ARKANSAS, one of the West South Central
states of the U.S., bounded on the N and NE by Missouri, on the E by Tennessee
and Mississippi, on the S by Louisiana, on the SW by Texas, and on the W by
Oklahoma. The Mississippi R. forms virtually the entire E boundary.
Arkansas entered the Union as the 25th state on June 15, 1836. A
slaveholding state, it was part of the Confederacy during the American Civil
War. Long known as an agricultural state with diverse mineral resources,
Arkansas by the 1990s had an economy that was dominated by the manufacturing
and service sectors. The name of the state is taken from the Arkansas R., which
was named for the Arkansa, or Quapaw, Indians; the s was added as a plural, and
the French pronunciation was retained. Arkansas is called the Land of
Opportunity.
Forests cover about one-half of the total land area of
Arkansas. Pine forests are found mainly in the SW part of the state; E areas
are covered by a great variety of hardwoods, including ash, buckeye, hackberry,
hawthorn, hickory, maple, oak, and cherry. Arkansas is also known for its
flowering trees and shrubs such as dogwood, azalea, and redbud and for its wild
flowers and ferns.
The
mountains of the state are the habitat of a variety of small mammals, including
mink, raccoon, skunk, weasel, and woodchuck. The plains are the home of deer,
rabbit, fox, and bobcat. Birdlife thrives throughout the state and includes
pheasant, duck, goose, turkey, and such songbirds as cardinal, robin,
mockingbird, phoebe, and whippoorwill. Among the freshwater fish here are bass,
catfish, perch, and sturgeon.
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