FOREST

FOREST :A FOREST IS AN AREA OF LAND WITH MANY TREES. MANY ANIMALS NEED FORESTS TO LIVE AND SURVIVE. FORESTS ARE VERY IMPORTANT AND GROW IN MANY PLACES AROUND THE WORLD. THEY ARE AN ECOSYSTEM WHICH INCLUDES MANY PLANTS AND ANIMALS.

IMPORTANCE OF FORESTSFORESTS AND BIODIVERSITY IS KEY TO ALL LIFE FORMS. THE RICHER THE DIVERSITY OF LIFE, THE GREATER THE OPPORTUNITY FOR MEDICAL DISCOVERIES, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ADAPTIVE RESPONSES TO SUCH NEW CHALLENGES AS CLIMATE CHANGE.

FORESTS SERVE AS A WATERSHED. THIS IS BECAUSE ALMOST ALL WATER ULTIMATELY COMES FROM RIVERS AND LAKES AND FROM FOREST-DERIVED WATER TABLES. SOME RIVERS RUNNING THROUGH FORESTS ARE ALSO KEPT COOL AND FROM DRYING OUT. 

Watershed

Watershed

HABITAT AND ECOSYSTEMS FORESTS SERVE AS A HOME (HABITAT) TO MILLIONS OF ANIMALS. THINK OF THE MANY TYPES OF REPTILES (SNAKES AND LIZARDS) WILD ANIMALS, BUTTERFLIES AND INSECTS, BIRDS AND TREE-TOP ANIMALS AS WELL AS ALL THOSE THAT LIVE IN THE FOREST STREAMS AND RIVERS. ANIMALS FORM PART OF THE FOOD CHAIN IN THE FORESTS. ALL THESE DIFFERENT ANIMALS AND PLANTS ARE CALLED BIODIVERSITY, AND THE INTERACTION WITH ONE ANOTHER AND WITH THEIR PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT IS WHAT WE CALL ECOSYSTEM. HEALTHY ECOSYSTEMS CAN BETTER WITHSTAND AND RECOVER FROM A VARIETY OF DISASTERS SUCH AS FLOODS AND WILDFIRES.

Habitat and Ecosystems

ECONOMIC BENEFITSFORESTS ARE OF IMMENSE ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE TO US. FOR EXAMPLE, PLANTATION FORESTS PROVIDE HUMANS WITH TIMBER AND WOOD, WHICH IS EXPORTED AND USED IN ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD. THEY ALSO PROVIDE TOURISM INCOME TO INHABITANTS (PEOPLE LIVING IN OR CLOSE TO FORESTS) WHEN PEOPLE VISIT TO SEE THE BEST OF NATURE.

Economic benefits

CLIMATE CONTROLCLIMATE CONTROL AND ATMOSPHERE PURIFICATION IS KEY FOR HUMAN EXISTENCE. TREES AND SOILS HELP REGULATE ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURES THROUGH A PROCESS CALLED EVAPOTRANSPIRATION. THIS HELPS TO STABILIZE THE CLIMATE. ADDITIONALLY, THEY ENRICH THE ATMOSPHERE BY ABSORBING BAD GASES (EXAMPLE CO2 AND OTHER GREENHOUSE GASES) AND PRODUCING OXYGEN. TREES ALSO HELPS TO REMOVE AIR POLLUTANTS.

Climate Control

THE THREE MAJOR FOREST BIOMES ARE : 1) CONIFEROUS FOREST 2) DECIDUOUS FORESTS 3) TROPICAL RAIN FORESTS

1) CONIFEROUS FORESTSEVERGREEN CONIFEROUS FORESTS STRETCH ACROSS CANADA, ALASKA, NORTHERN ASIA, AND NORTHERN EUROPE. THEY ARE COMPOSED OF CONIFERS WHICH PRODUCE SEEDS IN CONES.THE WEATHER DURING THE WINTER IS COLD, BUT THE SNOW MELTS COMPLETELY IN THE SPRING, TURNING SOME PARTS OF THE FOREST INTO SWAMPS. THERE ARE ONLY EIGHT TYPES OF TREES IN THE CONIFEROUS FORESTS, INCLUDING BALSAMS, FIRS, AND BLACK SPRUCE. THERE ARE NOT MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF TREES IN CONIFEROUS FORESTS BECAUSE OF THE COLD WEATHER, AND THE POOR SOIL.

