Located in the center of the country, at the junction of its three largest river systems, Missouri blends four geophysical provinces: the Glaciated Plain, the Osage Plain, the Ozark Highlands and the Coastal Plain. Exposed bedrock ranges from Precambrian granite to Carboniferous limestones and karst topography, including numerous glades and caves, covers a broad swath of the State.
This geophysical diversity results in a wide variety of plant communities, from cypress swamps to upland forest, to floodplain wetlands and tallgrass prairie. This, in turn, leads to a tremendous diversity of fauna, a fact most recognized by bird watchers. The typical "eastern birds" are common throughout Missouri and its western counties host species typical of the Great Plains; the latter include scissor-tailed flycatchers, upland sandpipers, Swainson's hawks and blue grosbeaks. Southwestern Missouri is home to greater roadrunners, painted buntings and nine-banded armadillos while the southeastern "Bootheel" attracts a mix of wetland fauna more typical of the Southeastern States. The Glaciated Plain of northern Missouri draws winter incursions of Canadian wildlife (such as snowy owls, common redpolls, snow buntings and longspurs) and the migration highways of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers produce some of the most spectacular congregations of waterfowl on the Continent.
For all of these reasons, one might think of Missouri as the natural centerpiece of America. To those of us who live here, the title seems appropriate.
