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Ozarks and Ouachitas
(Area - 15,874,567 ha)
Description - The Ozarks and Ouachitas are two distinct mountain ranges
separated from each other by the Arkansas River Valley. The Ozarks occupy most of southern
Missouri and extend into northern Arkansas. They consist of three dissected plateaus
covered with oak-dominated forest with glade and savannah inclusions. To the south, the
Ouachitas are a ridge and valley system covering central Arkansas and extending into
eastern Oklahoma. Here shortleaf pine is interspersed with deciduous forest. The
physiographic area transforms into prairie to the north and west and drops off into the
Mississippi Alluvial Valley to the east and the West Gulf Coastal Plain to the south. The
Ozark/Ouachitas are similar in many respects to the Interior Low Plateaus that lie
directly to the east of the Mississippi Valley.
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Conservation recommendations and needs - Latitude, slope, and aspect determine the moistness, soil, and susceptibility of sites to fire. The driest sites, primarily in the Ouachitas, supported fire-regulated shortleaf pine communities that have degraded with fire suppression. Moderately wet sites support some combination of oaks and other deciduous trees. Some mesic sites in the Boston Mountains subregion of the Ozarks support beech-magnolia forest. Bird distribution is determined by the distribution of these forest types. Large volumes of timber were removed from the area by the early 20th century. Rugged topography, however, prevented large-scale conversion to agriculture, and most of the area has regenerated back into forest. Fire suppression has changed the nature of much of the forest, greatly reducing the dominance of pine. Glade and savannah habitats also have degraded with a lack of fire. Recent and ongoing urbanization has reduced forest coverage and threatens to fragment landscapes in some parts of the physiographic area.
The percentage of forest cover in some subregions of the Ozarks/Ouachitas remains in excess of suggested thresholds. Above these levels, landscapes are assumed to be capable of supporting self-sustaining populations of forest birds. Those landscapes should be carefully delineated, and conservation objectives focused on maintenance of that coverage. Much of this will depend on management of public lands (two National Forests and various state holdings). In landscapes that fall significantly below those thresholds, objectives should be to identify and maintain or restore a series of Bird Conservation Areas each of sufficient size (4,000 ha or more) and quality to support the forest-breeding avifauna. We also recommend that management of glades and regenerating forest land focus on the needs of the declining early successional species.
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