Can you see the cypress forest?
Probably not, and neither could I.
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| Sable palm trees are growing where a cypress forest once stood. Except for the lone cypress on the left. It is the slanted tree that sort of looks like a flag. |
But upon closer inspection:
What looked like a forest of sabal palm was actually hiding a graveyard of cypress trunks at its base.
The reason?
A drainage-induced drought and decades of wildfire wiped the cypress out.
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| Fire resistant cabbage palm (standing) and the the cypress trees they replaced (lying on the ground). |
Not to worry:
Help is on the way.
This particular patch of over-drained swamp is part of the 55,000 acre Picayune Strand Restoration Project.
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| Can you see the future cypress forest? |
Finally, the end of the fifty year drought is near!
