Georgia and the American Experience Chapter 2: This Place We Call Home Study Presentation © 2005 Clairmont Press

Georgia and the American Experience Section 1: Georgia’s Flora and Fauna Section 2: Georgia’s Natural Resources Section 3: Georgia’s Waterways

Section 1: Georgia’s Flora and Fauna Essential Question: What are Georgia’s flora and fauna?

Section 1: Georgia’s Flora and Fauna What geographic terms do I need to know? -- flora -- fauna -- tides -- watershed

What is Flora? Flora: Plants, flowers, and trees 180-day growing period in north Georgia 270-day growing period in the coastal region 23 million acres of forested land Rome’s Marshall Forest: Only virgin forest within a city limits in the United States State known for giant live oaks, pines, peach trees, pecan trees, dogwoods, and cherry blossoms

What is Fauna? Fauna: Animals, reptiles, birds, and sea life White-tailed deer, squirrels, opossums, bats, rabbits, hares, raccoons, and gray foxes State marine mammal: Right (Baleen) whale State bird: Brown thrasher; other birds include quail, doves, hummingbirds, and woodpeckers

Georgia’s Reptiles and Amphibians Snakes include Copperheads, cottonmouths (water moccasins), and rattlesnakes American alligators live in the Coastal Plain region Endangered loggerhead sea turtles live along the barrier islands 24 types of frogs, four species of toads, and 36 kinds of salamanders

Georgia’s Fish and Sea Life Trout fishing is popular in north Georgia Large-mouth bass found across the state in ponds and lakes Blue crabs and pink shrimp popular along the golden isles region Shad, a fish delicacy found in the Ogeechee River near Savannah, has a short harvesting season Click here to return to menu.

Section 2: Georgia’s Natural Resources ESSENTIAL QUESTION What are the natural resources of Georgia?

Section 2: Georgia’s Natural Resources What words do I need to know? stones and mineral resources kaolin and fuller’s earth gold

Georgia’s Natural Stone Resources Marble is found primarily in Gilmer, Hall, and Pickens counties Granite is found mainly in Elbert and DeKalb counties Stone Mountain, in DeKalb County, is the world’s largest exposed granite rock Limestone and slate are mined in Georgia.

Kaolin and fuller’s earth Clay products; very profitable Fuller’s earth: Mined in Decatur, Grady, Jefferson, and Thomas counties Fuller’s earth is an absorbent used in kitty litter, for oils and grease, and in soaps and medicines Kaolin: Mined in Fall Line counties in east-central Coastal Plain Kaolin used in paper coating, paint filler, plastics and rubber, as base for porcelain products Click here to return to menu.

Section 3: Georgia’s Waterways ESSENTIAL QUESTION How have waterways influenced Georgia’s exploration, settlement, and economic development?

Section 3: Georgia’s Waterways What words do I need to know? -- Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway -- Semidiurnal tides -- Estuaries -- Reservoir -- Aquifer

Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway 1,000-mile inland waterway that runs from New York to Miami, Florida Between Georgia’s barrier islands and the Georgia coast gives commercial and recreational boating traffic safety from storms, strong currents, and waves of ocean routes. Savannah and Brunswick are Georgia’s two deep water ports

Georgia’s Tides A tide is a rise or fall of the sea level caused by gravitational pull of the sun and the moon Georgia’s coastline has six-foot to 9-foot tides (unusual) Georgia has semidiurnal tides (two high tides and two low tides daily) Spring tides (tides at highest) and neap tides (tides at their lowest)

Coastal Waterways: The Saltwater Marshes Four- to six-mile band of saltwater marshes are between barrier islands and the mainland These marshes cover about 500,000 acres Cordgrass makes up 95 percent of the saltwater marsh vegetation Sand fiddlers, mud fiddlers, snails, and crabs are common Provide food for herons, egrets, ibis, sandpipers, and the endangered wood storks

Coastal Waterways: Sloughs and Estuaries Freshwater sloughs (pronounced “slaws”) are small ponds, swamps, and freshwater marshes Develop from marsh creeks that lose tidal flow Provides fresh water for forest animals Estuaries occur when freshwater rivers and salt water mix; include tidal rivers, sounds, and marsh creeks Crab, shrimp, fish, and shellfish thrive in these waters

Georgia’s Rivers Twelve principal river systems Savannah, Ogeechee, Altamaha (which combines Oconee and Ocmulgee), and Satilla rivers flow into Atlantic Ocean Chattahoochee and Flint rivers become part of Gulf of Mexico Oostanaula and Etowah rivers form the Coosa River, which flows through Alabama to the Gulf. Alapaha, Suwannee, and St. Mary’s form the Georgia-Florida border

Georgia’s Lakes No large natural lakes, but network of lakes formed from river system Many large lakes created by U.S. Corps of Engineers and the Georgia Power Company Carter Lake, Lake Lanier, Walter George, West Point, and Seminole generate hydroelectric power Thurmond Lake, Lake Oconee, and Lake Hartwell provide fishing, recreation, and boating opportunities

Georgia’s Ports Bainbridge and Columbus harbor two inland barge terminals Savannah’s port, the nation’s fifth largest container port, focuses on containerized cargo Brunswick’s port handles auto shipping, heavy equipment, farm machinery, and luxury tour buses

Reservoirs and Aquifers Little groundwater in northern half of Georgia Manmade Reservoirs (holding tanks) provide much water for northern Georgia Georgia major aquifers (natural water storage tanks) are in Coastal Plain Augusta features a nine-mile canal; today it is a National Park Heritage Area Click here to return to menu.

Click here to return to menu.