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Scientific Name Photo
Pinus virginiana Mill. - ATBI Database: Specimen Records
Common Name
Virginia pine
Kingdom Division Class Order Family
Plantae Coniferophyta Pinopsida Pinales Pinacae
Plants Conifers N/A N/A Pine

This common conifer is often abundant in old abandoned fields from the mid-Atlantic states to the upland south. In Great Smoky Mountains National Park it is mostly found at lower elevations, both in areas of former cultivation and on dry, rocky mountain slopes that were never in agriculture. It is being out-competed at many sites of former cultivation, as it is very shade intolerant and relatively short lived. Many thousands of these trees have succumbed to Southern Pine Beetle episodes in recent years.

SPECIES DESCRIPTION

Evergreen conifer that normally reaches about 10 to 15 meters in height, although members of the Eastern Native Tree Society (ENTS) have accurately measured a specimen in the west end of the Park at over 33 meters tall (111 ft.). The bark is flaky or on older trees dark brown ridges with scales.

Leaves are needles that are short, about 4 to 7 cm long and in pairs. They are yellow-green, stiff and twisted. The cones are small about 6 to 8 cm long, and upon fully opening are globe shaped.

Photographs:

DISTRIBUTION

Global:

North America map - USGS. Found from northern New Jersey and central Pennsylvania southwest through the Virginias and Kentucky to central Alabama.
Click map to view distribution.  

Regional:

Regional Distribution Map.
Click map to enlarge.		 Generally found throughout the east Tennessee western North Carolina area, except at higher elevations.

Park:

ATBI Database: Specimen Records Map.
Click map for current locations.

Found at lower elevations in most areas of former cultivation, but usually as older trees that are being out-competed and are not reproducing.

NATURAL HISTORY

Ecology:

The dry ridges of the lower Abrams Creek watershed seem to be a stronghold of this species in the Park. This pine is so intolerant of shade that in a few years it may be absent from most areas of former cultivation, as the forest stands there mature. This species is still a frequent invader of the hayfields of the Cades Cove cultural area, requiring occasional mowing. Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis) episodes have killed tens of thousands of these pines in the Park just since the late 1990’s. It is susceptible to structural failure during winter precipitation, and sometimes a single event will break or uproot thousands of Virginia pines.

Virginia pine is short lived compared to other pines and other trees. Some sample diameters at breast height and ages as cored in Park: 54.2 cm and 88 years old, 71.3 cm and 95 years old, 31.7 cm and 125 years old. This tree is reported to seldom exceed 150 years of age (Collingwood and Brush, 1964)

Habitat:

Former agricultural areas that are relatively moist and with fertile soils; also on dry slopes and rocky areas in the west end of the Park and along the boundary and lower elevation roads of the Park. Stupka (1964) relates in early park record at 1,690 meters elevation, but this is an extraordinary occurrence.

Pinus virginiana is included in the following NatureServe Park habitat(s):

Similar Species and Distinguishing Features:

Virginia pine can be confused with three other native pines. Shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) has longer, blue-green and flexible needles. It has cones even smaller than Virginia pine. Table-Mountain pine (Pinus pungens) has longer needles and large cones with recurved spines. It is also mostly found at mid-elevations and is uncommon at the lower elevations where Virginia pine occurs. Pitch pine (Pinus rigida) frequently occurs with Virginia pine and is quite variable, but usually has larger cones, is a larger tree, and often has epicormic sprouts on its trunk.

Associated Species:

Birds: Red-cockaded woodpeckers (Picoides borealis), a federally endangered species, formerly occurred in at least one old growth Shortleaf – Pitch pine (Pinus rigida) stand in the west end of the Park. They are probably now absent from the park. Even though individual pine trees favorable for nesting cavities are abundant in this area of the park, the main limiting factor to this species’ success seems to be the lack of moderately large pure stands of mature pines necessary for colony sites and foraging. Prescribed burns have been conducted in the park to improve the habitat around the last known breeding site (Free, 2003).

