which may be dotted with lichen. Mosses are
sprinkled around the base. Saw palmetto,
shrubs, wildflowers and grasses grow around
the pine. If I took a census, I might note birds,
squirrels, lizards, spiders, grasshoppers, bees,
ants, beetles, a dragonfly at rest and a sulphur
butterfly flitting through the branches — all in
one tree.
You will find slash pines scattered here and
there in Sarasota's older neighborhoods.
Sometimes a pine turns up in unexpected
places, such as the one near the county jail,
which somehow evaded the chain saw gang.
Considered "commoners," pines are barred
from many gated communities.
The authors of Ecosystems of Florida call
pines the "matrix" which ties together other
ecosystems. For me, they are a link to the
real Florida. %
Sarasota News Leader August 8 & 15, 2014 Page 105
