West Gulf Coastal Plain Herbaceous Seep and Bog

Geology

Often associated with Eocene sand formations such as Queen City, Sparta, and particularly Carrizo Sands.

Landform

Generally found on slopes, as well as on valley floors and toe slopes where seepage from upslope occurs through the deep sands on site.

Soils

Deep Sand, Very Deep Sand, or Wet Sandy Draw Ecological Sites are typical of this system and surrounding areas.

Parent Description

This small patch system typically presents as an herbaceous wetland, though sometimes significant shrub cover by Morella cerifera (wax-myrtle) and/or other species may be conspicuous. The herbaceous layer is dominated by a dense, species-rich, graminoid-forb layer less than 1 m tall with continuous to nearly continuous cover, typically 80-90%. Seepage results from the percolation of water through a porous sand layer until it encounters a more impermeable layer and flows to the surface. Grass species present may include species such as Andropogon glomeratus (bushy bluestem), Dichanthelium scoparium (velvet panicum), Panicum anceps (beaked panicum), Panicum brachyanthum (pimple panicgrass), Panicum virgatum (switchgrass), Paspalum laeve (smooth paspalum), Saccharum giganteum (sugarcane plumegrass), and Steinchisma hians (gaping panicum) [=Panicum hians]. Sedges and rushes are well-represented and may include Cyperus strigosus (false nutgrass), Eleocharis acicularis (needle spikesedge), Fuirena squarrosa (hairy umbrellasedge), Juncus dichotomus (forked rush), Juncus diffusissimus (slimpod rush), Juncus effusus (common rush), and Rhynchospora spp. (beakrushes, including R. gracilenta, R. oligantha, and/or R. rariflora). A diverse forb assemblage is typically present, and may include Eryngium integrifolium (simpleleaf eryngo), Eupatorium perfoliatum (common boneset), Habenaria repens (waterspider false reinorchid), Hypericum mutilum (dwarf St. John's-wort), Ludwigia alternifolia (bushy seedbox), Lycopodiella spp. (clubmoss), Osmunda cinnamomea (cinnamon fern), Osmunda regalis (royal fern), Pogonia ophioglossoides (rose pogonia), Polygala cruciata (drumheads), Rhexia mariana (Maryland meadowbeauty), Sarracenia alata (pitcher-plant), Symphyotrichum dumosum var. dumosum (bushy aster), Woodwardia spp. (chainfern), and/or Xyris spp. (yellow-eyed grass, X. ambigua, X. baldwiniana, X. difformis, X. jupicai, X. laxifolia, and/or X. torta). Seeps may feed downslope depressional wetlands which may be overtaken by shrub species such as Morella cerifera (wax-myrtle), or may be dominated by Eleocharis spp. (spikerush), Juncus spp. (rush), Panicum hemitomon (maidencane), and/or Rhynchospora spp. (beakrush). The bogs of portions of the East-Central Texas Plains Post Oak Savanna, commonly referred to as ""muck bogs,"" differ from similar bogs within the West Gulf Coastal Plain by a decrease in species richness towards the west. These bogs can become dominated by woody species such as Morella cerifera (wax- myrtle), Ilex vomitoria (yaupon), and Smilax laurifolia (bamboo-vine). East of the Post Oak Savanna, other woody species such as Toxicodendron vernix (poison sumac), Magnolia virginiana (sweetbay), Persea borbonia (redbay), and Pinus palustris (longleaf pine) may form a sparse emergent canopy. Sites east of the Post Oak Savanna may contain broadleaved evergreen woody species such as Magnolia virginiana (sweetbay), Cyrilla racemiflora (leatherwood), Morella caroliniensis (evergreen bayberry), Persea palustris (swamp redbay), and Ilex coriacea (bay-gall bush). Herbaceous species more characteristic of eastern occurrences include Gelsemium sempervirens (Carolina jessamine), Hypericum galioides (bedstraw St. John's -wort), Lachnocaulon anceps (whitehead bogbutton), Ludwigia hirtella (spindleroot), Marshallia graminifolia (grassleaf Barbara's buttons), Rhexia petiolata (ciliate meadowbeauty), Rhynchospora inexpansa (nodding beaksedge), Rhychospora plumosa (plumed beaksedge), Rudbeckia scabrifolia (bog coneflower), and Xyris drummondii (Drummond's yellow-eyed grass).