Ecoregions of Texas

What Is An Ecoregion? Ecoregion- a major area with distinctive landforms, characteristic plants and animals, and receives uniform solar radiation and precipitation Smaller than a biome

Where Are They? Region 1: Pineywoods Region 2: Prairies and Lakes Cross Timbers/Oak Woods and Prairies,Blackland Prairies Region 3: Gulf Coast Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes,Coastal Sand Plains Region 6: South Texas Brush Country

Region 4: South Texas Plains South Texas Brush Country Region 5: Hill Country Edwards Plateau,Llano Uplift Region 6: Panhandle Plains Rolling Plains,High Plains Region 7: Big Bend Trans Pecos

Region 1 Piney Woods Climate: average annual rainfall of inches is fairly uniformly distributed throughout the year, and humidity and temperatures are typically high Soil: generally acidic Geography: rolling terrain Vegetation: pine and oak tall hardwood forests, timber and cattle production are important industries, swamps are common in southern part

Piney Woods Caddo Lake Athens Tyler Palestine Rusk

Region 2 Prairies and Lakes

Region 2 Cross Timbers or Oak Woods & Prairies Climate: Average annual rainfall averages inches per year Soil: Upland soils are light colored, acidic sandy loam or sands. Bottomland soils may be light brown to dark gray and acidic with textures ranging from sandy loams to clays Geography: gently rolling to hilly terrain Vegetation: patches of oak woodland alternate with grassland, cattle ranching is major industry

Blackland Prairies Climate: average annual rainfall ranges from inches. May is the peak rainfall month for the northern end of the region; however, the south-central part has a fairly uniform rainfall throughout the year. Soil: soils are uniformly dark-colored alkaline clays Geography: gently rolling to nearly level terrain Vegetation: Rich fertile soils produce food and forage crops, crop production and cattle ranching are main industries

Oak Woods, Prairies & Blackland Prairies Waco, Dallas, Lake Dallas, Killeen, College Station, Huntsville

Region 3 Gulf Coast

Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes Climate: annual rainfall varies from inches per year, high humidity and warm temperatures Soil: acidic sands and sandy loams, with clays occurring in the river bottoms Geography: barrier islands along the coast, marshes near bays and estuaries, and prairies Vegetation: salt grass, tallgrass prairies, live oak woodlands, important habitat for migratory birds and spawning areas for fish and shrimp

Coastal Sand Plains Climate: Average annual rainfall is inches per year Soil: primarily windblown Geography: windblown sands and unstable dunes with grasslands, stands of oak, and salt marshes Vegetation: tallgrass prairie with live oak woodlands, mesquite savannah, and salt marshes, formerly known as “Wild Horse Prairie” now it is mostly grazed by cattle

Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes Padre Island Brownsville Houston Corpus Christi Galveston

Region 4 South Texas Plains

South Texas Brush Country Climate: average annual rainfall of inches increases from west to east. Summer temperatures are high, with very high evaporation rates Geography: flat plains to gently rolling terrain Vegetation: thorny shrubs, trees, and cactus scattered with patches of palms and subtropical woodlands, home to many species of wildlife from Mexico to grasslands and deserts

South Texas Brush Country Laredo, San Antonio

Region 5 Hill Country

Edwards Plateau Climate: average annual rainfall ranges from inches Soil: usually shallow with a variety of surface textures, underlain by limestone Geography: many springs, stony hills, and steep canyons and caves; several river systems dissect the surface, creating a rough and well-drained landscape Vegetation: grasslands, juniper/oak woodlands, and plateau live oak or mesquite savannah, ranching is main industry

Llano Uplift Climate: averages about inches per year Soil: coarse textured sands, produced from weathered granite over thousands of years Geography: some of the oldest rocks in Texas, the region contains unique minerals and rock formations and large granite domes( Enchanted Rock near Fredricksburg); hilly to rolling landscape Vegetation: oak-hickory or oak-juniper woodlands, mesquite-mixed brush savannah, and grasslands

Edwards Plateau Llano Uplift Austin Bastrop San Marcos Round-Rock

Region 6 Panhandle Plains

Rolling Plains Climate: average annual rainfall is inches; dry summers with high temperatures and high evaporation rates Soil: vary from coarse sands along outwash terraces by streams, to clays and shales Geography: gently rolling hills and broad flats are cut by several rivers and their tributaries Vegetation: mesquite and shortgrass savannah; various hardwood species along streams, juniper on steep slopes along rivers

High Plains Climate: extended droughts have occurred several times this century Soil: surface texture of soils ranges from clays in the north to sands in the south; Caliche underlies these surface soils at depths of two to five feet Elevation: ranges from 3,000-4,500 feet above sea level Geography: relatively level high plateau Vegetation: mostly irrigated cropland; native vegetation includes mesquite and juniper

Amarillo, Wichita Falls, Lubbock, Abilene Panhandle Plains

Region 7 Big Bend Country

Trans Pecos Climate: Less than 12 inches of rain; semi-arid, warm, dry winters Soil: generally shallow, saline, and unproductive Elevation: 2,500 feet to mountain ranges, highest peak is 8,751 feet above sea level Geography: salt basins, sand hills, rugged plateaus, mountain slopes Vegetation: desert grassland, desert scrub, coniferous and mixed hardwood forests at mountain peaks

Trans Pecos El Paso, Midland, Odessa

My Ecoregion Which region do you live in? Have you ever visited another region?