Central Appalachian Broadleaf Forest--Coniferous Forest--Meadow Province

Appalachian Highlands, 68,100 mi2 (176,400 km2)

Land-surface form.--This province is composed of subdued low mountains of crystalline rocks and open low mountains with valleys underlain by folded strong and weak strata. Some dissected plateaus with mountainous topography are also present. The relief is high (up to 3,000 ft [900 m]). Elevations range from 300 to 6,000 ft (90 to 1,800 m), and are higher to the south, reaching 6,684 ft (2,037 m) at Mount Mitchell, North Carolina.

Climate.--The climate is temperate, with distinct summer and winter, and all areas are subject to frost. Average annual temperatures range from below 50F (10C) in the north to about 64F (18C) at the south end of the highlands. The average length of the frost-free period is about 100 days in the northern mountains, and about 220 days in the low southern parts of the Appalachian Highlands. Average annual precipitation varies from 35 in (890 mm) in the valleys to up to 80 in (2,040 mm) on the highest peaks--the highest in the Eastern United States. Precipitation is fairly well distributed throughout the year (see Appendix 2, climate diagram for Boone, North Carolina). Snowfall is more than 24 in (610 mm) in Pennsylvania, increasing southward along the mountains to about 30 in (770 mm) in the Great Smoky Mountains. Southeast- and southfacing slopes are notably warmer and drier than northwest- and northfacing slopes, because they face the sun and are on the lee side of the ridges. One result is that forest fires are more frequent on southfacing slopes.

Vegetation.--Vertical zonation prevails, with the lower limits of each forest belt rising in elevation toward the south. The valleys of the southern Appalachian Mountains support a mixed oak-pine forest that resembles its counterpart on the coastal plains (described below for the Southeastern Mixed Forest Province). Above this zone lies the Appalachian oak forest, dominated by a dozen species each in the white oak and black oak groups. Chestnut was once abundant, but a blight has eliminated it as a canopy tree. Above this zone lies the northeastern hardwood forest, composed of birch, beech, maple, elm, red oak, and basswood, with an admixture of hemlock and white pine. Spruce-fir forest and meadows are found on the highest peaks of the Allegheny and Great Smoky Mountains. Mixed mesophytic forest extends into narrow valleys (coves) of the southern Appalachians, where oak vegetation predominates.

The pattern of vegetation is complicated by topography and substrate. For example, the forests of the Great Smoky Mountains range from open oak and southern pine stands on drier, warmer slopes at low elevations to northern coniferous forests of spruce and fir on cold, moist slopes higher up. But southern pine stands reach up along exposed ridges, and hemlock forest extends down into protected ravines where moisture and local temperature conditions resemble those found at higher elevations.

Soils.--Ultisols are found on ridge crests, in areas of gentle topography, and in intermountain basins. Soils on steeper landforms are Inceptisols.

Fauna.--The southern limit of distribution of many northern forest mammals coincides with the boundaries of this province. Species distribution maps show fingers of distribution for many species running southward along the crest of the Appalachians. But many species are being confined to scattered areas at higher elevations as forests are cleared or lost due to spruce-fir die-off. The black bear, widely distributed in other parts of North America, occurs quite commonly in the Appalachians and surrounding areas. The eastern cougar, once an important predator, is now thought to be extinct. Whitetail deer are very common.

At upper elevations in extensions of boreal forest, red-breasted nuthatches, black-throated green warblers, golden-crowned warblers, golden-crowned kinglets, and northern juncos forage in red spruce and Fraser fir trees. In the hardwood forests, there are crow-sized pileated woodpeckers, downy, hairy, and red-bellied woodpeckers, common flickers, and wild turkeys. The understory, especially in areas with rhododendrons and azaleas, hosts worm-eating warblers, and the brilliant hooded warbler is found in lush undergrowth. Louisiana waterthrush patrol the streamsides. The mixed mesophytic forest in coves supports a large variety of nesting birds, including the wood thrush, ovenbird, summer tanager, rose-breasted grosbeak, and all the other species already named. The passenger pigeon, once abundant, is now extinct.

Unique to the region is its great variety of salamanders: 27 species inhabit the southern Appalachians--more than any other part of North America.

From: Bailey R.G. 1995. Description of the ecoregions of the United States. US Department of Agriculture Forest Service Publication 1391. Washington DC, USA. http://www.fs.fed.us/land/ecosysmgmt/ecoreg1_home.html