Texas Ecoregions Flashcards
How many ecoregions are there in Texas?
10
Which ecoregion is characterized by rolling terrain covered with pines and oaks, and rich bottomlands with tall
hardwoods?
East Texas Pineywoods
What is the average annual rainfall in the East Texas Pineywoods?
36 to 50 inches
What kinds of soils are present in the East Texas Pineywoods?
Generally acidic and mostly pale to dark gray sands or sandy loams
Which ecoregion is a near level, slowly drained plain less than 150 feet in elevation, dissected by streams and rivers flowing into the Gulf of Mexico?
Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes
Which ecoregion includes barrier islands along the coast, salt grass marshes surrounding bays and estuaries, remnant tallgrass prairies, oak savannahs, and live oak mottes scattered along the coast, and tall woodlands in the river bottomlands?
Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes
What is the average annual rainfall for Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes?
30 to 50 inches
In this ecoregion, native vegetation consists of tallgrass prairies and live oak woodlands. Brush species such as mesquite and acacias are more common now than in the past. The region provides important habitat for migratory birds and spawning
areas for fish and shrimp.
Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes
Which region is a transitional area for many plants and animals whose ranges extend northward into the Great Plains or eastward into the forests?
Post Oak Savannah
What is the average annual rainfall for the Post Oak Savannah?
28 to 40 inches
In this region, 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.
Post Oak Savannah
This region is named for the deep, fertile black soils that characterize the area.
Blackland Prairie
The soils in this region once supported a tallgrass prairie dominated by tall-growing grasses such as big bluestem, little bluestem, Indiangrass and switchgrass. Because of the fertile soils, much of the original prairie has been plowed to produce food and forage crops.
Blackland Prairie
What is the annual rainfall in the Blackland Prairie?
28 to 40 inches
What kind of soils are typical in the Blackland Prairie?
Soils are uniformly dark colored alkaline clays, interspersed with some gray acidic sandy loams.
How did the Cross Timbers ecoregion get its name?
Early travelers through north Texas coined the name “Cross Timbers” by their repeated crossings of these timbered areas that proved to be a barrier to their travel between the open prairies to the east and west.
This area in north and central Texas includes areas with high density of trees and irregular plains and prairies. Soils are primarily sandy to loamy.
Cross Timbers
This region is characterized by plains of thorny shrubs and trees and scattered patches of palms and subtropical woodlands found in the Rio Grande Valley.
South Texas Plains
The plains of this ecoregion were once covered with open grasslands and a scattering of trees, and the valley woodlands were more extensive. Today, the primary vegetation consists of thorny brush such as mesquite, acacia, and prickly pear mixed with areas of grassland.
South Texas Plains
How much annual rainfall falls on average in the South Texas Plains?
20 to 32 inches
Soils of this region are alkaline to slightly acidic clays and clay loams. The deeper soils support taller brush, such as mesquite
and spiny hackberry, whereas short, dense brush characterizes the shallow caliche soils.
South Texas Plains
This ecoregion is commonly called the Texas Hill Country.
Edwards Plateau
What is the average rainfall for the Edwards Plateau?
15 to 34 inches
In this ecoregion, soils are usually shallow with a variety of surface textures. They are underlain by limestone honeycombed with thousands of caves.
Edwards Plateau
