- Coastal North Carolina wetlands are presented by common type. A hydrogeomorphic
classification is included as well. The wetlands presented here are broken down into
the following categories. A brief explanation of each wetland type follows its name.
- Salt/Brackish Marsh (w-type 1)
- Any salt marsh or other marsh subject to regular or occasional flooding by tides,
including wind tides (whether or not the tide waters reach the marshland areas through
natural or artificial watercourses), as long as this flooding does not include hurricane
or tropical storm waters. Coastal wetland plant species include: smooth cordgrass; black
needlerush; glasswort; salt grass; sea lavender; salt marsh bullrush; saw grass;
cattail; salt meadow cordgrass; and big cordgrass
- Estuarine Shrub Scrub (w-type 3)
- Any shrub/scrub dominated community subject to occasional flooding by tides, including
wind tides (whether or not the tide waters reach these areas through natural or artificial
watercourses). Typical species include wax myrtle and eastern red cedar.
- Estuarine Forested (w-type 15)
- A forested wetland community subject to occasional flooding by tides, including wind
tides (whether or not the tide waters reach the marshland areas through natural or
artificial watercourses). Examples include pine-dominated communities with rushes in
the understory or fringe swamp communities such as those that occur along the Albemarle
and Pamlico sounds,
- Maritime Swamp Forest (w-type 16)
- A forested community characterized by its stunted growth due to the stresses imposed by
its proximity to salt spray from the ocean. Typical
vegetation includes live oak, red maple and swamp tupelo.
- Freshwater Marsh (w-type 2)
- Herbaceous areas that are flooded for extended periods during the growing
season. Included are marshes within lacustrine systems, managed impoundments, some
Carolina Bays, and other non-tidal marshes (i.e. marshes which do not fall into
the Salt/Brackish Marsh category). Typical communities include species of sedges,
millets, rushes and grasses that are not specified in the coastal wetland
regulations. Also included are giant cane, arrowhead, pickeralweed, arrow arum,
smartweed, and cattail
- Pocosin (w-type 4)
- Freshwater shrub/scrub communities (i.e. non-Estuarine shrub/scrub) dominated by
evergreen shrubs, often mixed with pond or loblolly pines. Typically occur on
saturated, acid, nutrient poor, sandy or peaty soils; usually removed from large streams;
and subject to periodic burning.
- Bottomland Hardwood (w-type 6)
- Riverine forested or occasionally shrub/scrub communities usually occurring in
floodplains, that are seasonally flooded. Typical species include oaks (overcup,
water, laurel, swamp chestnut), sweet gum, green ash, cottonwoods, willows, river birch,
and occasionally pines.
- Swamp Forest (w-type 7)
- Very poorly drained riverine or non-riverine forested or occasionally shrub/scrub
communities which are semi-permanently flooded, including temporarily flooded depressional
systems.Typical species include cypress, black gum, water tupelo, green ash and red maple.
- Headwater Swamp (w-type 17)
- Wooded, riverine systems along first order streams. These include hardwood
dominated communities with soil that is moist most of the year. Channels receive
their water from overland flow and rarely overflow their own banks.
- Hardwood Flat (w-type 9)
- Poorly drained interstream flats not associated with rivers or estuaries. Seasonally
saturated by high water table or poor drainage. Species vary greatly but often include
sweet gum and red maple.
- Pine Flat (w-type 10)
- Freshwater, seasonally saturated pine communities on hydric soils that may become quite
dry for part of the year. Generally occur in flat or nearly flat areas that are not
associated with a river or stream system. Usually dominated by loblolly pine.
This category does not include managed pine systems.
- Managed Pineland (w-type 11)
- Seasonally saturated, managed pine forests (usually loblolly pine) occurring on hydric
soils. Since this category is based primarily on soils data and 30 meter resolution
satellite imagery, it is less accurate than the other wetland categories.
- Human Impacted (w-type 40)
- Areas of human impact have physically disturbed the wetland, but the area is still a
wetland. Impoundments and some cutovers are included in this category, as well as other
disturbed areas, such as power lines.
- Partially Drained Wetland (w-type 21-37)
- Any wetland system described above that is, or has been, effectively drained (according
to the National Wetlands Inventory).
- Cutover Wetland (w-type 63-77)
- Areas for which satellite imagery indicates a lack of vegetation in 1994. These
areas are likely to still be wetlands, however, they have been recently cut over.
Vegetation in these areas may be regenerating naturally, or the area may be in use for
silvicultural activities. Note that marshes can not be considered cutover.
- Cleared Wetland (w-type 43-57)
- Areas of hydric soils for which satellite imagery indicates a lack of vegetation in both
1988 and 1994. These areas are likely to no longer be wetlands.