LIMESTONE: A sedimentary rock derived from the shells and skeletons of animals deposited in seas, and consisting mostly of calcium carbonate. Soluble in water having a slight degree of acidity, it is often characterized by caverns and, in the [everglades], by a very pitted surface. The rock underlying most of the park is the Miami Oölite (pronounced OH-uh-lite), formed during a recent glacial period. Oölitic [limestone] is composed of tiny round concretions, only indirectly derived from marine shells.
MANGROVE: Any of a group of tropical or subtropical trees, growing in [estuaries] and other low-lying coastal areas, usually producing aerial roots or prop roots and often forming dense growths over a large area. In south Florida there are four species, belonging to three different families.
MARSH: A wetland, salt or fresh, where few if any trees and shrubs grow, characterized by grasses and sedges; in fresh-water [marshes], cattails are common.
MARL: In this book, used in the sense of a deposit of mixed [limestone] and smaller amounts of clay; south Florida marls are sometimes called lime muds.
PEAT: Partly decayed, moisture-absorbing plant matter accumulated in bogs, [swamps], etc.
PREDATOR: An animal that lives by capturing other animals for food.
SLOUGH: A channel of slow-moving water in coastal marshland. The Shark River [Slough] and Taylor Slough are the main channels where the glades water flows in the park. Generally remaining as reservoirs of water when the glades dry in the rainless season, they are important to survival of aquatic animals.
SWAMP: Wetland characterized by shrubs or trees such as maples, gums, baldcypresses, and, in south Florida coast areas, [mangroves]. Fresh-water [swamps] are usually not covered by water the year around.
THREATENED: A species still present in its range but that, without significant changes in conditions, is capable of becoming [endangered].
TREE ISLAND: An island of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants growing on an elevation, in a depression, or at the same level as the surrounding glades. Includes [hammocks], willow heads, cypress heads, and bayheads.