Location of the Central U.S. hardwood forests

The Central U.S. hardwood forests comprise an ecoregion in eastern North America. It has one of the most diverse herbaceous plant floras of ecoregions in North America. An ecoregion, sometimes called a bioregion, is a relatively large area of land or water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...

Threats

There is very little intact habitat in this ecoregion. Although much of the area is forested, these forests tend to be highly fragmented and significantly altered by development, agriculture, and fire suppression. The forests are dominated primarily by oak and hickory species. In some areas, habitat is threatened by urbanization and invasive species such as non-native privet, honeysuckle, and kudzu. Species See text Privet was originally the name for the European semi-evergreen shrub Ligustrum vulgare, and later also for the more reliably evergreen Ligustrum ovalifolium (Japanese privet), used extensively for privacy hedging (hence privet, private). ... Species See text - Selected Species Honeysuckles (genus Lonicera; syn. ... For the comic strip, see Kudzu (comic strip). ...

Significant natural areas in the ecoregion

Tennessee

• Cedar glades of Middle Tennessee
• Wolf River (Tennessee)
• Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area

Kentucky The Wolf River is a small river of West Tennessee and Mississippi. ... Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area is a United States National Recreation Area located in Kentucky and Tennessee between Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake. ...

• Mammoth Cave National Park
• Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area

Illinois Mammoth Cave National Park is a U.S. National Park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave, the most extensive cave system known in the world. ... Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area is a United States National Recreation Area located in Kentucky and Tennessee between Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake. ...

• Cache River (Illinois) wetlands

Missouri

• Ozark Mountains

This article is about the Ozark Plateau. ...

References and external links

• Ricketts, T.H., E. Dinerstein, D.M. Olson, C.J. Loucks, et al. (1999). Terrestrial Ecoregions of North America: A Conservation Assessment. World Wildlife Fund - United States and Canada. Island Press, Washington, D.C. pp. 337-340.
• National Geographic WildWorld ecoregion profile
• Central U.S. hardwood forests images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu