ABSTRACT
The awesome power of hurricanes to reshape nature-as well as man’s existence-is of obvious importance in the Everglades region. Their ecological impact can be seen in many plant communities, especially forested areas, but their effect is most prominent in the lower-elevation coastal communities, where raging winds and rapidly moving high water rearrange not only trees but also terrain. These effects, combined with a slowly rising sea level over the past several thousand years, have shaped our coastal features (see Chapter 10).168 Were it not for hurricanes, certain coastal habitats would not exist.
