Fascinating! Some of the more interesting and diverse publically available areas I've explored in Florida have been on and around ancient middens. A favorite spot, Turtle Mound at Cape Canaveral National Seashore was once thought to be a naturally occurring higher elevation (35 feet or 12 meters, more or less, after centuries of significant compaction) that was utilized for the sweeping vistas. Instead it's a gigantic garbage dump. I wonder if the people in the area trudged to the top to dump their oyster shells and deer bones, or if they actually camped there while fishing the ocean and inland waterway to either side. Safe from the highest of tides, breeze keeping away mosquitoes, ability to see miles in any direction, and probably relatively clear of vegetation for fire safety. So these tree islands could have been the fish camps back in the day. The perched carbonate layer is really cool. The middens on my coast of Florida would not have the leaching from intermittent water, so I suspect we don't have that important perched layer.
