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The Piney Woods viewed from Loop 390 outside of Marshall, Texas
The Piney Woods viewed from Loop 390 outside of Marshall, Texas

The Piney Woods is a terrestrial ecoregion in the Southern United States covering 54,400 mi² (140,900 km²) of East Texas, Southern Arkansas, Western Louisiana, and Southeastern Oklahoma. Marshall is a city of the northeastern region of the US state of Texas. An ecoregion ( ecological region) sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area smaller than a "realm" or " The Southern United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South &mdashconstitutes a large distinctive The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of East Texas is a distinct geographic and ecological area in the U Arkansas ( is a state located in the southern region of the United States. The State of Louisiana ( or, État de Louisiane, pronounced) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America Southeastern Oklahoma, also known by its official tourism designation Kiamichi Country, encompasses the southeastern quarter of the state of Oklahoma. This coniferous forest, is dominated by several species of pine, including Longleaf Pine, Shortleaf Pine and Loblolly Pine, as well as several varieties of hardwoods including Hickory and Oak. This article is about the tree For other uses of the term "pine" see Pine (disambiguation. The 'Longleaf Pine' ( Pinus palustris) is a Pine native to the southeast United States, found along the coastal plain from eastern Texas to southeast Pinus echinata ( Shortleaf Pine) is a species of Pine native to the eastern United States from southern New York south Pinus taeda ( Loblolly Pine) is one of several Pines native to the southeastern United States. The term hardwood is used to describe Wood from broad-leaved angiosperm Trees mostly Deciduous, but not necessarily in the case of tropical Trees in the genus Carya (from Ancient Greek κάρυον " Nut " are commonly known as Hickory. The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of Trees and Shrubs in the Genus Quercus (from Latin The World Wide Fund for Nature considers the Piney Woods to be one of the critically endangered ecoregions of the United States. [1]

Contents

Setting

The Piney woods cover an area of 140,900 square kilometers (54,400 square miles) of eastern Texas, northwestern Louisiana, southwestern Arkansas, and the southeastern corner of Oklahoma. [2] They are bounded on the east by the Mississippi lowland forests, on the south by the Western Gulf coastal grasslands, on the west by the East Central Texas forests and the Texas blackland prairies, on the northwest by the Central forest-grasslands transition, and on the north by the Ozark Mountain forests. The Western Gulf coastal grasslands are a subtropical grassland Ecoregion of the southern United States and northeastern Mexico. The Texas Blackland Prairies are a temperate grassland Ecoregion located in Texas that runs roughly from the Red River in North Texas

Flora

The region has heavy to moderate rainfall, with some places receiving over 60 in (1525 mm) of rain per year. Many deciduous trees such as Magnolia, Sweet gum, Tupelo, and Yaupon Holly, in addition to hickories and oaks, can be found among pines. Botany Autumn leaf color. See --> In Botany and Horticulture, deciduous Plants, including Magnolia is a large Genus of about 210 Flowering plant Species in the subclass Magnolioideae of the family Sweetgum ( Liquidambar) is a genus of four species of Flowering plants in the family Altingiaceae, though formerly often treated in the Hamamelidaceae The tupelos, or pepperidge tree, genus Nyssa, are a small Genus of about 9 to 11 species of Trees with alternate simple leaves Ilex vomitoria ( Yaupon Holly, Yaupon, or Cassina; the latter shared with Ilex cassine) is a species of Holly Wisteria is also commonplace and can cover entire groves of trees in the wild. Wisteria is a Genus of about ten species of woody climbing Vines native to the eastern United States and the East Asian states of China Flowering species of tree, such as Dogwood and the Eastern Redbud are also now common in the wild. The Dogwoods comprise a group of 30-50 species of mostly Deciduous Woody plants growing as Shrubs and Trees some species are herbaceous perennial Cercis canadensis L ( Eastern Redbud) is a large Shrub or small Tree native to eastern North America from southern

A creek running through the Piney Woods in Northeast Texas
A creek running through the Piney Woods in Northeast Texas

Two varieties of wetlands are common in the Piney Woods: bayous are generally found near rivers and sloughs which are generally found near creeks. Northeast Texas is a region in the northeast corner of the US A wetland is an area of Land consisting of Soil that is Saturated with Moisture, such as a Swamp, Marsh, or Bog A bayou (pronounced oʊ or uː is a small slow-moving Stream or creek or a lake or pool ( bayou lake) that lies in an abandoned channel of a stream The word slough (in British English ˈslaʊ to rhyme with "cow" in American and Canadian English pronounced /ˈsluː/ "slew" has In bayous Bald cypress and Spanish moss, as well as the non-native Lily pad, are common plants. Taxodium is a Genus of one to three Species (depending on taxonomic opinion of extremely flood-tolerant Conifers in the cypress Spanish moss ( Tillandsia usneoides) closely resembles its namesake ( Usnea, or beard lichen Sloughs are shallow pools of standing water that most trees are capable of growing in, and other species such as the Purple bladderwort, a small carnivorous plant, have found a niche in sloughs. Carnivorous plants (sometimes called insectivorous plants) are Plants that derive some or most of their Nutrients (but not Energy) from trapping

Hearty species of Prickley pear cactus and Yucca can be found both in the forests and wetlands. Opuntia is a Genus in the cactus family, Cactaceae. Currently only prickly pears (also known as Nopal or The yuccas comprise the Genus Yucca of 40-50 species of perennials Shrubs and Trees in the Agave family

The indigenous Texas trailing phlox is an endangered species.

