Temperate coniferous forest

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Pine forest is an example of a temperate coniferous forest
A Pine forest is an example of a temperate coniferous forest
Biomes
Terrestrial biomes
Tundra
Taiga/boreal forests
Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests
Temperate coniferous forests
Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests
Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests
Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests
Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
Montane grasslands and shrublands
Deserts and xeric shrublands
Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and shrub
Mangrove
Aquatic biomes
Continental shelf
Littoral/intertidal zone
Riparian
Pond
Coral reef
Kelp forest
Pack ice
Hydrothermal vents
Cold seeps
Benthic zone
Pelagic zone
Neritic zone
Other biomes
Endolithic zone

Temperate coniferous forest is a terrestrial biome found in temperate regions of the world with warm summers and cool winters and adequate rainfall to sustain a forest. In most Temperate coniferous forests, evergreen conifers predominate, while some are a mix of conifers and broadleaf evergreen trees and/or broadleaf deciduous trees. Temperate evergreen forests are common in the coastal areas of regions that have mild winters and heavy rainfall, or inland in drier climates or mountain areas. Many species of trees inhabit these forests including cedar, cypress, douglas-fir, fir, juniper, kauri, pine, podocarpus, spruce, redwood and yew. The understory also contains a wide variety of herbaceous and shrub species.

Structurally, these forests are rather simple, generally consisting of two layers: an overstory and understory. Some forests may support an intermediate layer of shrubs. Pine forests support an herbaceous understory that is generally dominated by grasses and herbaceous perennials, and are often subject to ecologically important wildfires.

Temperate rain forests occur only in seven regions around the world: the Pacific temperate rain forests of the Pacific Northwest, the Valdivian temperate rain forests of southwestern South America, the rain forests of New Zealand and Tasmania, northwest Europe (small pockets in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Iceland and a somewhat larger area in Norway), southern Japan, and the eastern Black Sea-Caspian Sea region of Turkey and Georgia to northern Iran. The moist conditions of temperate rain forests generally support an understory of mosses, ecosystem and are notable for trees of massive proportions, including Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron gigantea), Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis), Alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) and Kauri (Agathis australis). These forests are quite rare, occurring in small areas of North America, southwestern South America and northern New Zealand. The Klamath-Siskiyou forests of northwestern California and southwestern Oregon is known for its rich variety of plant and animal species, including many endemic species.


[edit] Temperate coniferous forest ecoregions

Australasian mixed temperate rain forests New Zealand, southeast and southcentral Australia
Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests Bhutan, India, Nepal
Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests India, Nepal, Pakistan
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 Mexican Volcanoes forests Mexico
Central Pacific coastal forests Canada, United States
Colorado Rockies forests United States
Eastern Cascades forests Canada, United States
Fraser Plateau and Basin complex Canada
Great Basin montane forests United States
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
Okanogan dry forests Canada, United States
Piney Woods forests United States
Puget lowland forests Canada, United States
Queen Charlotte Islands Canada
Sierra Juarez and San Pedro Martir pine-oak forests Baja California, Mexico
Sierra Nevada forests United States
South Central Rockies forests United States
Southeastern conifer forests United States
Wasatch and Uinta montane forests United States
Alps conifer and mixed forests Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland
Altai montane forest and forest steppe China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia
Caledonian 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
Honshu alpine conifer forests Japan
Khangai Mountains conifer forests Mongolia, Russia
Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia
Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests China, India, Bhutan
Northern Anatolian conifer and deciduous forests Armenia, Georgia, 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, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan

[edit] External links