Murder Creek
Location
County: Putnam
Forest: Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest
District: Oconee
SAF Cover Types (acres):
- Swamp chestnut oak–cherrybark oak – #91
- Sugarberry–american elm green ash – #93
View a searchable map for the Murder Creek Cove RNA.
Related Reports and Publications
- Deciduous Forests of Eastern North America (Hafner Publishing Company, 1967), pp. 259-279.
- Richard H. Goodwin, William A. Wiering, Inland Wetlands of the United States (Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C.) page 121.
- Climates of the States – Georgia, (Washington, D. C., U. S. Government Printing Office, 1969).
Ecological and Physical Description
Ridge top elevations in the vicinity of Murder Creek are 500 feet (152 meters) above sea level. Differences in elevation from ridge tops to Murder Creek do not exceed 120 feet (37 m). Elevation of the RNA ranges from 420 feet (128 m) to 380 feet (116 m) above sea level.
The mean annual temperature in Putnam County is 63.8 degrees F. The January mean maximum and minimum temperatures are 57 F and 35 F, respectively. The July mean maximum and minimum temperatures are 90 F and 69 F, respectively. The average date of the last killing frost is March 30 and the average earliest killing frost is November 10, giving a growing season of 225 days.
The mean annual rainfall in Putman County is 44.90 inches. Normally, winter and spring rains are slow and generally summer rains are usually in the form of thundershowers. Fall months have slightly less precipitation than the remainder of the year. Snow is infrequent and remains only a day or two. Glaze storms are occasionally severe enough to cause some damage to trees.
Monticello, Georgia, 10 miles west of the area. Statistics on the area are based on data collected from 1931–1960.
The geologic description of rock formations is parphyroblastic biotite gneiss. These are high grade metamorphic rocks that weather slowly. Occasionally, rock is exposed at the subsurface but most underlie the forest floor. The RNA lies in an area of Piedmont soils with finely textured loams and clays in the subsurface horizons and red clay subsoils. The major upland soils in order of decreasing area are Davidson clay loam, Cecil sandy loam, Cecil clay loam, and Iredell loam. The bottomland soils are mainly Congaree silty clay loam.
The Oconee River watershed has a strongly broken topography, resulting in a hilly relief. The larger divides, of which Murder Creek is one, are indented by many secondary divides which form lateral draws and ravines that have narrow level ridge tops. The flat bottomlands that extend along the edges of Murder Creek are narrow and variable, ranging from only a few feet to several hundred feet wide.
Flora and Fauna
Common Plant Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Category | At Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strawberry bush | Common Shrub Species | |||
| Benzoin | Common Shrub Species | |||
| Arundinaria tecta | Small cane | Common Herbaceous Species | ||
| Rudbeckia laciniata | Coneflower | Common Herbaceous Species | ||
| Jewelweed | Common Herbaceous Species | |||
| Elephant's foot | Common Herbaceous Species | |||
| Sanicula canadensis | Snakeroot | Common Herbaceous Species | ||
| Microstegium | Common Herbaceous Species | |||
| Polystichum acrostichoides | Christmas fern | Common Herbaceous Species | ||
| Chimaphila maculate | Spotted wintergreen | Common Herbaceous Species |
Common Animal Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Category | At Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odocoileus virginianus | Deer | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Vuples fulva | Fox | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Procyon lotor | RaccoonCastor Canadensis | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Castor canadensis | Beaver | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Sciurus carolinensis | Squirrel | Common Mammal Species |
Publications
- Timothy B. Harrington, Mingguang Xu, M. Boyd Edwards. 2000. Structural characteristics of late-sucessional pine-hardwood forest following recent infestation by southern pine beetle in the Georgia Piedmont, USA