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Wetland types |
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Bottomland hardwoods |
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Distribution |
page 3 of 7 |
These forests were once the dominant forest type in the
southeastern United States. Bottomland hardwood forests
exist mainly in the lower Mississippi River floodplain in
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas. There were 8.5 million ha prior
to European settlement, now there are fewer than 2 million
ha. Louisiana’s Atchafalaya River Basin is the third
largest continuous wetland area in the U.S. and contains 30%
of all the remaining bottomland forest in the Mississippi
River drainage.
Cypress swamps are found in the lower Mississippi River
floodplain as far north as southern Illinois and western
Kentucky as well as the Atlantic Coastal Plain. Bottomland
forests dominated by white cedar are found along the
Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastlines. |
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