North Carolina’s Ecoregions

This mountain ecoregion includes the chain of mountains and its surrounding foothills in western North Carolina.

The Blue Ridge habitats include bogs, caves, cove forests, rock outcrops, cliffs, northern hardwoods, fir forests, and river-based communities.

This region begins east of the Blue Ridge Mountains and foothills, but west of the fall line in North Carolina, which delineates Piedmont and the Coastal Plain ecoregions.

There is an extensive range in elevation across Piedmont, ranging between 200 and 1500 feet. Piedmont habitats include dry coniferous woodlands, grasslands, reservoirs, mesic forests, rivers, and small wetlands.

This region is the smallest ecoregion in North Carolina, located in the southwestern corner of the Southwestern Plains. It’s geologically a former coastline, featuring many forms of clay and minerals.

This region has much higher elevation than the Southeastern Plains and Middle Atlantic Coastal Plain regions, ranging from 900 to 1000 feet above sea level. Its habitats include native pines, wetlands, and maritime forests.

This begins east of the fall line, characterized by wetland, swamp, and marsh habitats. This ecoregion is higher (approximately 200 feet above sea level) and drier than the Middle Atlantic Coastal Plain, and is commonly used for farming.

The Inner Coastal Plain, a higher, drier area, begins west of the Tidewater. The rich, sandy soil here is some of the state’s best farmland. Other habitats include reservoirs, rivers, rolling plains, and forests.

This ecoregion is the most eastern in North Carolina, including coastal islands, beaches, and other sea-level habitats.

The Middle Atlantic Coastal Plain houses the largest marsh in the state, including other habitats like inlets, rivers, beaches, and wetlands.