Fauna

Mammals such as Eastern Cottontail rabbits, Eastern Gray Squirrels, Opossums, Armadillos, White-tailed Deer, and two species of Bats; and Reptiles such as Cottonmouth Water Moccasins, Prairie Kingsnakes, Slender glass lizards, and Squirrel Tree Frogs, thrive in the Piney Woods. The Eastern Cottontail ( Sylvilagus floridanus) is a New World Cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. Rabbits are small Mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world The eastern gray squirrel ( Sciurus carolinensis) is a Tree squirrel native to the eastern and Midwestern United States and to the southerly Didelphimorphia is the order of common opossums of the Western Hemisphere. Armadillos are small Placental Mammals known for having a leathery armor shell The White-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus) also known as the Virginia deer, or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized Deer found throughout Reptiles, or members of the class Reptilia are air-breathing Cold-blooded Vertebrates that have skin covered in scales as opposed to hair or feathers Common names cottonmouth water moccasin black moccasin black snake more. Lampropeltis calligaster is a Species of Kingsnake known commonly as the prairie kingsnake or mole kingsnake. The Slender Glass Lizard, ( Ophisaurus attenuatus) is a legless Lizard which can attain a length of up to 1 meter The Squirrel Tree Frog ( Hyla squirella) is a small Species of Tree frog found in the southeastern United States, from Texas to A large variety of birds from Cranes and Vultures to individual species like the Mockingbird and the endangered Red-cockaded woodpecker. Cranes are large long-legged and long-necked Birds of the order Gruiformes, and family Gruidae. Vultures are scavenging Birds feeding mostly on the carcasses of dead Animals Vultures are found on every continent except Antarctica and Mockingbirds are a group of New World Passerine Birds from the Mimidae family. About the size of the Northern Cardinal, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker ( Picoides borealis) is approximately 8 Alligators are not as common as they once were, but their population has rebounded since the 1960s. The American Alligator, Alligator mississippiensis, (known colloquially as simply gator) is one of the two living Species of Alligator, a genus Bears are rare today, but still live in remote thickets. Recently, there has been significant talk of reintroducing the black bear into many parts of East Texas. [3][4] The most common fish is Catfish, which are a native species but also stocked in local reservoirs. Catfish ( order Siluriformes) are a very diverse group of bony Fish. A small crustacean called the crayfish (commonly called "crawfish" or "crawdad" in the local vernacular) is common along river and creek banks. Structure of crustaceans As Arthropods crustaceans have a stiff Exoskeleton, which must be shed to allow the animal to grow ( Ecdysis or molting Crayfish, crawfish, crawdads, or crodgers are freshwater Crustaceans resembling small Lobsters to which they are closely

Conservation and threats

Newly cleared forest in East Texas. Most of the mature trees have been cleared and the litter layer—the bottom layer of decaying matter that enriches the soil with nutrients—of the forest has begun to wash away due to recent rains.
Newly cleared forest in East Texas. Most of the mature trees have been cleared and the litter layer—the bottom layer of decaying matter that enriches the soil with nutrients—of the forest has begun to wash away due to recent rains.

The majority of the commercial timber growing and wood processing in the state of Texas takes place in the Piney Woods region, which contains about 50,000 km² (12. 5 million acres) of commercial forestland.

National forests

Four National Forests are found in the Piney Woods of East Texas. These National Forests include some 634,912 acres (2,569 km²) in 12 counties. "National forest" redirects here for the National Forest in England see National Forest England; for those in Brazil see List of Brazilian National Forests

State parks

The Texas portion of the Piney Woods has at least 17 state parks:

External links

References

  1. ^ World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report on Piney Woods forests (NA0523)
  2. ^ World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report on Piney Woods forests (NA0523)
  3. ^ WHERE THEY ONCE ROAMED / Will bears prowl Piney Woods?. Jasper is a city in Jasper County, Texas, United States, on U Tyler State Park is a State park north of Tyler, Texas. It is in Smith County north of Tyler Houston Chronicle. July 6, 2005.
  4. ^ Push grows to make E. Texas bear country. Houston Chronicle. August 8, 2006.
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