Georgia Magazine - May 2024 - 25

The greatest
threat to
conservation
is the loss of
biodiversity.
-E.O. Wilson, evolutionary
biologist and writer
A federally endangered species, relict trillium (Trillium reliquum) grows in only a few places in Georgia,
South Carolina and Alabama. It is part of a mature hardwood forest ecosystem.
help to dissipate pollutants. Georgia Department of Natural
Resources officials say that these wetland areas are " costly, if not
impossible, to reconstruct or rehabilitate once adversely
affected. "
Cultivating a biodiverse ecosystem
Georgia is also home to the longleaf pine forests. At one
time this ecosystem was thought to cover almost two-thirds of
the Southeast, stretching from southern Virginia west to Texas
and south to Florida. Today, less than .25 percent of these forests
remains.
A healthy longleaf-pine ecosystem supports 900 plant,
100 bird, 35 mammal and 170 reptile and amphibian species.
Though the longleaf pine tree itself is not considered
endangered, it is a keystone species that supports many
endangered species, including the red-cockaded woodpecker
and the hairy rattleweed, which grows nowhere in the world
except in Georgia.
For hundreds, if not thousands, of years the longleaf pine
forests were cleared out by natural fires every five to seven years.
These fires were as much a part of the environment as sunshine
and rain and served to keep other woody plants from shading
out the open grasslands that occur underneath the pines.
Today, the best tool for saving this ecosystem is to mimic these
naturally occurring fires with controlled burns. Carefully set
and maintained fires burn at a much slower rate and lower
temperatures and help eradicate invasive species.
Controlled burns also are used to help keep woody and
invasive plants out of wet meadows, bogs and grasslands. The
Coosa Valley Prairie near Rome is a remnant of the grasslands
that once were abundant around the state. These grassland
areas are home to many of Georgia's endangered plants, such as
American chaffseed, whorled sunflower and dwarf sumac.
How we can help
Invasive species not only affect the survival of many native
plants but also pose a great economic burden. The U.S.
Department of Agriculture estimates that controlling invasive
species costs U.S. taxpayers $21 billion annually. Kudzu, privet,
English ivy and autumn olive are a few of the invasive plants
that choke out and smother agricultural lands and native
habitats.
Pests and diseases also pose a threat to native plants.
The Florida torreya tree, found in South Georgia and northern
MORE
Georgia's federally endangered plant species
* Alabama clematis (Clematis socialis)
* American chaff seed (Schwalbea americana)
* Black-spored quillwort (Isoetes melanospora)
* Canby's dropwort (Tiedemannia canbyi)
* Cooley's meadowrue (Thalictrum cooleyi)
* Dwarf sumac (Rhus michauxii)
* Florida torreya (Torreya taxifolia)
* Fringed campion (Silene polypetala)
* Green pitcher plant (Sarracenia oreophila)
* Hairy rattleweed (Baptisia arachnifera)
* Harperella (Ptilimnium nodosum)
* Mat-forming quillwort (Isoetes tegetiformans)
* Morefi eld's clematis (Clematis morefi eldii)
* Persistent trillium (Trillium persistens)
* Pondberry (Lindera melissifolia)
* Relict trillium (Trillium reliquum)
* Rock gnome lichen (Gymnoderma lineare)
* Tennessee yellow-eyed grass (Xyris tennesseensis)
* Whorled sunfl ower (Helianthus verticillatus)
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Georgia Magazine - May 2024

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