South Carolina’s Flora and Fauna Chapter 2 Section 4 South Carolina’s Flora and Fauna

Essential Question How does SC’s plant and animal life vary throughout the state?

Terms I need to know flora fauna extinct

Plant Life over 70% of SC is covered with trees & other plant life Forests oak trees like cold temperatures of Blue Ridge forests most common tree in Piedmont is short leaf pine many Piedmont forests were destroyed during the 19th century in order to make land available for cotton Sandhills and Coastal Plains have lots of pine trees in their forests; sometimes referred to as “the pine belt”

Coastal Zone doesn’t have many forests but does have abundance of a variety of trees cypress trees are found in state swamps; oldest live cypress trees are found in SC (1700 years old) forests contain valuable resources and some are protected by state or federal government

Other Plants and Grasses sea oats are most important of all of SC’s flora because they protect sand dunes kudzu is found all over SC; it was brought to SC by from Japan to help control erosion; now it presents problems by killing trees and other plants

Wildlife Fauna (animal life) is abundant in SC white-tailed deer - one of the most common animals SC legislature passed laws to protect wildlife that was in danger of becoming extinct wildlife refuges - created to protect animals birds - plentiful in SC; bald eagle is largest bird of prey in the state - classified as threatened fish – found abundantly in SC loggerhead turtle – state’s official reptile