Biogeography of Virginia

Biogeography studies the distribution of plant and animal species. As in all geography, we strive not only to learn where different forms of life occur, but also why there. The latter involves inquiry into places of origin of species, conditions which allow species to disperse from their places of origin, and factors which allow them to thrive in newly occupied sites.

In this class, we confine our discussion of biogeography to wild species. We are interested in explaining the relatively high diversity of wild plants and animals that occur in the Commonwealth and coming to a general understanding of how the actual composition of our flora and fauna have changed in the past 12,000 years.

Important determinants of species richness are physiography, geology, and accessibility from other regions. Virginia’s five physiographic regions with their varied lithologies, elevation, and microclimatic conditions account for a great variety of habitats in which species of many different kinds may find conditions suitable for their long-term survival. Access to Virginia from the north is possible via the mountains, from the south via the coastal plain and piedmont, and from the west via the valleys of the New and Tennessee river systems. Furthermore, unique and isolated habitats such as caves, shale barrens, and high mountain tops served as places of origin for species endemic to the Southern Appalachians.

First we look at vegetation, the general plant cover. This is a key element of landscape and a significant natural resource both in terms of direct products that have been extracted from our forests and in terms of the role of forests and other types of natural vegetation in building soils and protecting watersheds and water quality.

Secondly we discuss the fauna or animal life of Virginia.

Created by SLW, 3/14/00.