The Sandhills is a region in the interior of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

s of North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

 and South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

. It is a strip of ancient beach dune

Dune

In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...

s which generally divides the Piedmont

Piedmont (United States)

The Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division...

 from the coastal plain

Atlantic Coastal Plain

The Atlantic coastal plain has both low elevation and low relief, but it is also a relatively flat landform extending from the New York Bight southward to a Georgia/Florida section of the Eastern Continental Divide, which demarcates the plain from the ACF River Basin in the Gulf Coastal Plain to...

, and is the evidence of a former coastline when the ocean level was higher, or the land lower. The beach deposits were formed principally during the Miocene

Miocene

The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...

 Epoch, circa 20 million years ago. Typical beach fossils are found along the front edges. The coastal plain is terraced from other ocean levels, but none appear to have been so long-lasting, so as to build up dunes of this size.

Vegetation

Because they are predominantly porous, sandy soils, the area tends to be droughty and irrigation is required for agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

. Some areas are noted for peach

Peach

The peach tree is a deciduous tree growing to tall and 6 in. in diameter, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. It bears an edible juicy fruit called a peach...

 production, primarily because peaches need a well drained soil.

Prior to agricultural use, most of the Sandhills were forested with Longleaf Pine

Longleaf Pine

Pinus palustris, commonly known as the Longleaf Pine, is a pine native to the southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from eastern Texas to southeast Virginia extending into northern and central Florida....

, Loblolly Pine

Loblolly Pine

Pinus taeda is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from central Texas east to Florida, and north to Delaware. It is particularly dominant in the eastern half of North Carolina, where there are huge expanses consisting solely of Loblolly Pine trees...

, Turkey oak, and Blackjack oak

Blackjack oak

Quercus marilandica is a small oak, one of the red oak group Quercus sect. Lobatae, but fairly isolated from the others...

. In areas of extreme drainage, the forests are visibly scrubby. Oaks increase under conditions of wildfire

Wildfire

A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...

 exclusion, whereas Longleaf Pine will dominate under a regime of frequent fires. Understory vegetation is of plants that are well adapted to droughty conditions, as well as the frequent lightning-induced fires typical of the region. Wiregrass (Aristida spp.) is frequently extensive in the understory. Carnivorous plant

Carnivorous plant

Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, typically insects and other arthropods. Carnivorous plants appear adapted to grow in places where the soil is thin or poor in nutrients, especially nitrogen, such as acidic...

s, especially pitcher plants

Sarracenia

Sarracenia is a genus comprising 8 to 11 species of North American pitcher plants. The genus belongs to the family Sarraceniaceae, which also contain the closely allied genera Darlingtonia and Heliamphora....

, often occur in the herb layer.

Wildlife

Notable vertebrate species of the Carolina Sandhills include Gopher Tortoise

Gopherus polyphemus

The gopher tortoise is a species of the Gopherus genus native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for 360 other animal species...

, Northern pine snake

Pituophis melanoleucus

Pituophis melanoleucus is a harmless colubrid species found in the United States. Three subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.-Description:...

, Red-cockaded Woodpecker

Red-cockaded Woodpecker

The Red-cockaded Woodpecker is a woodpecker found in southeastern North America.- Description :About the size of the Northern Cardinal, it is approximately 8.5 in. long, with a wingspan of about 14 in. and a weight of about 1.5 ounces...

, Bachman's Sparrow

Bachman's Sparrow

Bachman's Sparrow, Peucaea aestivalis, is a small American sparrow that is endemic to the southeastern United States. This species was named in honor of Reverend John Bachman....

, and Pine Barrens Tree Frog

Pine Barrens Tree Frog

The Pine Barrens Tree Frog, Hyla andersonii, is a species of New World tree frog.It is threatened by habitat loss.-Physical characteristics:...

. Many Sandhills species are of threatened or endangered

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

.

Preservation

The Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge

Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge

The Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge located in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. The refuge is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from a headquarters located in McBee, South Carolina. The Refuge is served by U.S...

, a national parkland in northeastern South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, attempts to preserve a fraction of the original Sandhills longleaf pine ecosystem

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....

. The park is located near McBee, South Carolina

McBee, South Carolina

McBee is a town in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 867 at the 2010 census. McBee is located at 34°28'7.14"N 80°15'22.02"W, approximately 36 miles to Florence and approximately 62 miles to Columbia.-About Bunch McBee:...

.

Socioeconomic region in North Carolina

The Sandhills region of North Carolina, in socioeconomic terms, most notably refers to the area in and surrounding the municipalities of Southern Pines

Southern Pines, North Carolina

Southern Pines is a town in Moore County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 10,918 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Southern Pines is located at ....

, Pinehurst

Pinehurst, North Carolina

Pinehurst is a village in Moore County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 9,706 at the 2000 census. It is the location of the Pinehurst Resort, venue of the 1936 PGA Championship, the 1951 Ryder Cup. The host site for the 1999, 2005,& 2014 U.S. Open Golf Championships, the 2008 U.S....

, and Aberdeen

Aberdeen, North Carolina

Aberdeen is a town in Moore County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,400 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Aberdeen is located at ....

 (i.e. Moore County

Moore County, North Carolina

Moore County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 74,769. Its county seat is Carthage.- History :The county was formed in 1784 from Cumberland County...

). The area is famous for its golf course

Golf course

A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...

s and history in the sport of golf

Golf

Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

. The city of Fayetteville

Fayetteville, North Carolina

Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....

 is sometimes considered part of the Sandhills, but it is isolated from the heart of the region by Fort Bragg Military Reservation.