Ecoregions of the Southwest

Tucson

Fresno

Phoenix

Anaheim

ModestoFremont

Oakland

Chandler

Glendale

Pasadena

Flagstaff

San Jose

Stockton

San Diego

Santa Ana

Henderson

Las Vegas

RiversideScottsdale

Long Beach

Sacramento

Chula Vista

Los Angeles

Carson City

Bakersfield

San Francisco

Prescott

Sierra Vista

Nogales

Sedona

WinslowKingman

Blythe

BullheadCity

El Centro

Oxnard

Santa Barbara

Lancaster

Salinas

SantaCruz

Redding

Eureka

OREGONIDAHO

SONORA

BAJA CALIFORNIA

Santa Cruz Island

San Clemente Island

Santa Miguel Island

San Nicolas IslandSanta Catalina Island

Santa Rosa Island

Santa Barbara Island

Anacapa Island

13j13r

6al 14e

22x14a

SantaMaria

Visalia

81i79b

14b 14b

80j80d

14a 14b

13h 13q

14f14h

4f4d6ar

5a 13aa 13y

5m 5m5n

14b81i

13g13e

13h13t

13h13h

20c20e

23l23b

GooseLake

81k81k

78j78d 78l

78k78k

14n14n14f

14f14o 14b

14o14f

14b14b

14o14j

14b14f

80j80j

13a13b13a

13q 13q

13t13h

13l 13l

13l13l

13h13k

13q13e

13e13e

13p13e

13a 13b

13w 13v13v

14d 14b

23d 23i

23l23l

23b23b

81i81i

81l81k

81k81i

81n81k

79e79b

79b79a

Klamath River

ShastaLake

Clear Lake Reservoir

LowerKlamath

Honey Lake

Pyramid Lake

LakeTahoe

Clear Lake

I FI C

San PabloBay

San Francisco

San Joaquin River

Mono Lake

WalkerLake

MONTEREY BAY

OwensLake

Los Ang

eles A

California Aqueduct

Kern River

Salinas River

SANTAMONICA

SaltonSea

LakeMead

LakePowell

Gila River

San Pedro River

Gila River

Verde River

Little Colorado River

in River

Humboldt River

127°128°

0 50 100 150Miles

0 75 150 225Kilometers

SCALE 1:2,000,000

NAD 1983 California Teale Albers ProjectionStandard parallels 34ºN and 40.5ºN

E c o r e g i o n s o f t h e S o u t h w e s t ( A r i z o n a , C a l i f o r n i a , N e v a d a )

Ecoregions are areas where ecosystems (and the type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources) are generally similar. They are designed to serve as a spatial framework for the research, assessment, management, and monitoring of ecosystems and ecosystem components. These Level III and IV ecoregions, compiled at a scale of 1:250,000, revise and subdivide an earlier, smaller-scale national ecoregion map (Omernik, 1987). The ecoregions were identified by analyzing the spatial patterns and the composition of biotic and abiotic phenomena that affect or reflect differences in ecosystem quality and integrity (Omernik, 1987, 1995). These phenomena include geology, landforms, soils, vegetation, climate, land use, wildlife, and hydrology. The relative importance of each characteristic varies from one ecological region to another regardless of the hierarchical level. An ecoregion framework is critical for structuring and implementing ecosystem management strategies across federal agencies, state agencies, and nongovernment organizations that are responsible for different types of resources within the same geographic areas (McMahon and others, 2001; Omernik and Griffith, 2014).A Roman numeral hierarchical scheme has been adopted for different levels of ecological regions. Level I is the most general level, dividing North America into 15 ecological regions. Level II divides the continent into 50 regions (Commission for Environmental Cooperation, 1997, 2006). At level III, the continent contains 183 ecological regions of which 105 occur in the continental United States (United States Environmental Protection Agency [U.S. EPA], 2013; Wiken and others, 2011). The Level III and IV ecoregions of the Southwest were mapped in state-level projects in Arizona (Griffith and others, 2014), California (Griffith and others, 2016) and Nevada (Bryce and others, 2003). These projects were conducted primarily by the U.S. EPA National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory (Corvallis, Oregon) in collaboration with U.S. EPA Region 9, state resource management agencies, and other federal agencies, such as the U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)–Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA–Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. The mapping was associated with an interagency effort to develop a common framework of ecological regions (McMahon and others, 2001). Although there are differences in the conceptual approaches and mapping methodologies used by the different federal agencies for developing their own regional frameworks, these collaborative ecoregion projects were a step toward attaining consensus and consistency in ecoregion frameworks for the entire nation.Explanations of the methods used to define these ecoregions are given in Omernik (1995, 2004) and Omernik and Griffith (2014). Additional

maps, publications, and GIS data for U.S. and North American ecoregions can be obtained at www.epa.gov/eco-research/ecoregions.REFERENCES

