South Florida Pollen Data

Analysis of 209 pollen assemblages from surface samples in ten vegetation types in the Florida Everglades form the basis to identify wetland sub-environments from the pollen record. This calibration dataset makes it possible to infer past trends in hydrology and disturbance regime based on pollen assemblages preserved in sediment cores. Pollen assemblages from sediment cores collected in different vegetation types throughout the Everglades provide evidence on wetland response to natural fluctuations in climate as well as impacts of human alteration of Everglades hydrology. Sediment cores were located primarily in sawgrass marshes, cattail marshes, tree islands, sawgrass ridges, sloughs, marl prairies, and mangroves. The datasets contain raw data on pollen abundance as well as pollen concentration (pollen grains per gram dry sediment).

Terrestrial ecosystems of south Florida have undergone numerous human disturbances, ranging from alteration of hydroperiod, fire history, and drainage patterns from the introduction of the canal system to expansion of agricultural activity to the introduction of exotic species, Over historical time, dramatic changes in the ecosystem have been documented and these changes have been attributed to various human activities. However, the natural variability of the ecosystem was unknown and needed to be determined to assess the true impact of human activity on the modern ecosystem. The project was designed to document historical changes in the terrestrial ecosystem quantitatively, to date any changes and determine whether they resulted form documented human activities, and to establish the baseline level of variability on the south Florida ecosystem to estimate whether the observed changes are greater than would occur naturally.