Landcover Database
Class and Description | Class Area and % of State
The mapping of land cover is done by adopting or developing a land cover classification system, delineating areas of relative homogeneity (basic cartographic “objects”), then labeling these areas using categories defined by the classification system. More detailed attributes of the individual areas are added as more information becomes available, and a process of validating both polygon pattern and labels is applied for editing and revising the map. This is done in an iterative fashion, with the results from one step causing re-evaluation of results from another step.
Code | Class Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Beach | Open sand, sandbars, mud and some sand dunes - natural environments as well as exposed sand from dredging and other activities. Mainly in coastal areas, but also inland, especially along the banks of reservoirs. |
| 9 | Coastal Dune | Sand dunes and associated vegetation. |
| 11 | Open Water | Lakes, rivers, ponds, ocean, industrial water and aquaculture. |
| 18 | Transportation | Roads, railroads, airports and runways. |
| 20 | Utility Swaths | Open swaths maintained for transmission lines. |
| 22 | Low Intensity Urban - Nonforested | Low intensity urban areas with little or no tree canopy. |
| 24 | High Intensity Urban | Commercial/industrial and multi-family residential areas. |
| 31 | Clearcut - Sparse Vegetation | Recent clearcuts, sparse vegetation and other early successional areas. |
| 33 | Quarries, Strip Mines | Exposed rock and soil from industrial uses, gravel pits and landfills. |
| 34 | Rock Outcrop | Rock outcrops and mountain tops. |
| 72 | Parks, Recreation | Cemeteries, playing fields, campus-like institutions, parks and schools. |
| 73 | Golf Course | Golf courses. |
| 80 | Pasture, Hay | Pasture and non-tilled grasses. |
| 83 | Row Crop | Row crops, orchards, vineyards, groves and horticultural businesses. |
| 201 | Forested Urban - Deciduous | Low intensity urban areas containing mainly deciduous trees. |
| 202 | Forested Urban - Evergreen | Low intensity urban areas containing mainly evergreen trees. |
| 203 | Forested Urban - Mixed | Low intensity urban areas containing mixed deciduous and evergreen trees. |
| 410 | Mesic Hardwood | Mesic forests of lower elevations in the mountain regions (Blue Ridge, Cumerland Plateau, and Ridge and Valley) and upper Piedmont. Includes species such as yellow-poplar, sweetgum, white oak, northern red oak, and American beech. |
| 411 | Sub-mesic Hardwood | Moderately mesic forests of the mountain regions and upper Piedmont. Includes typical oak-hickory forests. The dominant natural cover class in most mountain areas. |
| 412 | Hardwood Forest | Mesic to moderately mesic forests of the lower Piedmont and Coastal Plain. Includes non-wetland floodplain forests of yellow-poplar and sweetgum, ravines of oaks and American beech, and many upland oak-hickory stands. |
| 413 | Xeric Hardwood | Dry hardwood forests found throughout the state, although most common in the mountain regions, and progressively more rare southward. Includes areas dominated by southern red oak, scarlet oak, post oak and blackjack oak. |
| 414 | Deciduous Cove Hardwood | Mesic forests of sheltered valleys in the Blue Ridge and Cumberland Plateau at moderate to high elevations. Typically includes northern red oak, basswood, buckeye and yellow-poplar. |
| 415 | Northern Hardwood | Restricted to the highest elevations of the Blue Ridge. Dominant tree species may include yellow birch, black cherry, and American beech. |
| 420 | Live Oak | Forests dominated by live oak. Most common in maritime strands along the Atlantic Coast. Also may occur in strip along southern border into southwest Georgia. |
| 422 | Open Loblolly-Shortleaf Pine | Only mapped in the Piedmont. Includes older, fairly open stands that may be almost savanna-like in appearance. |
| 423 | Xeric Pine | Very dry evergreen forests restricted to the mountain regions and upper Piedmont. Includes Virginia, shortleaf, pitch and table mountain pines. |
| 424 | Hemlock-White Pine | Mesic evergreen forests frequently associated with riparian areas. Restricted to Blue Ridge and Cumberland Plateau. |
| 425 | White Pine | Moderately mesic evergreen forests of the Blue Ridge, usually dominated by white pine. |
| 431 | Montane Mixed Pine-Hardwood | Moderately mesic mixed forests of the Blue Ridge. Typical species include white pine, white oak, hickories and yellow-poplar. |
| 432 | Xeric Mixed Pine-Hardwood | Dry mixed forests found throughout the state, although most common in the mountain regions and progressively more rare southward. Includes areas dominated by a mix of pines (most frequently shortleaf or Virginia in the mountains, and shortleaf or longleaf elsewhere) and hardwood species such as southern red oak, scarlet oak, post oak and blackjack oak. |
| 433 | Mixed Cove Forest | Mesic mixed forests of sheltered valleys and riparian areas in the Blue Ridge and Cumberland Plateau at moderate to high elevations. Typically includes eastern hemlock, yellow-poplar and black birch. |
| 434 | Mixed Pine-Hardwood | Mesic to moderately dry forests of mixed deciduous and evergreen species found throughout the state at lower elevations. May include areas dominated by sweetgum, yellow-poplar, various oak species and loblolly or shortleaf pine. |
| 440 | Loblolly-Shortleaf Pine | Found from the upper Coastal Plain northward (rare in the Blue Ridge except at the lowest elevations). Includes many stands heavily managed for silviculture as well as areas regenerating from old field conditions. |
| 441 | Loblolly-Slash Pine | Found on the lower Coastal Plain. Includes many heavily managed stands as well as a few natural areas. |
| 511 | Shrub Bald | Restricted to mountain tops at high elevations of the Blue Ridge. May be dominated by mountain laurel, rhododendron or blueberry. |
| 512 | Sandhill | Areas of scrub vegetation on deep, sandy soils on the Coastal Plain, especially near the Fall Line and along larger streams. May be dominated by turkey oak, blackjack oak, live oak, holly and longleaf pine. |
| 513 | Coastal Scrub | Thickets between coastal dunes, typically dominated by wax myrtle. Sometimes found adjacent to saltmarsh areas. |
| 620 | Longleaf Pine | Open, savanna-type stand. Heavily managed plantations would likely be classed with 440 or 441. Most common on the lower Coastal Plain, although found up to the lower Piedmont and historically in the Ridge and Valley. |
| 890 | Cypress-Gum Swamp | Regularly flooded swamp forests mainly found on the Coastal Plain. May include either riparian or depressional wetlands. Usually dominated by pond or baldcypress and/or tupelo gum. |
| 900 | Bottomland Hardwood | Less frequently flooded wetland forests found throughout the state, but most common on the Coastal Plain. To the north, may be dominated by sweetgum, elms and red maple. To the south, wetland oaks (water oak, willow oak, overcup oak, swamp chestnut oak), black gum, and even spruce pine become more common. |
| 920 | Saltmarsh | Emergent brackish or saltwater wetlands dominated by Spartina or Juncus. |
| 930 | Freshwater Marsh | Emergent freshwater wetlands found throughout the state. May be dominated by grasses or sedges. |
| 980 | Shrub Wetland | Closed canopy, low stature woody wetland. Found throughout the state, although most common on the Coastal Plain. May be result of clearcutting of wetland forests. Frequently includes willows, alders and red maple. |
| 990 | Evergreen Forested Wetland | Restricted to the Coastal Plain. Includes forests dominated by bay species, wet pine forests (typically slash or pond pine) or Atlantic white cedar. |
