NATURAL AREAS AND REGIONS 



399 



areas, which, however, are still exten- 

 sive; only a remnant of Taxodium 

 remains in the Cypress Swamp, the area 

 and character of which are greatly 

 changed; in the sandier southern portion 

 of the state, stands of pine or of pine 

 and oak have replaced, to a great extent, 

 the hardwood forest, and have also 

 invaded abandoned agricultural lands. 

 No considerable areas of primitive forest 

 remain in the state. About 30% of the 

 area of the state is forested, the propor- 

 tion of woodland being greater in the 

 south, and probably not exceeding 15% 

 in the Piedmont Plateau region. On the 

 Coastal Plain, by the damming of 

 small streams, numerous permanent 

 ponds have been created, and these with 

 their natural margins support an exten- 

 sive fauna and flora. The sea-beach 

 areas, sand-bar strip, and adjacent 

 salt-marshes bordering the Atlantic are 

 largely state-owned; they have been 

 little modified, and support the limited 

 fauna and flora characteristic of such 

 situations. 



In Delaware, the larger mammals, 

 black bear, Virginia deer, and beaver, 

 have been extinct for many years; otter 

 and mink survive; foxes, raccoons, 

 opossums, and smaller mammals are 

 generally distributed; a few pairs of bald 

 eagles still nest within the state; the 

 abundance of game birds and game fish 

 has been affected by human agency; 

 but lying as it does in the path of the 

 annual migrations, and with conditions 

 still favorable to permanent residence, 

 Delaware possesses a rich bird fauna, 

 and of fish— as yet little studied— prob- 

 ably as many species as in the past. 



See Maryland for list of birds and 

 mammals. 



III. FISH AND GAME PRESERVES 



Delaware does not contain any 

 national or state Fish and Game Pre- 

 serves. By a General Order prohibiting 

 all hunting thereon, the state Rifle 

 Range, 300 acres of meadow and marsh 

 land along the Delaware River three 

 miles south of New Castle, has been 

 made a game refuge; and on many 



privately owned tracts throuRhout the 

 state, all trap|)ing and hunting are 

 prohibited, and tliis liroliihition is 

 enforced in varying degree. 



IV. roi.LGTIO.V 



The Delaware River, the lower Chris- 

 tiana, the Brandywine and Red Clay 

 Creeks, are polluted with sewage or 

 with manufacturing waste, though not 

 to the extermination of tlieir normal 

 fauna and flora. In general, the other 

 waters of the state are free from ex- 

 tensive pollution. 



V. NATURAL AREA.S 



A. Represenlalive of the Hardwood 

 Forest of the Piedmont Plateau 



The Remains of the Brandijuine Forest. 

 (D4.) New Castle County. With some 

 interruptions, bordering the winding 

 course of the Brandywine Creek from 

 within the city limits of Wilmington 

 (Wilmington City Park System) to the 

 Pennsylvania line, about seven miles. 

 The forest strip is of variable width 

 (maximum, about one mi.), occupying 

 the banks of the stream, the steep rocky 

 slopes and the hilltops, and the narrow 

 ravines of small tributary streams; 

 elevation, 25 to 408 ft. above sea level. 

 Most of this wooded area has never 

 been completely cleared, little cuttin 

 has been done for 50 years or more, an 

 portions of it have been protected 

 against cutting and burning for a 

 longer period, and approximate virgin 

 conditions. The principal trees are 

 oaks, chestnut (largely destroyed by 

 the blight), tulip p()i)lar, beech, hick- 

 ory, ash, maple, and walnut. The fauna 

 includes foxes, woodchucks, squirrels, 

 raccoons; the vulture occasionally 

 nests among the boulders. 



Included areas of special interest or 

 accessibility are: 



Alapocus Woods. (D4.) City Park 

 lands, and private owners); about 250 

 acres, bordering north side of Brandy- 

 wine Creek l)etween Augustine and 

 Rising Sun l)ridges. at edge of city; 

 fine protected woodlands, witli undis- 

 turbed natural herbaceous llora. 



Wilmington t (w). 



Rockland Woods. (D4.) Woodlawn 

 Trustees, and ])rivate owners); al)out 

 150 acres, nortli side of Brandywine 

 Creek, above Rockhuul; the Creek 

 Road traverses these woodlands for 

 i mi., paralleling the stream; fine un- 

 spoiled woodlands witii rich flora: steep 

 wooded rocky hills, rising 270 ft. in 



