Alternative Text Description for Scrub Plum (Endangered)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

MAP OVERVIEW

This map displays the known geographic range of the Scrub Plum, an endangered plant species, within the state of Florida. The map shows polygonal boundaries representing areas where this species is understood to occur according to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The map focuses on central Florida, with a small number of isolated occurrence areas marked in pink against a base map showing cities and geographic features across Florida and portions of neighboring states.

GEOGRAPHIC CONTEXT

The map covers the state of Florida and extends northward to show portions of Georgia and South Carolina. Major cities labeled include Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Jacksonville, Miami, West Palm Beach, Fort St. Lucie, Cape Coral, Coral Springs, Gainesville, Tallahassee, Savannah, Charleston, Columbia, Greenville, Wilmington, Athens, Augusta, Albany, Valdosta, and Palm Bay. The map shows Florida's distinctive peninsula shape extending southward, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. The western portion of the map shows the Gulf of America coastline. The occurrence areas for the Scrub Plum are concentrated exclusively within the state of Florida.

KEY INSIGHTS

The Scrub Plum has an extremely limited and fragmented distribution within Florida. All mapped occurrences are confined to the central portion of the state, forming a narrow corridor running roughly north-south through the interior. The species appears in two main concentration areas: one cluster in the Orlando-Lakeland region of central Florida, and scattered smaller polygons extending south from the Orlando area. The distribution pattern suggests the species occupies highly specific habitat types that are patchily distributed across the landscape. No occurrences are shown in northern Florida, the panhandle region, or the southern portion of the state, indicating the species has very specialized geographic requirements.

VISUAL ELEMENTS

Scrub Plum (Endangered)

This layer represents the geographic boundaries where the endangered Scrub Plum species occurs within Florida.

Scrub Plum Occurrence Areas (pink hatched polygons)

Appearance:

Light pink polygons with diagonal line hatching pattern, appearing as small to medium-sized irregular shapes.

Distribution:

All occurrences are located in central Florida, primarily in the interior of the peninsula rather than along coastal areas.

Notable locations:

The largest concentration appears in the Orlando metropolitan area, with additional polygons visible near Lakeland. A linear arrangement of smaller polygons extends southward from the Orlando region. One small occurrence appears in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area.

Spatial patterns:

The occurrences form a discontinuous north-south corridor through central Florida's interior. The fragmented pattern suggests habitat isolation, with individual occurrence areas separated by gaps of several miles to tens of miles. The polygons vary in size, with some representing larger contiguous habitat patches and others showing very small, isolated locations. The distribution avoids both coastal regions and the extreme northern and southern portions of the state.

Overlapping Patterns

No overlapping patterns are present, as this map displays a single species occurrence layer.

SYMBOL GUIDE

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

This map represents the official understanding of Scrub Plum distribution by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for conservation and management purposes. The polygonal boundaries delineate areas where the species is known to occur, but do not necessarily indicate that the species is present uniformly throughout each polygon. As an endangered species, the Scrub Plum is afforded federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. The highly fragmented distribution pattern visible on this map reflects the species' dependence on specific scrub habitat types that have become increasingly rare and isolated due to development and land use changes in central Florida. The map shows only presence data; areas without polygons may represent unsuitable habitat, areas that have not been surveyed, or locations where the species has been extirpated.

DATA CONTEXT

Data Source:

Data originates from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, representing the agency's official understanding of species distribution for conservation planning and regulatory purposes. The dataset contains polygonal boundaries for species occurrences in the State of Florida. Data source layer name: CR_USFWS_POLY_JUL25.

Definition Query:

The map displays only records where the common name equals 'SCRUB PLUM', filtering the source dataset to show this single endangered species rather than all species contained in the full USFWS dataset.

Scale Information:

The map is displayed at a regional scale showing the entire state of Florida and portions of neighboring states. This scale is appropriate for understanding the overall distribution pattern and conservation status of the species, but individual occurrence polygons may represent areas ranging from small isolated patches to larger habitat complexes.

Coordinate System:

NAD_1983_HARN_Florida_GDL_Albers (WKID 3087).

Time Period of Content:

The data source layer name indicates the data is current as of July 2025 (JUL25).

Limitations:

The polygons represent known occurrences based on available survey data and may not capture all existing populations. Areas without mapped occurrences may indicate lack of survey effort rather than confirmed absence of the species. The boundaries shown represent approximate occurrence areas and should not be interpreted as precise habitat boundaries. Actual population status within mapped areas may have changed since data collection.

Map Coverage:

The map extends from approximately northern Georgia and South Carolina southward through the entirety of Florida to the Keys. The western extent includes portions of the Florida panhandle and Gulf of America coast, while the eastern extent shows the Atlantic coast including cities from Jacksonville to Miami. The mapped occurrence data is limited exclusively to the state of Florida, with no occurrences shown in Georgia or other neighboring states.

The alternative text description of this map was AI-generated and may contain inaccuracies.