Fire in North American Wetland Ecosystems and Fire-Wildlife Relations: An Annotated Bibliography

55. Cypert, E. 1973. Plant succession on burned areas in Okefenokee Swamp following 
         the fires of 1954 and 1955. Proc. Tall Timbers Fire Ecol. Conf. 12:199-217.

The three areas severely burned in 1954 and 1955 are all returning to swamp forest. Coppice growth rapidly replaces trees if the root systems are not killed by fire, even when shallow layers of peat are also burned. It thus seems that extremely severe or repeated fires are necessary to develop Okefenokee prairies (marshes). Fire appears responsible for the mosaic of habitats in the swamp. Either total exclusion of fire or completely uncontrolled fire would be detrimental to swamp wildlife. [K-L-S]

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