Noxubee Crest
Location
County: Choctaw and Winston Counties
Forest: Tombigbee National Forest
District: Tombigbee Ranger District
SAF Cover Types:
- 52 white oak-red oak-hickory
- 75 shortleaf pine
- 76 shortleaf/hardwood
- 80 shortleaf/loblolly pine
- 87 sweetgum/yellow poplar
View a searchable map for the Noxubee Crest RNA.
Related Reports and Publications
- Moore, A. D. 1993. A floristic survey of the Noxubee Crest Natural Area of the Tombigbee National Forest, Thesis (M.S.) - Mississippi State University: v, 64 leaves.
Ecological and Physical Description
Narrow ridges and deep coves with a large spring flowing through the center. Climax oak–hickory forest of the southeastern US with high floristic diversity.
Records from 1951 to 1980 show 56 inches (142 centimeters) of annual precipitation, essentially all rainfall. The wettest months are usually February through May, and the driest August through October.
The nearest weather station is at Louisville located about 8 miles (13 kilometers) SE of the RNA.
The Noxubee Crest is underlain by the Wilcox Group of Eocine age, which is mainly composed of irregularly bedded, fine to coarse sand, including some clay, shale, silt, lignite, lignitic clay, and iron ore. Maximum thickness of the Wilcox is about 400 feet (122 meters); it dips about 15 to 20 feet (4.6 to 6.1 meters) per mile (1.6 kilometers) to the Southwest.
Thirteen soil series are represented in the RNA. There is a range from moist floodplain soils that cannot support equipment 2 to 5 months/year to droughty ridge soils. Soil characteristics have developed with little disturbance.
Water in the area is from a natural springhead and from rainfall that runs off the ridges and slopes into ephemeral drains that empty into a tributary of Noxubee Creek.
Flora and Fauna
Common Plant Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Category | At Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quercus coccinea Muenchh. | Scarlet oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. falcata Michx. | Southern red oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. rubra L. | Northern red oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. falcata var. pagodifolia Ell. | Cherrybark oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. velutina Lam. | Black oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. alba | White oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. michauxii Nutt. | Swamp chestnut oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Q. muhlenbergii Engelm. | Chinkapin oak | Plant Communities | ||
| Carya ovata (Mill) K. Koch | Shagbark | Plant Communities | Various hickories account for one half to two thirds of the trees in the upper canopy. Possibly due to a combination of tree age and drought, there is above normal mortality occurring among the larger hickories. |
|
| C. tomentosa (Poir.) Nutt. | Mockernut | Plant Communities | ||
| C. glabra (Mill.) Sweet | Pignut | Plant Communities | ||
| C. cordiformis (Wangenh.) K. Koch | Bitternut | Plant Communities | ||
| Liquidambar styraciflua L. | Sweetgum | Plant Communities | ||
| Liriodendron tulipifera L. | Yellow-poplar | Plant Communities | ||
| Fagus grandifolia Ehrl. | American beech | Plant Communities | ||
| Panax quinquefolius | Ginseng | At Risk Species | ✔ | Threatened. |
| Aarum canadense | Wild ginger | At Risk Species | ✔ | At the southern edge of its range. |
| Osmorhiza claytoni | Sweet cicely | At Risk Species | ✔ | At the southern edge of its range. |
| Corylus americana | Hazlenut | At Risk Species | ✔ | At the southern edge of its range. |
| Cypripedium calceolus var. pubescens | Large yellow lady’s slipper | At Risk Species | ✔ | Rare species. |
| Cornus florida L. | Flowering dogwood | Common Shrub Species | ||
| Ulmus sp. | Elm | Common Shrub Species | ||
| Fraxinus sp. | Ash | Common Shrub Species | ||
| Acer rubrum L. | Red maple | Common Shrub Species | ||
| Sweetgum | Common Shrub Species | |||
| Common Herbaceous Species | A total of 1425 specimens has been collected in the RNA, which represents 452 species in 93 families of vascular plants and 30 species in 19 families of bryophytes (Moore 1993). |
Common Animal Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Category | At Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odocoileus virginianus | White tail deer | Common Mammal Species | Noxubee Crest is in the Choctaw Wildlife Management Area. |
|
| Sylvagus floridanus | Eastern cottontail rabbit | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Procyon lotor | Raccoon | Common Mammal Species | ||
| Colinus virginianus | Bob-white quail | Common Bird Species | ||
| Meleagris gallopavo | Wild turkey | Common Bird Species |