Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type. Temperate grassland regions include the Pampas of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, and the steppe of Ukraine, Russia, and Kazakhstan. Lands typically referred to as "prairie" tend to be in North America. The term encompasses the area referred to as the Interior Lowlands of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, which includes all of the Great Plains as well as the wetter, hillier land to the east.
Juniperus virginiana, also known as eastern redcedar, red cedar, Virginian juniper, eastern juniper, red juniper, and other local names, is a species of juniper native to eastern North America from southeastern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and east of the Great Plains. Further west it is replaced by the related Juniperus scopulorum and to the southwest by Juniperus ashei. It is not to be confused with Thuja occidentalis.
Dry–mesic prairie is a native grassland community made up mid-to-tall grasses and a diverse mixture of forbs. The sandy loam or loamy sand soils of Dry-mesic Prairie support grasses that are shorter and grow less densely than Wet-mesic and Wet Prairies. Big bluestem, little bluestem, Indian grass, and porcupine grass are the most abundant grasses in dry-mesic prairie.
The Hawaiian tropical rainforests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Hawaiian Islands. They cover an area of 6,700 km2 (2,600 sq mi) in the windward lowlands and montane regions of the islands. Coastal mesic forests are found at elevations from sea level to 300 m (980 ft). Mixed mesic forests occur at elevations of 750 to 1,250 m, while wet forests are found from 1,250 to 1,700 m. Moist bogs and shrublands exist on montane plateaus and depressions. For the 28 million years of existence of the Hawaiian Islands, they have been isolated from the rest of the world by vast stretches of the Pacific Ocean, and this isolation has resulted in the evolution of an incredible diversity of endemic species, including fungi, mosses, snails, birds, and other wildlife. In the lush, moist forests high in the mountains, trees are draped with vines, orchids, ferns, and mosses. This ecoregion includes one of the world's wettest places, the slopes of Mount Waiʻaleʻale, which average 373 in (9,500 mm) of rainfall per year.
The University of Wisconsin–Madison Arboretum is a teaching and research facility of the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the site of historic research in ecological restoration. In addition to its 1,260 acres (5 km2) in Madison, Wisconsin, the Arboretum also manages 520 acres (210 ha) of remnant forests and prairies throughout Wisconsin. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2021, in recognition for its role as a pioneer in the field of ecological restoration.
Hammock is a term used in the southeastern United States for stands of trees, usually hardwood, that form an ecological island in a contrasting ecosystem. Hammocks grow on elevated areas, often just a few inches high, surrounded by wetlands that are too wet to support them. The term hammock is also applied to stands of hardwood trees growing on slopes between wetlands and drier uplands supporting a mixed or coniferous forest. Types of hammocks found in the United States include tropical hardwood hammocks, temperate hardwood hammocks, and maritime or coastal hammocks. Hammocks are also often classified as hydric, mesic or xeric. The types are not exclusive, but often grade into each other.
Veronicastrum virginicum, or Culver's root, is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, Plantaginaceae. It is native to the eastern United States and south-eastern Canada. Growing to 200 cm (79 in) tall by 45 cm (18 in) broad, it is an erect herbaceous perennial with slender racemes of white or occasionally pink or purple flowers in summer.
The eastern woodlands of the United States covered large portions of the southeast side of the continent until the early 20th century. These were in a fire ecology of open grassland and forests with low ground cover of herbs and grasses.
Arctia virginalis, the Ranchman's tiger moth, is a species of tiger moth in the family Erebidae. It was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1852.
Silene stellata, known by the common names starry campion, widow's frill, and whorled catchfly, is a perennial herbaceous summer forb with white flowers, native to the central and eastern United States. It grows in habitats such as forests, river flats, and tall grass prairies.
Sporobolus michauxianus is a species of cordgrass known as prairie cordgrass, freshwater cordgrass, tall marshgrass, and sloughgrass. It is native to much of North America, including central and eastern Canada and most of the contiguous United States except for the southwestern and southeastern regions. Its distribution extends into Mexico. It is also present on other continents as an introduced species.
Hesperia pahaska, the Pahaska skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae.
The Interior Low Plateaus are a physiographic region in eastern United States. It consists of a diverse landscape that extends from north Alabama across central Tennessee and Kentucky into southern Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Its natural communities are a matrix of temperate forests, woodlands, and prairies.
The Southeastern conifer forests are a temperate coniferous forest ecoregion of the southeastern United States. It is the largest conifer forest ecoregion east of the Mississippi River. It is also the southernmost instance of temperate coniferous forest within the Nearctic realm.
The ecology of the Great Plains is diverse, largely owing to their great size. Differences in rainfall, elevation, and latitude create a variety of habitats including short grass, mixed grass, and tall-grass prairies, and riparian ecosystems.
Platanthera lacera is an orchid in the genus Platanthera, native throughout Eastern United States and Canada. It occurs in a variety of habitats ranging from “mesic and dry-mesic sand prairie, wet sedge meadow, calcareous fen, sphagnum bog, acid seep spring, dry field, mesic flatwoods, and mesic upland forests.” Common names include ragged fringed orchid and green fringed orchid.
Dichanthelium leibergii, known as variously as Leiberg's panicum, Leiberg's panicgrass, Leiberg's rosette grass, and prairie panic grass is a species of grass native to North America. It was named for its discoverer, John Bernhard Leiberg (1853-1913), a Swedish-born American botanist active in the western United States.
Orbexilum onobrychis, commonly called French-grass or lanceleaf scurfpea, is a species of flowering plant in the legume family (Fabaceae). It is native to the eastern United States where its range is concentrated in the Midwest and Upper South. Its natural habitat is primarily prairies and riverbanks, typically in mesic or wet areas. It is an uncommon species, and can be found in high-quality prairie remnants as well as more disturbed areas.
Dichanthelium lindheimeri, commonly called Lindheimer panicgrass, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family (Poaceae). It is native primarily to eastern areas the United States and Canada, with its range extending into the South Central region. There are also outlying western populations in California, New Mexico and Oregon.
The western meadow vole is a species of North American vole found in midwestern and western Canada and the United States, and formerly in Mexico. It was formerly considered conspecific with the eastern meadow vole, but genetic studies indicate that it is a distinct species.
