**[BOOK CHAPTER INFORMATION]{.underline}**

[CHAPTER TITLE]{.underline}: Tree island plant communities and water
management in the central Everglades

[AUTHOR INFORMATION]{.underline}:

[List authors as]{.underline}: I. Lorraine Heisler, D. Timothy Towles,
Laura A. Brandt, and Robert T. Pace

[Send correspondence to]{.underline}: I. L. Heisler

[Author Affiliations]{.underline}:

I. Lorraine Heisler, Everglades Protection and Restoration Program,
Office of Environmental Services, Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish
Commission, 255 154th Avenue, Vero Beach, FL 32968 USA, phone
561-778-5094; fax 561-778-7227, e-mail heisleri@gfc.state.fl.us

D. Timothy Towles, Everglades Protection and Restoration Program, Office
of Environmental Services, Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission,
255 154th Avenue, Vero Beach, FL 32968 USA, phone 561-778-5094; fax
561-778-7227, towlesd@gfc.state.fl.us

Laura A. Brandt, Everglades Research and Education Center, Institute of
Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, P. O. Box 8003,
Belle Glade, FL 33430-8003; phone 561-996-3062, x126; e-mail
lab@gnv.ifas.ufl.edu

Robert T. Pace, South Florida Restoration Office, U. S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, P. O. Box 2676, Vero Beach, FL 32961-2676 USA; phone
561-778-0896; fax 561-564-7393; e-mail robert_pace@fws.gov

[CHAPTER INFORMATION]{.underline}

[Figures]{.underline}: approximately 8

> (map of island locations; diagram illustrating digitized landscape
> data and scale of study; plus 2-6 figures illustrating results,
> including cluster analysis dendrogram, ordination graph, and graphs
> illustrating bivariate relationships between biological, physical, and
> hydrological variables)

[Tables]{.underline}: approximately 2-3

> (one large 1-2 page table summarizing island biological and physical
> data; plus table identifying species and variables characteristic of
> different island types and/or table listing correlations among
> variables)

[Photos]{.underline}: approximately 4

> (b&w photos in a single frame, with a shared caption, illustrating
> different types of islands in the study)

[CHAPTER OUTLINE]{.underline}

I. Introduction

> A. Chapter's intent: present results of a one-year study of plant
> communities on 23 tree islands within Everglades Water Conservation
> Area 3
>
> B. Rationale for study
>
> 1\. Summary of existing literature on tree islands in the central
> Everglades
>
> 2\. Past and projected impacts of water management on tree islands
>
> 3\. Need for baseline data and development of evaluation and
> monitoring tools
>
> 4\. Adaptive management perspective of study (past water management as
> an experiment that can be used to develop hypotheses for future
> restoration and protection of tree islands
>
> C. Rationale for methodological approach (multivariate, observational
> study; focus on plant communities)
>
> D. Specific aims of study
>
> 1\. Identify and quantify variation among plant communities on
> different islands.
>
> 2\. Detect and measure (potentially causal) relationships between
> plant community composition and selected physical and hydrological
> variables

II\. Methods

> A. Selection criteria for tree island sample
>
> B. Vegetation data
>
> 1\. Transect design for plant community composition
>
> 2\. Tree censuses for large trees
>
> 3\. Taxonomic issues (identification; functional categories)
>
> C. Landscape-level data (aerial photo interpretation and estimates of
> spatial extent of tree island vegetation)
>
> D. Physical data
>
> 1\. Island elevations (three methods used; estimated accuracy)
>
> 2\. Soil depths (method used; estimated accuracy)
>
> E. Hydrological data
>
> 1\. South Florida Water Management Model validation/calibration
> results
>
> 2\. Variables selected

III\. Results

> A. Characteristics and classification of vegetation communities
>
> 1\. Diversity measures (species diversity and richness within and
> between islands)
>
> 2\. Multivariate measures: cluster and indirect gradient analyses of
> vegetation data
>
> B. Relationships between plant community, landscape, and physical
> variables
>
> C. Relationships between biological and hydrological variables

IV\. Discussion

> A. Interpretation of observed relationships
>
> B. Causal hypotheses suggested by results
>
> C. Implications for future water management and ecological
> restoration.
>
> D. Future studies needed