NATURAL AREAS AND REGIONS 



449 



plants, some of them commonly re- 

 garded as calciphiles, some near their 

 northern or southern limits, and some 

 chiefly confined to Alabama, on bluffs 

 along the Warrior River a few miles 

 above Tuscaloosa. (See Jour. Elisha 

 Mitchell Sci. Soc., 37: 153-160. 1922.) 

 The largest number of species there 

 bloom early in April. On rocky shoals 

 in the river near by were formerly 

 Hymenocallis coronaria and a few other 

 local species, but the shoals have been 

 gradually obliterated by building locks 

 and dams to assist navigation in the 

 last 25 or 30 years, and there are none 

 left now within 50 mi. of the fall line 

 at Tuscaloosa. (See Torreya, 14 : 149-155. 

 1914.) The molluscan fauna of the 

 shoals was of course practically wiped 

 out at the same time. 



Eight Acre Rock, a few miles above 

 Tuscaloosa is another interesting spot 

 in the same county, an outcrop of hard 

 white sandstone with several rock-loving 

 plants on it, such as Diamorpha, Tal- 

 inum teretifolium, Poly gala Curtissii, 

 and Crotonopsis linearis, a few miles 

 northeast of Vance. 



5. The Coosa Valley region is the 

 southwestern extremity of the great 

 Appalachian Valley, which extends with 

 some modifications all the way to Ver- 

 mont. It embraces a considerable vari- 

 ety of geology, soil, topography and 

 vegetation, in narrow longitudinal belts. 

 The rocks are mostly limestone, shale, 

 chert and sandstone, the first two 

 usually making valleys and the last two 

 ridges. The soil is above the average 

 in fertility, and a good deal of it has 

 been under cultivation for several gen- 

 erations. Much of the pine, especially 

 longleaf, has been cut out, and a little of 

 it has been turpentined in recent years. 



The commonest trees are as follows: 

 Large trees: Loblolly pine, longleaf 

 pine, shortleaf pine, sweet gum, post 

 oak, red oak, black-jack oak (Q. Mary- 

 landica} willow oak, tulip poplar, scrub 

 pine, white oak, water oak, red maple, 

 cedar. 



Small trees: Dogwood, black willow, 

 sweet bay (Magnolia virginiana], iron- 

 wood, and hop hornbeam. 



The most interesting plants are found 

 on limestone outcrops, such as Croton 

 Alabamensis near the south end of the 

 valley in Bibb County. There are a 

 few species more characteristic of the 

 coastal plain, such as longleaf pine, 

 (nearly throughout), Nyssa aquatica in 

 Shelby County, and Virginia chain fern 

 (Woodwardiavirginica), spikerush (Eleo- 

 charis tuberculpsa), beak rush (Ryncho- 

 spora axillaris), pipewort (Ericaulon 



linear e}, oxytriasp. and pitcher plant 

 (Sarracenia flava] in Cherokee County. 



6. The Blue Ridge is the southwestern 

 extremity of the Appalachian mountain 

 system, and includes the highest moun- 

 tain in Alabama, namely, Cheaha (near 

 the junction of Cleburne, Clay and 

 Talladega Counties), 2400 ft. above sea- 

 level. Several outlying peaks a little 

 northwest of the main ridge, and sur- 

 rounded by the Coosa Valley, are 

 treated as part of the Blue Ridge. The 

 rocks are mainly sandstone (as on most 

 other southern mountains), and the to- 

 pography is quite rugged. Hardly any of 

 the area is cultivated, but lumbermen 

 have cut a great deal of the pine and 

 some of the oaks and chestnut. 



Longleaf pine is the commonest tree 

 on sunny slopes, up to nearly 2000 ft., 

 which is the highest altitude reached by 

 it anywhere. Next in order are short- 

 leaf pine, black jack oak, black oak, 

 chestnut oak, loblolly pine, scrub pine, 

 red maple, pignut hickory, chestnut, 

 mockernut hickory, and tulip poplar, 

 the small trees are sweet bay, dogwood, 

 sourwood, and Black locust. 



From Anniston: A city with good 

 railroad connections, several of the 

 mountains can be reached in a few 

 hours' walk, and others are more acces- 

 sible from Pyriton. To reach Cheaha, 

 however, it is best to arrange to camp 

 out at least one night. 



7. The Piedmont region, which ex- 

 tends northeastward to Pennsylvania, 

 is characterized by granite, gneiss, and 

 other crystalline rocks, moderately 

 hilly topography, and reddish soils, 

 belonging to the texture classes sandy 

 loam, stony loam, slate loam, and 

 clay loam. The forests have been 

 culled for fuel and other domestic 

 purposes. 



The commonest trees are longleaf 

 pine, loblolly pine, shortleaf pine, 

 sweet gum, tulip poplar, red maple, red 

 oak, post oak, black-jack oak, mocker- 

 nut hickory, beech, chestnut oak. 



Dogwood, sweet bay, black willow 

 and sourwood. 



There is little of special interest in 

 this region, except a few plants more 

 typical of the coastal plain, such as 

 Quercus laurifolia, Illicium, Cyrilla, and 

 Osmanthus, which grow in various places 

 not far from the Coosa River. Hymen- 

 ocallis coronaria grows on some of the 

 shoals of the Coosa River, but its exist- 

 ence is threatened by the building of 

 large dams for power purposes, one of 

 which was completed in 1914, and 

 another in 1923. The molluscan genus 

 Gyrotoma, confined to this river as far as 