FALLEN BRANCHES, NEEDLES, AND DEAD ANIMALS DO NOT DECAY AS FAST AS IN WARMER REGIONS. THIS IS WHY THE SOIL IN CONIFEROUS FORESTS IS NOT VERY FERTILE. ALSO, ONLY THOSE TREES THAT HAVE ADAPTED TO COLD WEATHER AND POOR SOIL HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SURVIVE. THESE TREES HAVE FLEXIBLE BRANCHES THAT SUPPORT HEAVY SNOWFALLS. LESS WATER EVAPORATES FROM THEIR LEAVES BECAUSE OF THE SHAPE OF THEIR NEEDLES.MANY CONIFEROUS TREES SHADE LARGE PARTS OF THE SOIL BELOW THEM, WHICH KEEPS MANY PLANTS FROM GROWING ON THE FOREST GROUND. SOME ANIMALS THAT LIVE IN THE CONIFEROUS FORESTS ARE PINE,MARTENS, DEER, BEARS, CARIBOU, MOOSE, LYNXES,  BEAVERS, AND BIRDS SUCH AS GREY OWLS, CROSSBILLS, AND WARBLERS.

CONIFEROUS FORESTS

2) DECIDUOUS FORESTS DECIDUOUS FORESTS GROW IN NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE AND ASIA. THEY HAVE A MODERATE CLIMATE DURING THE SPRING, SUMMER, AUTUMN (FALL) AND WINTER, WITH RAINFALL OF AT LEAST 500MM A YEAR. SUMMERS ARE WARM AND WINTERS ARE COLD, BUT NOT AS COLD AS THE NORTHERN CONIFEROUS FORESTS. IN THE WINTER, SNOW COVERS THE GROUND AND THE DECIDUOUS TREES AND PLANTS LOSE THEIR LEAVES. THE DECAYING LEAVES HELP MAKE THE SOIL RICH IN NUTRIENTS. MANY INSECTS, SPIDERS, SNAILS, AND WORMS MAKE THEIR HOMES IN THIS RICH SOIL. WILD FLOWERS AND FERNS GROW ALMOST EVERYWHERE IN THE SPRING. NEW LEAVES CAPTURE THE ENERGY OF THE SUN AND SPROUT BEFORE THE TALL TREES SHADOW THEM.

DURING THE WINTER, MANY BIRDS MIGRATE TO WARMER CLIMATE. MANY SMALL ANIMALS HIBERNATE OR AESTIVATE, IN OTHER WORDS, SLOW DOWN THEIR METABOLISM AND SLEEP OR STAY IN THEIR BURROWS. SOME OF THE OTHER ANIMALS JUST SLOW DOWN THEIR METABOLISM AND EAT FOOD THEY STORED DURING THE SUMMER AND FALL MONTHS. THE TREES IN WINTER ARE BARE, BUT WITH THE COMING OF SPRING, LEAVES SPROUT, BIRDS RETURN, ANIMALS ARE BORN, AND ALL THE FOREST ANIMALS GET BUSY WITH THEIR LIVES. ANIMALS THAT WE MAY SEE OR HEAR IN THIS BIOME INCLUDE BEARS, DEER, RACCOONS, OTTERS, BEAVERS, FOXES, FROGS, SQUIRRELS, SNAKES, SALAMANDERS, AND BIRDS SUCH AS WOODPECKERS, ROBINS, OWLS, BLUE JAYS AND THE SMALL BIRDS USUALLY CALLED TITS.

