The eastern woodlands of the United States covered large portions of the southeast side of the continent until the early 20th century. These were in a fire ecology of open grassland and forests with low ground cover of herbs and grasses.
Maritime slash pine savannah in Gulf Coastal Plain southern Mississippi
Prescribed fire in Virginia, 1995. Many eastern ridgetops were burned by American Indians.
Wet pine savanna
Atlantic Plain
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The Atlantic Plain is one of eight distinct physiographic divisions of the contiguous United States. Using the USGS physiographic classification system, the Atlantic Plain division comprises two provinces and six sections. The Coastal Plain province is differentiated from the Continental Shelf province simply based on the portion of the land mass above and below sea level.
Atlantic Plain Physiographic Division of the United States. Green highlighted area is the Atlantic Plain, and the other seven physiographic divisions of the contiguous United States are shown in the legend.
Extent of the Atlantic Plain Continental Shelf province as indicated by the 1928 work by Fenneman.
Longleaf pine woodland savanna, typical of the region.
Wheat field near Centreville on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, with flat terrain typical of the Atlantic Plain