The Penobscot Bay Coast Biophysical Region is part of the Northeastern Mixed Forest Province and the Central Maine Coastal & Embayment Ecoregion Section. There are 3 Forest Provinces, 6 Ecoregion Sections, and 19 Biophysical Regions in Maine.
Province: Northeastern Mixed Forest
The Northeastern Mixed Forest Province is characterized by a modified continental climatic regime with a maritime influence along the Atlantic Ocean. Winters are moderately long with continual ground snow cover. Annual precipitation is generally equally distributed with a peak during summer. Vegetation of this area consists of forests that provide a transition between boreal conifers and broadleaf deciduous.
Ecoregion Section: Central Maine Coastal & Embayment
The Central Maine Coastal and Embayment Ecoregion Section is a glacially scoured and dissected peneplain. Landscapes are generally flat to gently rolling with small areas of knobby bedrock ridges and high hills. Bedrock geology is complex and consists of somewhat alternating bands of metasedimentary and metavolcnaic formations, with scattered granite plutons. Vegetation in this section is closed forest of spruce-fir, oak-hickory, and maple-beech-birch cover types.
Biophysical Region: Penobscot Bay Coast
The Penobscot Bay Coast Biophysical Region is 73% forested with plurality representation in the maple-beech-birch forest type at 45%.
The top three tree species in this region (based on the stocking of live trees per average forested acre) are:
- Red Maple (46 trees per acre)
- Red Spruce (35 trees per acre)
- Balsam Fir (33 trees per acre)
This graph shows major tree species/species groups, live tree stocking (trees/acre), and how much they contribute to the overall stocking for the Penobscot Bay Coast Biophysical Region:
* All data are based on the Maine Forest Inventory & Analysis, 2015 (United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service)
Check out the other 2 bioregions in the Northeastern Mixed Forest Province and the Central Maine Coastal & Embayment Ecoregion Section: