Fire Followers: Surveying Fire-Dependent Plants on Hillsborough County Nature Preserves

Palmetto re-growing after a prescribed fire

As we hike through the woods or walk through our neighborhoods, most of us don’t pay too much attention to the plants around us- they’re a nice part of the scenery, but we’re more likely to be looking for birds or deer than rare plants. If you’re hiking in a Hillsborough County ELAPP Nature Preserve, though, you may get the opportunity to spot some rare and beautiful native plants- all you have to do is look down!

One of these beautiful but rarely seen plants is the native orchid Calopogon multiflorus, also known as the many-flowered grass pink. It’s one of 26 orchid species documented in Hillsborough County Nature Preserves. When it’s not flowering, this plant might be mistaken by a casual observer as a little clump of grass, but that all changes when it begins to bloom. The flower spikes can grow to be over a foot tall and are covered in bright pink, complex flowers with orange centers - a beautiful surprise for any hiker. Due to the loss and degradation of suitable habitat, the many-flowered grass pink is listed as a threatened species in Florida.

Many-flowered grass-pink, Calopogon multiflorus

The many-flowered grass pink blooms mostly in the spring, but it’s also a fire-responsive species, blooming at various times of the year in areas that have been recently burned. It’s fire-dependent as well; without a habitat maintained by properly timed fires, this orchid can’t survive (Field Guide: Many-Flowered Grass Pink). Native wildflower species like the many-flowered grass pink, pine lily, and blazing star, along with many other species that have adapted to frequent fires, disappear over time in areas where fire has been suppressed and excluded. 

Pine lily, Lilium catesbaei

Calopogon multiflorus is far from the only threatened plant found in our nature preserves; on these sites, we’ve documented 18 plant species that are listed by the state of Florida as endangered and 26 plant species listed by the state as threatened. Many of Florida’s listed plant species are disappearing not only due to development and the disappearance of their habitat, but also because of improper land management choices such as wetland draining or the exclusion of prescribed fire. To help document the occurrence of listed plant species on our preserves and get an overall view of native plant diversity, the members of Hillsborough County’s Environmental Lands Research Analysts Team (EL-RAT) are surveying plants in several Hillsborough County Nature Preserves along with other botany-savvy staff.  Along with general plant surveys, EL-RAT has also focused on post-fire plant monitoring. 

Giant air plant, Tillandsia fasciculata, found during a plant survey

The plant species that EL-RAT is surveying aren’t only important because they’re threatened or endangered, but also because their presence is an excellent indicator of overall ecosystem health. Later in the year, the EL-RAT team will begin a more detailed, quantitative set of plant surveys using the OBVM (Observation Based Vegetation Management) Program, which will allow us to quantify changes in the structure of our natural communities and measure progress towards the desired future conditions of a site.

As we continue to improve our land management practices, these surveys will be a valuable source of data that will help us manage our nature preserves in a way that benefits not only threatened and endangered plants, but many other plant species native to Hillsborough County.