Geodiversity Atlas—Appalachian Highlands I&M Network Index

Geology and Stratigraphy of the Appalachian Highlands I&M Network Parks

The Appalachian Highlands Inventory and Monitoring Network (APHN) consists of four national park areas in Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia including: Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Blue Ridge Parkway, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Obed Wild and Scenic River. The network parks are divided between two ecologically distinct physiographic regions: the Cumberland Plateau of Kentucky and Tennessee, and the Southern Appalachian Mountains of Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Both these regions are characterized by high levels of biological diversity and endemism (Santucci et al. 2008).

The Appalachian Mountains are one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world. The long stability of the Appalachian Mountains, combined with its great variation in geology, landforms, and climate, have supported the evolution of a rich diversity of fauna and flora, especially in the southern regions which were not directly impacted by glacial activity. Within the Southern Appalachians, the Blue Ridge Mountains (Blue Ridge Province ) rise abruptly above the rolling Piedmont to the east and form the backbone of the Appalachians in this region. The Southern Appalachians ecoregion is one of the most biologically diverse terrestrial ecosystems in the world.

To the west of the Blue Ridge Mountains are the Valley and Ridge Province and the Cumberland Plateau. The Valley and Ridge Province consists of folded and unmetamorphosed Paleozoic sedimentary rocks that include sandstones, shales, and limestones, with some Pennsylvanian-age coal beds (see geologic time scale). These sedimentary units are underlain by large thrust faults generated by intercontinental collisions during the late Paleozoic. The Cumberland Plateau is an extensive tableland of sandstone and shale carved by water into a labyrinth of rocky ridges and deep gorges. The Cumberland River system includes the Big South Fork and Obed rivers.

A Brief Geologic History

A few examples of events and Network resources in each geologic time period are highlighted below, from youngest to oldest.

Geology & Soils—Appalachian Highlands Network Parks

Type Sections—Appalachian Highlands Network

The geologic history above is excerpted from a report titled, "National Park Service geologic type section inventory: Appalachian Highlands Inventory & Monitoring Network". Type sections are essential reference locations for the geoscientists who study geologic history and paleontology. A summary of the type sections in each park can be found at the links below.

• Big South Fork National River and National Recreation Area, Kentucky and Tennessee (no designated stratotypes identified)

• Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina and Virginia (contains one identified stratotype)

• Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee and North Carolina (contains nine identified stratotypes)

• Obed Wild and Scenic River, Tennessee (no designated stratotypes identified)

The full Network report is available in digital format from:

• DataStore - National Park Service geologic type section inventory: Appalachian Highlands Inventory & Monitoring Network (nps.gov)

Please cite this publication as:

• Henderson T, Santucci VL, Connors T, Tweet JS. 2021. National Park Service geologic type section inventory: Appalachian Highlands Inventory & Monitoring Network. Natural Resource Report. NPS/APHN/NRR—2021/2278. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado.

NPS Stratotype Inventory

Fossil Resources—Appalachian Highlands Network

Between 2002 and 2011, network-based paleontological resource inventories were completed for all the 32 I&M networks, and six of the earliest were completely updated between 2012 and 2016. The report linked below summarizes the paleontological resources of all park units in the Appalachian Highlands Inventory & Monitoring Network (APHN). The report provides geologic background and paleontological resource data for each park to support management operations, planning, and science-based decision making as required by NPS management policies and the Paleontological Resources Preservation Act (2009).

The full report is available in digital format from

• DataStore - Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring—Appalachian Highlands Network (nps.gov)

Please cite this publication as:

• V. L. Santucci, R. T. P. McKenna, J. P. Kenworthy, and T. Connors. 2008. Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring—Appalachian Highlands Network. Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NRPC/NRTR—2008/080. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado.

Related Links

• Appalachian Highlands Inventory & Monitoring Network

• NPS Geodiversity Atlas

• NPS—Geologic Resources Inventory

Geodiversity Atlas pages—by Inventory & Monitoring Network

Geodiversity Atlas pages—by State, U.S. Commonwealth, and Territories