. The ecological impact of man on the south Florida herpetofauna . Figure 4. "Takeover" of the shoreline by Casuaruia at Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne, Dade County. Most native vegetation has been crowded out by the Australian pines. (LP) particularly in Dade County, have been completely taken over by this tree. Another troublesome tree is the Brazilian pepper. Austin {in Morris 1977) pointed out that the date of its introduction is not known, "but it has become a noticeable part of the Florida flora only since about ; Its red berries are eaten, and the seeds


. The ecological impact of man on the south Florida herpetofauna . Figure 4. "Takeover" of the shoreline by Casuaruia at Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne, Dade County. Most native vegetation has been crowded out by the Australian pines. (LP) particularly in Dade County, have been completely taken over by this tree. Another troublesome tree is the Brazilian pepper. Austin {in Morris 1977) pointed out that the date of its introduction is not known, "but it has become a noticeable part of the Florida flora only since about ; Its red berries are eaten, and the seeds are dispersed by birds. It occurs in a wide variety of habitats, especially in areas disturbed by humans. Cutting the tree encourages a more disordered growth from the trunk. In areas where it has become well-established, the wild and tangled growth of its branches pro- duces dense shade in the understory that retards the growth of all but the most shade-tolerant plants (, certain species of ferns). Schinus is extremely fast-growing and can take over an area in a relatively short span of time, presumably before norinal successional changes can bring about a serai stage that could effectively compete for the space (Fig. 5). Two aquatic weeds are causing both ecological and economic problems in south Florida. One is the water hyacinth, which is now widespread throughout the southeastern United States. The water hyacinth, a native of Brazil, was introduced into the St. ,Tohn's River at Jacksonville, whence it has spread widely in Florida, clogging waterways due to its rapid growth (Fig. 6). Gore (1976) noted that


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