 9

3 I - ,A 1 3 ex Oot y

tS(v Qu -~. S d C . ~, ~ou ~~ dc~- t ~( Coo :50

Ll L-l 6 3Cn v e r 10 V-) lo t 4/ \!~l _.-

S 1t I P P I N G

M E M O R A N D U M

U .S . Department of the Interior, National Wetlands Inventory, St . Peterst-irg, FL

To :

Date Shipped: / -- 1 --,

(I --l()

r1,.V- (Y

I tem

f I

, s

,/(,-I:

,c Y, J

(- tC

cc / I, . i ,

No . of Packages :

Assembled By : ~!'/'

iWe are sending you by

6(-1 r

the following materials :

J

1~7

,~'- i_

National Wetlands Inventory

~_U .S . Fish and Wildlife ServiceMonroe Building - Suite 101

Date :9720 Executive Center DriveSt . Petersburg, FL 33702

Please acknowledge receipt of shipment

Shipment received by (signature) :by signing and returning this memo to :

06 October 1993

i ['

l

`l,3

NEVADA - Status and Trends Update-Plots Table

PLOTNO

787788789790791

290529082910

8 rows selected .

- t C.

C

06 October 1993

OREGON - Status and Trends Update-Plots Table

PLOTNO

1314

157158159161162163165166

- 167-168

283828412844284828552860286328641 i~ ,-> 1

20 rows selected

r c~

06 October 1993

WASHINGTON - Status and Trends Update_Plots Table

PLOTNO

1516

w 149- 150151

-- 1521531-54

-1552800280128042805280628072808

Vv -1,

16 rows selected .

06 October 1993

IDAHO - Status and Trends Update-Plots Table

PLOTNO

792793795796797798799800801802803804805

281528162819282128342835

19 rows selected .

(I e ;I)b "*

kn- -/

'i3

06 October 1993

ARIZONA - Status and Trends Update Plots Table

PLOTNO

812813814815816817

2921

7 rows selected .

I t'1

._ .-/ .

r7J