Bachman's sparrow (Aimophila aestivalis) breeds in open piney woods. It has not been encountered in the Smokies since 1957 (Stupka 1963). Stupka suspects, probably quite rightly, that the park’s habitat has changed sufficiently that this species can no longer find what it needs in the way of open pine woodlands. Efforts to open up the under-story of pine woodlands in the western part of the park around a historic breeding site for Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (Picoides borealis) may also benefit this sparrow and bring it back to the park (Hill, 2003).

The Pine warbler (Dendroica pinus) has a strong affinity for pine forests so nearly all observations of this species in the park are found in this vegetation type. The Yellow-throated warbler (Dendroica dominica) prefers pine-oak forests and cypress swamps, for its nesting sites. In pine-oak woodlands, the cup-shaped nests are on high, horizontal branches and are made of bark, grasses, weed stems, plant down, and feathers. The Summer tanager (Piranga rubra) breeds typically in deciduous forests in the East; in the Southeast it can be found in mixed or older pine forests. The nesting site of the Olive-sided flycatcher (Contopus cooperi) is usually in a coniferous tree, on a horizontal branch out from the trunk and protected by overhead branches. The female constructs a cup-shaped nest of twigs, pine needles and lichen. It is lined with grass, rootlets and/or lichen, and may be attached to the branch with cobwebs. The crossed bill of the Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra) is adapted to collect coniferous tree seeds.  It prefers seeds from pine cones, where it will pry the scales apart with its bill and extract the seed with its tongue (Sobun and Shriner, 2003).

Many other birds use pine needles in building their nests, including Yellow-billed cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus), Great crested flycatchers (Myiarchus crinitus), Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura), Blackburnian warbler (Dendroica fusca), Red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus), (Sobun and Shriner, 2003), Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis), Carolina wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus), European starling (Sturnus vulgaris), Brown creeper (Certhia Americana), Louisiana waterthrush (Seiurus motacilla), Black-throated blue warbler (Dendroica caerulescens), Cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) (Sobun, Shriner, and Super, 2003), Tree Swallow (Tachycineta Bicolor) and, Nashville warblers (Vermivora ruficapilla) (Koran, 2003). The nest entrance of the Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta Canadensis) is often smeared with pine or spruce (Picea spp.) pitch or sap (Sobun and Shriner, 2003).

Insects: The False click beetles (Deltometopus amoenicornis) and (Dromaeolus cylindricollis) are known to develop in various deciduous and coniferous trees, including pines (Muona 2000). The Water scavenger beetle (Cercyon (Cercyon) occallatus) is found in fungi, leaf litter (including pine duff), and pitfall traps (Smetana 1978). The adult Ground beetle (Pterostichus (Euferonia) coracinus) can be found beneath rocks or logs predominantly in pine-oak forests in the vicinity of temporal water sources at low altitudes (350-700m), (Sokolov, 2006).

Mammals: Fox squirrels (Sciurus niger) prefer open, mature stands of pine or mixed stands of pine, oak (Quercus spp.), and Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) form ideal habitat. Red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) feed on pine seeds (Linzey and Brecht, 2003).

Reptiles: The habitat of the Mole kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster rhombomaculata) consists of pine and mixed pine-hardwood forests and is comparatively drier than most habitats in the rest of the Park (Cash, 2003).

Herbivores:

N/A

Parasites:

N/A

Pollination/Reproduction:

Both pollen and seeds of this species are dispersed by wind. The male and female cones occur at the base of new shoots and pollen is dispersed in early spring. It takes two years for the cones to mature (Collingwood and Brush, 1964), and seeds may not be promptly released from cones.

CONSERVATION BIOLOGY

Special Protection Status:

None.

Range-wide:

Global Status: G5, National Status: N5, North Carolina (S5), Tennessee (SNR) - NatureServe Conservation Status.

In Park:

Declining, but still common.

Picking, digging, or otherwise damaging plants is prohibited in the Park. Collection is allowed only by special permit for research or educational purposes.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Field work:

N/A

Supporting Institutions:

N/A

Text:

Keith Langdon and Charles Wilder, 2007.

Photographs:

N/A

Drawings:

N/A

Maps:

North America: U.S. Geological Survey, 1999, Digital representation of "Atlas of United States Trees" by Elbert L. Little, Jr.. http://esp.cr.usgs.gov/info/veg-clim/.

