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Southwestern Appalachians

Ecoregion on Cumberland Plateau, Appalachian Mountains in AL, GA, TN, KY

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Stretching from Kentucky to Alabama, these open low mountains contain a mosaic of forest and woodland with some cropland and pasture. The eastern boundary of the ecoregion, along the more abrupt escarpment where it meets the Ridge and Valley (67), is relatively smooth and only slightly notched by small, eastward flowing streams. Much of the western boundary, next to the Interior Plateau (71), is more crenulated, with a rougher escarpment that is more deeply incised. The mixed mesophytic forest is restricted mostly to the deeper ravines and escarpment slopes, and the upland forests are dominated by mixed oaks with shortleaf pine. The Southwestern Appalachians ecoregion has less agriculture than the adjacent Ecoregion 71. Coal mining occurs in several parts of the region.

— EPA

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Ecoregion