The Southern Swamplands – an Iconic Treasure
From the cypress swamps, pine bogs, pocosins and longleaf pine savannas to the alligators and the unique Venus flytrap, the Coastal Swampland Forests are home to a rich and diverse swath of the natural world. Indeed this diversity of life is of national and global significance. This area stretching from southeast Virginia all of the way to the Georgia coast, is home to iconic swamps like the Green Swamp of Southeastern North Carolina and the Great Dismal Swamp of Southeastern Virginia.
The biodiversity of this region is unmatched, containing rare forest types, species found nowhere else on the planet and unique ecological and evolutionary phenomena. In this stretch of our region you’ll not only find some of the last remaining longleaf pine and bottomland hardwood communities like the Atlantic white cedar, you will also discover unique carnivorous plants like the Venus flytrap and pitcher plants. The forested wetlands of the region serve as a critical buffer from the severe weather driven by global climate change.
Yet this is a land marked by the hand of man over many generations. The unique wetlands and some special ecosystem types are reduced to only a minute fraction of their former range, approximately 90% of the region has been converted or degraded in some way. Where once stood native forests, millions of acres are now intensively managed as monoculture tree plantations providing only limited habitat. And the impact of industrial logging continues to be felt across the region – the largest paper producing region in the world.
Learn More – read our report on The Southern Swamplands and the Impact of Paper Packaging
Take Action – send a message to the energy industry demanding change.
Donate – support our vital work to preserve the best of what’s left in The Southern Swamplands
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