Regional: Prasad, A. M. and L. R. Iverson. 2003. Little's range and FIA importance value database for 135 eastern US tree species. http://www.fs.fed.us/ne/delaware/4153/global/littlefia/index.html, Northeastern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Delaware, Ohio.

Park: Discover Life in America - All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory. 2006. The ATBI Database. http://tremont22.campus.utk.edu/ATBI_start.cfm, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

REFERENCES

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Cash, B., 2003. Mole kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster rhombomaculata) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

Collingwood, G. H.; Brush, W. D.; Butches, D. [rev. and ed. by]. 1964. Knowing your trees. 2nd ed. The American Forestry Association, Washington, DC. 349 p.

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Free, L., 2003. Red cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

Gleason, H. A. 1952. The new Britton & Brown illustrated flora of the northeastern United States and Canada. 3 Volumes. Hafner Publishing Company, Inc., New York. 1732 pp.

Harlow, W. M., Harrar, E. S., White, F. M. 1979. Textbook of Dendrology. 6th ed. McGraw-Hill Book Co., N. Y. 510 pp.

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Hill, A., 2003. Red cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

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Johnson, H. 1990. Hugh Johnson’s Encyclopedia of Trees. 336 p., Portland House, NY.

Kitamura, K., K. Homma, H. Takasu, S. Hagiwara, F. H. Utech, D. F. Whigham, S. Kowano. 2001. Demographic genetics of the American beech, Fagus grandifolia. II. Genet substructure of populations for the Blue Ridge, Piedmont and Great Smoky Mountains. Plant Species Biology 16:219-230.

Koran, E., 2003. Nashville warbler (Vermivora ruficapilla), Tree Swallow (Tachycineta Bicolor) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738. Lance, R. 2004. Woody Plants of the Southeastern United States: A Winter Guide. The University of Georgia Press, Athens, GA 30602.

Linzey, D. W., Brecht, C., 2003. Fox squirrel (Sciurus niger), Red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

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Pyle, C. 1988. The type and extent of anthropogenic vegetation disturbance in the Great Smoky Mountains before National Park Service acquisition. Castanea. Vol. 53, no. 3, pp. 183-196.

Radford, A. E., Ahles, H. E., Bell, C. R. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill. 1183 p.

Russell, N. H. 1953. The beech gaps of the Great Smoky Mountains. Ecology 34:366-374.

Smetana, A. 1978. Revision of the subfamily Sphaeridiinae of America north of Mexico (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae). Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada 105:1-292.

Smith, D. K. and Davison, P. G. 2003. Final Report Of The Bryophyte Inventory For East Fork Tuckasegee River, Bonas Defeat Land Tract, And Wolf Creek Tract, Jackson Co., North Carolina. Duke Power - Nantahala Area, Charlotte, NC 28201.

Sobun, C., Shriner, S. A., 2003. Blackburnian warbler (Dendroica fusca), Great crested flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus), Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura), Olive-sided flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), Pine warbler (Dendroica pinus), Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta Canadensis), Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra), Red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus), Summer tanager (Piranga rubra), Yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus), Yellow-throated warbler (Dendroica dominica) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

Sobun, C., Shriner, S. A.,and Super, P. E., 2003. Black-throated blue warbler (Dendroica caerulescens), Carolina wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus), Cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis), European starling (Sturnus vulgaris), Louisiana waterthrush (Seiurus motacilla) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

Sokolov, I. M., 2006. Ground beetles (Pterostichus (Euferonia) coracinus) - Biodiversity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.

Stupka, A. 1963.  Notes on the Birds of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  University of Tennessee Press.

Stupka, A. 1964. Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville. 186 p.

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Whitcomb, 1983.

White, P. S. 1982. The Flora of Great Smoky Mountains National Park: an Annotated Checklist of the Vascular Plants and a Review of Previous Floristic Work. Research/Resource Management Report SER-55, National Park Service, Atlanta.

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Wofford, B.E.1989. Guide to the Vascular Plants of the Blue Ridge, University of Georgia Press, Athens, GA. 384 p.