Research Projects:
JOSEPH W. JONES ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH CENTER AT ICHAUWAY
Mission Statement
The mission of the Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway is to serve as a regional center of excellence in ecology and natural resource management that includes integrated research, education, and conservation goals. Multidisciplinary research, both short- and long-term in duration, is being conducted using experimental and descriptive studies of regional ecosystems. Information is transferred to targeted conservation and natural resource constituencies through the education and outreach program. Ichauway is used by Center staff as an outdoor laboratory for research, as a site for conserving and restoring regional ecosystems, and as an educational demonstration area for ecology and natural resource management.
Research, Conservation Education Programs
Research at the Jones Center is focused on two broad programmatic themes, the ecology and management of longleaf pine woodlands and their wildlife, and wetlands and aquatic resources. The goal is to answer relevant natural resource management questions. The Conservation program focuses on stewardship of the Ichauway landbase, serves as a technical information resource for the Center, and is an example of wise resource management in the region. Through the education program, information generated through the Jones Center's scientific research program is shared with a diverse constituency. Targeted recipients include practicing natural resource professionals, visiting college classes, natural resource and environmental policy-makers, private landowners, regional educators, and other conservation-oriented public- and private-sector interest groups.
Ichauway is a 30,000 acre site comprised of extensive longleaf pine forests, slash pine forests, oldfield loblolly pine stands, mixed pine hardwoods, riparian hardwood forests, live oak depressions, isolated depressional wetlands, creek swamps, agricultural fields, shrub-scrub uplands, human cultural zones, and rivers and creeks. Forest communities range from dry longleaf pine-wiregrass upland forests to cypress-gum ponds with a diversity of habitats in between. The fire-maintained longleaf pine ecosystem is a remnant of the once dominant forest type in the southeastern Coastal Plain. Much of the ground cover of the 18,000 acres of this forest at Ichauway has not been disturbed by previous agricultural tillage and consequently harbors some of the most species-rich habitats in North America. More than 1,100 vascular plant species have been documented on Ichauway. These rich vegetative communities support numerous faunal species. Aquatic and wetland habitats range from cypress-gum ponds and grassy, ephemeral wetlands to riverine habitats including cypress sloughs, deep pools, gravel riffles, and large stone, rapid water shoals. Diverse hardwood forests, called hammocks, are found on alluvial soils adjacent to the river and the creek. The aquatic habitats and their adjacent uplands are critical habitats for many rare species of plants, amphibians, reptiles, and birds.