Bryce, S.A., Woods, A.J., Morefield, J.D., Omernik, J.M., McKay, T.R., Brackley, G.K., Hall, R.K., Higgins, D.K., McMorran, D.C., Vargas, K.E., Petersen, E.B., Zamudio, D.C., and Comstock, J.A., 2003, Ecoregions of Nevada: Reston, Virginia, U.S. Geological Survey (map scale 1:1,350,000).

Commission for Environmental Cooperation, 1997, Ecological regions of North America – toward a common perspective: Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Commission for Environmental Cooperation, 71 p. (map revised 2006), www.epa.gov/eco-research/ecoregions-north-america.

Griffith, G.E., Omernik, J.M., Johnson, C.B., and Turner, D.S., 2014, Ecoregions of Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2014-1141, with map, scale 1:1,325,000, http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20141141

Griffith, G.E., Omernik, J.M., Smith, D.W., Cook, T.D., Tallyn, E., Moseley, K., and Johnson, C.B., 2016, Ecoregions of California (poster): U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2016–1021, with map, scale 1:1,100,000, http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20161021.

McMahon, G., Gregonis, S.M., Waltman, S.W., Omernik, J.M., Thorson, T.D., Freeouf, J.A., Rorick, A.H., and Keys, J.E., 2001, Developing a spatial framework of common ecological regions for the conterminous United States: Environmental Management, v. 28, no. 3, p. 293-316.

Omernik, J.M., 1987, Ecoregions of the conterminous United States (map supplement): Annals of the Association of American Geographers, v. 77, no. 1, p. 118-125, scale 1:7,500,000.

Omernik, J.M., 1995, Ecoregions – a framework for environmental management, in Davis, W.S. and Simon, T.P., eds., Biological assessment and criteria-tools for water resource planning and decision making: Boca Raton, Florida, Lewis Publishers, p. 49-62.

Omernik, J.M., 2004, Perspectives on the nature and definition of ecological regions: Environmental Management, v. 34, Supplement 1, p. s27-s38.

Omernik, J.M., and Griffith, G.E., 2014, Ecoregions of the conterminous United States ‒ evolution of a hierarchical spatial framework: Environmental Management, v. 54, no. 6, p. 1249-1266, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00267-014-0364-1

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2013, Level III ecoregions of the continental United States: Corvallis, Oregon, USEPA – National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, www.epa.gov/eco-research/level-iii-and-iv-ecoregions-continental-united-states.

Wiken, E., Jiménez Nava, F., and Griffith, G., 2011, North American Terrestrial Ecoregions - Level III. Commission for Environmental Cooperation, Montreal, Canada. 149 p., http://ecologicalregions.info/htm/pubs/NA_TerrestrialEcoregionsLevel3_Final-2june11_CEC.pdf

CITING THIS MAP: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2016. Ecoregions of the Southwest (Arizona, California, Nevada). U.S. EPA, National Health and Ecological Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, Corvallis, Oregon. Map scale 1:2,000,000. https://www.epa.gov/eco-research/ecoregion-download-files-region#pane-09.

Support for the production of this map provided by: U.S. Geological Survey, Western Geographic Science Center, Menlo Park, California, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Health and Ecological Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, Corvallis, Oregon.

Level III boundaryLevel IV boundaryInternational boundaryState boundaryCounty boundary

85 Southern California/Northern Baja Coast85a Santa Barbara Coastal Plain and Terraces85b Oxnard Plain and Valleys85c Venturan-Angeleno Coastal Hills85d Los Angeles Plain85e Diegan Coastal Terraces85f Diegan Coastal Hills and Valleys85g Diegan Western Granitic Foothills85h Morena/Boundary Mountain Chaparral85i Northern Channel Islands85j Southern Channel Islands85k Inland Valleys85l Inland Hills85m Santa Ana Mountains

81a Western Sonoran Mountains81b Western Sonoran Mountain Woodland and Shrubland81c Western Sonoran Basins81d Sand Hills/Sand Dunes81e Upper Coachella Valley and Hills81f Imperial/Lower Coachella Valleys81g Lower Colorado/Lower Gila River Valleys81h Sonoran Playas81i Central Sonoran/Colorado Desert Mountains81j Central Sonoran/Colorado Desert Basins81k Arizona Upland/Eastern Sonoran Mountains

