Critical Woodland Communities

Critical Woodland Communities

A small stand of Holly trees, Mashpee (.jpg - 86k)

The Forests of Cape Cod, which Native Americans had maintained with sporadic fires, were rapidly cut down by the first European settlers. Areas of forest were harvested for lumber and fuel, and cleared to make room for agriculture. The thin layer of topsoil quickly eroded into the sea, and large areas of the outer Cape, including Eastham and Orleans, were transformed into massive sand dunes.

Many hardwood stands were also destroyed in large fires that used to sweep across the Cape, but improvements in infrastructure and fire-fighting techniques finally ended the forest fires.

Today, the Cape is dominated by pitch pine/oak forests, which are the pioneer tree species that recolonized the cleared land. However, a few hardwood stands do exist, representing more advanced stages of succession. These stands are young and rare, found in uncleared areas missed by fires, and characterized by having fairly rich soils.

Stands of native trees that can be found on the Cape include: American holly (Ilex opaca), coastal basswood (Tilia neglecta), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis), black birch (Betula lenta) and post oak/hickory associations (Quercus stellata/Carya spp.).

Development is a major threat to the few remaining hardwood habitats.