The Hole in the Donut

John G. and Susan H. Dupuis Wildlife and Environmental Area, Canal Point, Martin County


donut hole
Cypress dome and strand swampss are nature's illusions. From a distance, they look like a mound progressively getting higher toward the center. then diminishing again as your eye moves across from one side to the other. But they're not. They're really donuts, with a center that's absent of trees, hollow if you will. The effect occurs because trees nearer the center have greater access to water and nutrients than trees toward the outer edges, and thus grow progressively taller than trees farther out. The "hollow" center occurs because the water is too deep for cypress trees. However, other water-loving plants will fill the void. This, by the way, is the viewing from the end of the boardwalk we mentioned earlier. Note: this photo was take in the middle of the dry season, and the area is drier than it would have been a few months earlier.

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Published by Wild South Florida, PO Box 7241, Delray Beach, FL 33482.
Photographs by David Sedore. Photographs are property of the publishers and may not be used without permission.