Bird Checklists of the United States
Big Thicket National Preserve
Beaumont, Texas
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You can find plants and/or animals characteristic of many regions living together in the Big Thicket. Much of this "biological crossroads" phenomenon can be attributed to the Ice Age. Continental glaciers far to the north pushed many species southward. Conditions were sufficiently varied that when the glaciers retreated, many species continued living here. A change in elevation of just a meter (a few feet) can produce a drastic change in vegetation. Where habitats meet--called ecotones--life forms are most varied. The Big Thicket has such ecotones in abundance. |
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