Extent of Temperate coniferous forest

Temperate coniferous forest is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Temperate coniferous forests are found predominantly in areas with warm summers and cool winters, and vary in their kinds of plant life. In some, needleleaf trees dominate, while others are home primarily to broadleaf evergreen trees or a mix of both tree types.[1] A separate habitat type, the tropical coniferous forests, occurs in more tropical climates.

Temperate coniferous forests are common in the coastal areas of regions that have mild winters and heavy rainfall, or inland in drier climates or montane areas. Many species of trees inhabit these forests including pine, cedar, fir, and redwood. The understory also contains a wide variety of herbaceous and shrub species. Temperate coniferous forests sustain the highest levels of biomass in any terrestrial ecosystem and are notable for trees of massive proportions in temperate rainforest regions.[1]

Structurally, these forests are rather simple, consisting of 2 layers generally: an overstory and understory. However, some forests may support a layer of shrubs. Pine forests support an herbaceous ground layer that may be dominated by grasses and forbs that lend themselves to ecologically important wildfires. In contrast, the moist conditions found in temperate rain forests favor the dominance by ferns and some forbs.[1]

A pine forest is an example of a temperate coniferous forest

Forest communities dominated by huge trees (e.g., giant sequoia, Sequoiadendron gigantea; redwood, Sequoia sempervirens), unusual ecological phenomena, occur in western North America, southwestern South America, as well as in the Australasian region in such areas as southeastern Australia and northern New Zealand.[1]

The Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregion of western North America harbors diverse and unusual assemblages and displays notable endemism for a number of plant and animal taxa.[1][2]

Ecoregions

Eurasia

Carpathian montane conifer forest, Slovakia.
Forest south of Munich
Palearctic temperate coniferous forests ecoregions
Alps conifer and mixed forests Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland
Altai montane forest and forest steppe China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia
Caledon conifer forests United Kingdom
Carpathian montane conifer forests Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine
Da Hinggan–Dzhagdy Mountains conifer forests China, Russia
East Afghan montane conifer forests Afghanistan, Pakistan
Elburz Range forest steppe Iran
Helanshan montane conifer forests China
Hengduan Mountains subalpine conifer forests China
Hokkaido montane conifer forests Japan
Honshū alpine conifer forests Japan
Khangai Mountains conifer forests Mongolia
Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests Algeria, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia
Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests China, India, Bhutan
Northern Anatolian conifer and deciduous forests Turkey
Nujiang Langcang Gorge alpine conifer and mixed forests China
Qilian Mountains conifer forests China
Qionglai–Minshan conifer forests China
Sayan montane conifer forests Mongolia, Russia
Scandinavian coastal conifer forests Norway
Tian Shan montane conifer forests China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan


Cedrus deodara in the Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests,
Indomalayan temperate coniferous forests ecoregions
Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests Bhutan, India, Nepal
Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests India, Nepal, Pakistan

North America

A temperate coniferous forest ecosystem in Petroglyphs Provincial Park, Ontario.
Nearctic temperate coniferous forests
Alberta Mountain forests Canada
Alberta-British Columbia foothills forests Canada
Arizona Mountains forests United States
Atlantic coastal pine barrens United States
Blue Mountains forests United States
British Columbia mainland coastal forests Canada, United States
Cascade Mountains leeward forests Canada, United States
Central and Southern Cascades forests United States
Central British Columbia Mountain forests Canada
Central Pacific coastal forests Canada, United States
Colorado Rockies forests United States
Eastern Cascades forests Canada, United States
Fraser Plateau and Basin complex Canada
Florida Scrub United States
Great Basin montane forests United States
Haida Gwaii forests Canada
Klamath-Siskiyou forests United States
Maritime Coast Range Ponderosa Pine forests United States
Middle Atlantic coastal forests United States
North Central Rockies forests Canada, United States
Northern California coastal forests United States
Northern Pacific coastal forests Canada, United States
Northern transitional alpine forests Canada
Okanagan dry forests Canada, United States
Piney Woods forests United States
Puget lowland forests Canada, United States
Sierra Juárez and San Pedro Mártir pine–oak forests Mexico
Sierra Nevada forests United States
South Central Rockies forests United States
Southern Appalachian spruce–fir forest United States
Southeastern conifer forests United States
Wasatch and Uinta montane forests United States

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license. World Wide Fund for Nature. "Temperate Coniferous Forest Ecoregions". Archived from the original on 2011-01-02.
  2. ↑ Kauffmann, Michael (2012). Conifer Country. Kneeland: Backcountry Press. ISBN 978-0-578-09416-8.
  • Waring, Richard H (2002). "Temperate coniferous forest" (PDF). Volume 2, The Earth system: biological and ecological dimensions of global environmental change. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. pp. 560–565. Retrieved April 18, 2012.
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