81 Sonoran Basin and Range

81l Arizona Upland/Eastern Sonoran Basins81m Sonoran Lava Fields81n Gila/Salt Intermediate Basins81o Middle Gila/Salt River Floodplains

80a Dissected High Lava Plateau80b Semiarid Hills and Low Mountains80d Pluvial Lake Basins80e High Desert Wetlands80g High Lava Plains80j Semiarid Uplands80k Partly Forested Mountains80l Salt Shrub Valleys

80 Northern Basin and Range

79a Apachian Valleys and Low Hills79b Lower Madrean Woodlands79c Madrean Pine-Oak and Mixed Conifer Forests

79 Madrean Archipelago

79e Madrean Basin Grasslands79d Willcox Playa

78a Rogue/Illinois/Scott Valleys78d Serpentine Siskiyous78e Inland Siskiyous78g Klamath River Ridges78h Border High-Siskiyous78i Western Klamath Low Elevation Forests78j Western Klamath Montane Forests78k Eastern Klamath Low Elevation Forests78l Eastern Klamath Montane Forests78m Marble/Salmon Mountains-Trinity Alps78n Scott Mountains78o Klamath Subalpine78p Duzel Rock78q Outer North Coast Ranges78r High North Coast Ranges

78 Klamath Mountains/ California High North Coast Range

14a Eastern Mojave Basins14b Eastern Mojave Low Ranges and Arid Footslopes14c Eastern Mojave Mountain Woodland and Shrubland14d Eastern Mojave High Elevation Mountains14e Arid Valleys and Canyonlands14f Mojave Playas14g Amargosa Desert14h Death Valley/Mojave Central Trough14i Mesquite Flat/Badwater Basin14j Western Mojave Basins14k Western Mojave Low Ranges and Arid Footslopes14l Western Mojave Mountain Woodland and Shrubland14m Western Mojave High Elevation Mountains14n Mojave Lava Fields14o Mojave Sand Dunes

14 Mojave Basin and Range

14p Lower Grand Canyon

13a Salt Deserts

13aa Sierra Nevada-Influenced Semiarid Hills and Basins13ab Sierra Valley13ac Upper Owens Valley13ad Mono-Adobe Valleys13ae Bishop Volcanic Tableland

13b Shadscale-Dominated Saline Basins13c Sagebrush Basins and Slopes13d Woodland- and Shrub-Covered Low Mountains13e High Elevation Carbonate Mountains13g Wetlands13h Lahontan and Tonopah Playas13j Lahontan Salt Shrub Basin13k Lahontan Sagebrush Slopes13l Lahontan Uplands13m Upper Humboldt Plains13n Mid-Elevation Ruby Mountains13o High Elevation Ruby Mountains13p Carbonate Sagebrush Valleys13q Carbonate Woodland Zone13r Central Nevada High Valleys13s Central Nevada Mid-Slope Woodland and Brushland13t Central Nevada Bald Mountains13u Tonopah Basin13v Tonopah Sagebrush Foothills13w Tonopah Uplands13x Sierra Nevada-Influenced Ranges13y Sierra Nevada-Influenced High Elevation Mountains13z Upper Lahontan Basin

13 Central Basin and Range

20c Semiarid Benchlands and Canyonlands20d Arid Canyonlands20e Escarpments20h Sand Deserts

20 Colorado Plateaus

20i Cold Desert Sagebrush-Grasslands

22d Virgin/Shivwits Woodland22i San Juan/Chaco Tablelands and Mesas22j Semiarid Tablelands22o Northeast Arizona Shrub-Grasslands22p Little Colorado Valley/Painted Desert22q Dinetah Tablelands22r Mesa Highlands22s Hopi Buttes22t Chinle Valley and Mesas22u Kaibito/Moenkopi Sandy Plateaus22v Marble Platform

22 Arizona/New Mexico Plateau

24a Chihuahuan Basins and Playas24c Low Mountains and Bajadas

24 Chihuahuan Deserts

23b Madrean Lower Montane Woodlands23c Montane Conifer Forests23d Arizona/New Mexico Subalpine Forests23e Conifer Woodlands and Savannas23h Lower Mogollon Transition23i Montane and Subalpine Grasslands23j Northern Woodlands and Sagebrush23k Sunset Crater Volcanics23l Mogollon Transition Conifer Forests

23 Arizona/New Mexico Mountains

22w Grand Canyon22x Arizona Strip Plateaus22y Uinkaret/Aubrey Montane Conifer Forest22z Chino/Coconino Grasslands and Shrubsteppe22aa Hualapai/Coconino Woodlands9 Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills

