356 



NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



cover of Ohio (see figure 12). Well 

 defined vegetation regions, correlated 

 with topographic features and soil 

 types, are discernible. 



On the Allegheny Plateau, are mixed 

 coniferous and deciduous forests. The 

 most important deciduous trees are oaks 

 {Quercus prinus, Q. rubra, Q. coccinea, 

 Q. alba, Q. velutina), chestnut (Castanea 

 dcntata), hickories (Carya alba, C. ovaia, 

 C. glabra), birch {Betula lutea), bass- 

 wood {Tilia americana), black gum 

 (Nyssa sylvatica), with sugar maple 

 (Acer saccharum) and beech {Fagus 

 grandifolia) only on lower slopes of 

 ravines; red maple [Acer rubrum) here 

 is a small tree of the undergrowth. 

 Among the conifers are scrub, pitch, 

 and short-leaf pine {Pinus virginiana, 

 P. rigida, P. echinata), and in the north 

 white pine (Pinus strobus), red cedar 

 (Juniperus virginiana), arbor vitae 

 (Thuja occidentalis), yew (Taxus cana- 

 densis), and in mesophytic locations, 

 hemlock (Tsuga canadensis). Ericace- 

 ous plants are abundant throughout the 

 hill country, but almost lacking else- 

 where in the state. The large admixture 

 of conifers in the forests, and the impor- 

 tant ericaceous element, will distinguish 

 the vegetation of the Allegheny Plateau 

 from that of the remainder of the state. 



The Lake Section of the Central 

 Lowland Province includes the lake 

 shore, with its strand and dune vegeta- 

 tion, and coastal marshes; the beach 

 ridges, very low and inconspicuous, and 

 clothed with a mesophytic beech-maple 

 forest; the intervening low and poorly 

 drained belts, where red maple mingles 

 with beech in the forest; and the large 

 level poorly drained areas — the old lake 

 bed — of northwest Ohio, originally cov- 

 ered with enormous tracts of swamp 

 forest (Great Black Swamp) and open 

 oak forests (oak openings). Evergreens 

 occur locally in the region. 



On the Till Plains, are hardwood 

 forests of oaks, maples, hickories, wal- 

 nut, beech, and elm; and occasional 

 small prairies. The one most charac- 

 teristic and abundant tree of all this 

 area is the white oak. By this charac- 



teristic and the almost complete absence 

 of conifers, except red cedar, the vege- 

 tation of the Till Plains is readily 

 distinguished from that of the Allegheny 

 Plateau. 



The Interior Low Plateau is not well 

 marked vegetationally. White oak is 

 much less abundant than on the Till 

 Plains; conifers are not prominent, as 

 on the Allegheny Plateau, 



ANIMAL LIFE 



In the trackless forest of pioneer days, 

 many of the larger mammals abounded. 

 Timber wolves (Canis lycaon) howled 

 in the forests close to settlements, and 

 cougars (Felis couguar) roamed at will 

 about 60 years ago. Bison disappeared 

 from Ohio about 1800. Other larger 

 mammals recorded from Ohio are 

 Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), bobcat 

 (Lynx rujus), red and gray fox (Vulpes 

 fulva and Urocyon cinereoargenteus) , 

 fisher or pekan (Maries pennanti), black 

 bear (Ursus americanus), Virginia deer 

 (Odocoileus virginianus) , elk (Cervus 

 canadensis), beaver (Castor canadensis), 

 and opossum (Didelphis virginiana). 

 Of these only red fox and opossum 

 remain. The smaller mammals were 

 more numerous, and included least 

 weasel (Musiela allegheniensis), common 

 weasel (Mustela noveboracensis), mink 

 (Mustela vison mink), skunk (Mephitis 

 nigra), raccoon (Procyon lotor), five 

 species of bats, moles, bob-tailed shrew 

 (Blarina brevicauda), southern flying- 

 squirrel (Glaucomys volans), red, grey, 

 and fox squirrel (Sciurus hudsonicus 

 loquax, S. carolinensis leucotis, and 

 S. niger rufiventer), chipmunk (Tamias 

 striatus), striped ground-squirrel (Citel- 

 lus tridecemlineatus) , woodchuck (Mar- 

 mota monax), deer-mouse (Peromyscus 

 leucopus noveboracensis), meadow vole 

 (Microtus pennsylvanicus) , muskrat (On- 

 datra zibethica), porcupine (Erethizon 

 dorsatum), and cottontail rabbit {Sylvila- 

 gus floridanus mearnsii). A large pro- 

 portion of the species originally recorded 

 still occur. Faunal distribution is not 

 so much influenced by the natural 



