Small plants are the first to germinate, followed by shrubs and trees. The roots of the vegetation anchor the island in place. The canopy is usually a dense growth of redbay intermixed with dahoon holly. A narrow border of wax myrtle, buttonbush, and coco-plum surrounds the typical island. Occasionally, other trees such as red maple and oaks are found on tree islands.
Alligators play an important role in the Everglades ecosystem.
During the wet season, water and all the organisms that live in it are spread throughout the Everglades. Alligators dig holes that trap water. Thousands of alligators inhabit the refuge, which has the greatest density of alligators in all the Everglades, south of Lake Okeechobee. A distinct man-made community exists in the disturbed areas along the perimeter canals. Here there are willow, cattail, and dense stands of giant cane that spread as a result of nutrients that are discharged into the canals from agricultural and urban lands to the north and west.