11 surprising things you never knew about US forests

Education Images / Contributor

Later divided into several forests, Yellowstone was the first national forest in the US.
Kansas and North Dakota are home to national grasslands.
The only tropical rainforest in the US National Forest System is El Yunque in Puerto Rico.
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It can be easy to take greenery for granted, but trees provide a range of benefits, from improving air quality to lowering air temperature. In the US, the National Forest System helps protect nearly 200 million acres of public forests and grasslands.

Here are 11 things you never knew about US forests.

Yellowstone was the first national forest and the first national park in the US.

Kirn Vintage Stock / Contributor

In 1872, Yellowstone was established as the first national park in the US. Then, in 1891, it was designated the nation’s first national forest by President Benjamin Harrison.

Under Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency, however, Yellowstone’s land was divided into a handful of forests. These areas are known today as the Custer, Bridger-Teton, Shoshone, and Caribou-Targhee National Forests.

As of today, the park is home to 27 national forests.

One of the newest national forests, Finger Lakes, was established in 1985.

U.S. Forest Service – Green Mountain & Finger Lakes National Forests/Facebook

Situated in upstate New York, Finger Lakes National Forest was established in 1985 from land that the US Forest Service acquired in the 1950s. It functions as an administrative unit of Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest.

FLNF is the sole national forest in New York. Numerous animal species live there, from bobcats to grassland birds. The broader Finger Lakes region is also renowned for its wineries.

The Forest Service manages nearly 200 million acres of land across the US.

Wolfgang Kaehler / Contributor

From Alaska to Wyoming and beyond, the Forest Service manages 193 million acres of land. Not to mention the 500 million acres of state, private, and tribal forests on which the Service fosters sustainable management.

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