A few days ago I posted about the reptiles and amphibians I saw while at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. This post will focus on some of the dominant tree species. The three most notable trees were bald cypress, dwarf palmettos and live oaks.

Bald cypress trees (Taxodium distichum) are one of only a handful of deciduous conifer trees (other North American examples include the Dawn Redwood and various species of Larch).  Like other conifers, they have needle-like leaves and their reproductive structures are cones.  However, unlike evergreen conifers (i.e. pines, spruces, etc.) that maintain their needles all year,  the needles of deciduous conifers change colors in the fall and drop from the tree.  The common name of this species, “bald” cypress, derives from its habitat of losing its needles in the winter, leaving the crown of the tree bare.

Bald cypress are especially adapted to grow in saturated and inundated soils in southeastern and Gulf coast areas of the United States.  Besides their relatively rare needle shedding habitat, another unique feature of this tree are the “knees” that form around the base of the tree (shown in the picture below). Cypress knees are protruding, knobby structures originating from the roots, often extending above the surface of any standing water.  It is thought that these structures facilitate oxygenation to the trees’ roots or assist in anchoring and stabilization in soft muddy soil.

Dwarf palmettos (Sabal minor) are relatively low growing palms (hence the “dwarf” name) with fanlike-leaves, which can be 3 to 4 feet wide, presenting an almost prehistoric vibe to the swamp.  In dry areas, the leaves may appear to grow directly out of the ground, but in locations such as Barataria with standing water, dwarf palmettos will grow a stout trunk. Due to their unique leaf shape and size, Native Americans throughout the southeastern United States used the large leaves to build houses, weaving them into mats to fashion roofs and walls.  This practice was also adopted by European settlers, and dwarf palmetto fronds were actually used as roofing material into the early 1900s.

(Carolina anole on a dwarf palmetto leaf)

While bald cypress trees bucked the coniferous trend and dropped their needles in the fall, live oaks (Quercus virginiana) do exactly the opposite and are a type of evergreen oak.  Although commonly called “live oak” in the southeastern United States, its true common name is “southern live oak” to help distinguish it from other live oak species native to other areas.  Given the right conditions, these trees can grow into massive, spreading specimens, 40 to 80 feet tall and 60 to 100 feet wide, and are often covered with Spanish-moss iconic of the south.