Maine : Flora & Fauna

Softwoods, chiefly red and white spruces, balsam fir (Abies balsamea), eastern hemlock, and white and red pine constitute most of the forests in Maine. Maine is home to most of the flowers and shrubs common to the north temperate zone, including the blueberry. As of 2003, the furbish lousewart, the small whorled pogonia and the eastern prairie fringed orchid are listed as threatened.
About 30,000 white-tailed deer are killed by hunters in Maine each year, but the herd does not appear to lessen. Common forest animals include the bobcat, beaver, muskrat, mink, red fox, fisher, raccoon, river otter, and snowshoe hare. Seals, porpoises, and occasionally finback whales are found in coastal waters, along with virtually every variety of North Atlantic fish and shellfish.  Eleven Maine animal species were classified as threatened or endangered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in 2003. The list includes the bald eagle, piping plover, Atlantic Gulf of Maine salmon, two species of whale, and leatherback sea turtle.