A coastal band of wetlands is a mosaic of marsh and hammock vegetation
strongly influenced by the porous limestone bedrock. Hammocks have little
tolerance for salt and grow where the limestone elevation is high. The
marsh grows between the high and low tide lines where the limestone is
low enough to be coated by a veneer of mud.
Hammocks of sabal palm and red cedar thrive on limestone high areas scattered
throughout the wide marsh plain.
Wrack, a thick layer of marsh debris, is depostited against the tree line
following a major storm. Although resilient to storm events, the marsh
coast is sensitive to significant and long-term changes.