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Finger Lakes Uplands and Gorges

Ecoregion in Appalachian Mountains, Allegheny Plateau in NY

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The Finger Lakes Uplands and Gorges is a transitional ecoregion, encompassing the northern edge of the Northern Allegheny Plateau (60) where it meets the Ontario Lowlands (83c). During the Pleistocene Epoch, the glaciers ground into soft shale bedrock and transformed v-shaped river and stream valleys into the u-shaped troughs that hold the Finger Lakes today. The Valley Heads Moraine blocked the flow of streams to the south and dammed the Finger Lakes. Many waterfalls enter the lake basins from hanging valleys created by glaciers on former tributary streams. Gorges winding back from the perimeter of the Finger Lakes valleys have formed in post-glacial times through waterfall-created erosion. Inceptisols of the Northern Allegheny Plateau (60) intermingle with the agriculturally productive Alfisols developed from limestone-derived glacial till. Farms become larger and more intensively cultivated in the north where Alfisols become more prominent.

— EPA

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