8a Western Transverse Range Lower Montane Shrub and Woodland8b Western Transverse Range Montane Forest8c Arid Montane Slopes8d Southern California Subalpine/Alpine8e Southern California Lower Montane Shrub and Woodland8f Southern California Montane Conifer Forest8g Northern Transverse Range

8 Southern California Mountains

7a Northern Terraces7b North Valley Alluvium7c Butte Sink/Sutter and Colusa Basins7d Southern Hardpan Terraces7e Sacramento/Feather Riverine Alluvium7f Sutter Buttes7g Yolo Alluvial Fans7h Yolo/American Basin7j Delta7k Lodi Alluvium7l Stockton Basin7m San Joaquin Basin7n Manteca/Merced Alluvium7o Westside Alluvial Fans and Terraces7p Granitic Alluvial Fans and Terraces7q Panoche and Cantua Fans and Basins7r Tulare Basin/Fresno Slough7s Kern Terraces7t South Valley Alluvium7u Antelope Plain7v Southern Clayey Basins

7 Central California Valley

6a Tuscan Flows

6aa Eastern Hills6ab Pleasant Valley/Kettleman Plain6ac Temblor Range/Elk Hills6ad Grapevine Transition6ae Tehachapi Foothills6af Salinas Valley6ag Northern Santa Lucia Range6ah Santa Lucia Coastal Forest and Woodland6ai Interior Santa Lucia Range6aj Southern Santa Lucia Range6ak Paso Robles Hills and Valleys6al Salinas-Cholame Hills6am Cuyama Valley6an Carrizo Plain6ao Caliente Range6ap Solomon-Purisima-Santa Ynez Hills6aq Santa Maria/Santa Ynez Valleys6ar Upper Sacramento River Alluvium

6b Northern Sierran Foothills6c Southern Sierran Foothills6d Camanche Terraces6e Tehama Terraces6f Foothill Ridges and Valleys6g North Coast Range Eastern Slopes6h Western Valley Foothills/Dunnigan Hills6i Clear Lake Hills and Valleys6j Mayacmas Mountains6k Napa-Sonoma-Lake Volcanic Highlands6l Napa-Sonoma-Russian River Valleys6m Sonoma-Mendocino Mixed Forest6n Bodega Coastal Hills6o Marin Hills6p Bay Flats6q Suisun Terraces and Low Hills6r East Bay Hills/Western Diablo Range6s San Francisco Peninsula6t Bay Terraces/Lower Santa Clara Valley6u Livermore Hills and Valleys6v Upper Santa Clara Valley6w Monterey Bay Plains and Terraces6x Leeward Hills6y Gabilan Range6z Diablo Range

6 Central California Foothills and Coastal Mountains

5a Sierran Alpine5b Northern Sierra Subalpine Forests5c Northern Sierra Upper Montane Forests5d Northern Sierra Mid-Montane Forests5e Northern Sierra Lower Montane Forests5f Northeastern Sierra Mixed Conifer-Pine Forests5g Central Sierra Mid-Montane Forests5h Central Sierra Lower Montane Forests5i Eastern Sierra Great Basin Slopes5j Eastern Sierra Mojavean Slopes5k Southern Sierra Subalpine Forests5l Southern Sierra Upper Montane Forests5m Southern Sierra Mid-Montane Forests5n Southern Sierra Lower Montane Forest and Woodland5o Tehachapi Mountains

5 Sierra Nevada

4d Cascade Subalpine/Alpine4e High Southern Cascades Montane Forest4f Low Southern Cascades Mixed Conifer Forest4g California Cascades Eastside Conifer Forest4h Southern Cascades Foothills

4 Cascades

1a Coastal Lowlands1i Northern Franciscan Redwood Forest1j King Range/Mattole Basin1k Coastal Franciscan Redwood Forest1l Fort Bragg/Fort Ross Terraces1m Point Reyes/Farallon Islands1n Santa Cruz Mountains1o San Mateo Coastal Hills

1 Coast Range

9g Klamath/Goose Lake Basins9h Fremont Pine/Fir Forest9i Southern Cascades Slope9j Klamath Juniper Woodland/Devils Garden9k Shasta Valley9l Pit River Valleys9m Warner Mountains9n High Elevation Warner Mountains9o Likely Tableland9p Modoc/Lassen Juniper-Shrub Hills and Mountains9q Adin/Horsehead Mountains Forest and Woodland9r Adin/Dixie Low Hills9s Modoc Lava Flows and Buttes9t Old Cascades

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