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Vegetative Responses To Hydrology And Ground Water Extraction In West-Central Florida Cypress Domes, Paul Thurman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The increasing demand for and limited supply of fresh water necessitates an understanding of how human actions affect aquatic ecosystems. Anthropogenic impacts to these ecosystems occur in many forms including eutrophication, invasive species removals, and hydrologic alterations. Ground water extraction is one such action that can dramatically impact wetland hydrology and is increasing in occurrence globally as clean surface water resources are exhausted. Despite the importance of ground water extraction to meet human demand, little information is available concerning the response of vegetation communities to chronic ground water extraction. Over extraction is known to result in reduced water levels and …