North American Prairie Conference
Date of this Version
2004
Abstract
The two major types of prairie in Louisiana are Cajun Prairie-a coastal prairie type located in southwest Louisianaand the calcareous prairies that are scattered across central and north Louisiana. Fort Polk, located in west central Louisiana, is predominately longleaf pine forest, but also includes calcareous prairies. A floristic survey of the Anacoco Prairie on Fort Polk has been ongoing since 1991. Herbaceous species dominant in the small prairie openings, which are surrounded by strips of calcareous forests. A total of 177 species of vascular plants have been identified from the Anacoco Prairie. The top two families are Poaceae and Asteraceae with more than one~half of the herbaceous species. The next family with regard to number of species is Fabaceae. The genera with the most number of species include Paspalum, Andropogon, and Liatris.
Comments
Published in Dave Egan & John A. Harrington, editors, Proceedings of the 19th North American Prairie Conference: The Conservation Legacy Lives On..., University of Wisconsin-Madison, August 8-12, 2004 (Proceedings of the North American Prairie Conference, 19), Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2004.