DECIDUOUS FOREST

3) TROPICAL RAIN FORESTSTROPICAL RAINFORESTS GROW IN SOUTH AMERICA, THE CONGO, INDONESIA AND SOME NEARBY COUNTRIES, HAWAII, AND EASTERN AUSTRALIA. TROPICAL RAIN FORESTS ARE APTLY NAMED, AS IT RAINS HERE ON ABOUT HALF THE DAYS. THE ONLY SEASON IN A TROPICAL RAIN FOREST IS SUMMER, SO PLANTS GROW FOR ALL 12 MONTHS OF THE YEAR. TREES ARE TALL AND THICK IN THE RAIN FOREST AND THEY GROW SO CLOSE TOGETHER THAT THEY SEEM TO FORM A BIG UMBRELLA OF GREENERY CALLED A CANOPY. THIS BLOCKS OUT MOST OF THE SUNLIGHT. THE AIR IS MUGGY AS IT FILTERS THROUGH THE DENSE CANOPY COVER OF THE TREES. THE LIGHT THAT FILTERS THROUGH THIS TREE COVER IS DIM AND GREEN. ONLY ALONG RIVER BANKS AND IN PLACES THAT HAVE BEEN CLEARED DOES ENOUGH SUNLIGHT ALLOW PLANTS TO GROW ON THE FOREST GROUND.MILLIONS OF SPECIES OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS LIVE IN THE WORLD'S TROPICAL FORESTS. LIFE IN THE RAIN FOREST EXISTS AT DIFFERENT LEVELS OR LAYERS IN THE TREES. EACH OF THESE LAYERS HAVE A SPECIAL NAME, SUCH AS 'EMERGENT', 'CANOPY', 'UNDERSTORY', AND 'FOREST FLOOR. ANIMAL LIFE IS FOUND ON ALL LEVELS.

Tropical rain forests

TEMPERATE NEEDLE LEAF TEMPERATE NEEDLE LEAF FORESTS MOSTLY OCCUPY THE HIGHER LATITUDE REGIONS OF THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, AS WELL AS HIGH ALTITUDE ZONES AND SOME WARM TEMPERATE AREAS, ESPECIALLY ON NUTRIENT-POOR OR OTHERWISE UNFAVORABLE SOILS. THESE FORESTS ARE COMPOSED ENTIRELY, OR NEARLY SO, OF CONIFEROUS SPECIES (CONIFEROPHYTA). IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE PINES PINUS, SPRUCES PICEA, LARCHES LARIX, FIRS ABIES, DOUGLAS FIRS PSEUDOTSUGA AND HEMLOCKS TSUGA, MAKE UP THE CANOPY, BUT OTHER TAXA ARE ALSO IMPORTANT. IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE, MOST CONIFEROUS TREES (MEMBERS OF THE ARAUCARIACEAE ANDPODOCARPACEAE) OCCUR IN MIXTURES WITH BROADLEAF SPECIES, AND ARE CLASSED AS BROADLEAF AND MIXED FORESTS

Temperate needle leaf

TEMPERATE BROADLEAF AND MIXED TEMPERATE BROADLEAF AND MIXED FORESTS INCLUDE A SUBSTANTIAL COMPONENT OF TREES IN THE ANTHOPHYTA. THEY ARE GENERALLY CHARACTERISTIC OF THE WARMER TEMPERATE LATITUDES, BUT EXTEND TO COOL TEMPERATE ONES, PARTICULARLY IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. THEY INCLUDE SUCH FOREST TYPES AS THE MIXED DECIDUOUS FORESTS OF THE UNITED STATES AND THEIR COUNTERPARTS IN CHINA AND JAPAN, THE BROADLEAF EVERGREEN RAINFORESTS OF JAPAN, CHILE AND TASMANIA, THE SCLEROPHYLLOUS FORESTS OF AUSTRALIA, CENTRAL CHILE, THE MEDITERRANEAN AND CALIFORNIA, AND THE SOUTHERN BEECH NOTHOFAGUS FORESTS OF CHILE AND NEW ZEALAND.

Temperate broadleaf and mixed

THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF TROPICAL MOIST FORESTS, ALTHOUGH MOST EXTENSIVE ARE THE LOWLAND EVERGREEN BROAD LEAF RAINFORESTS, FOR EXAMPLE VÁRZEA ANDIGAPÓ FORESTS AND THE TERRA FIRMA FORESTS OF THE AMAZON BASIN; THE PEAT SWAMP FORESTS, DIPTEROCARP FORESTS OF SOUTHEAST ASIA; AND THE HIGH FORESTS OF THE CONGO BASIN. FORESTS LOCATED ON MOUNTAINS ARE ALSO INCLUDED IN THIS CATEGORY, DIVIDED LARGELY INTO UPPER AND LOWER MONTANE FORMATIONS ON THE BASIS OF THE VARIATION OF PHYSIOGNOMY CORRESPONDING TO CHANGES IN ALTITUDE.

Tropical moist

Tropical moist

TROPICAL DRYTROPICAL DRY FORESTS ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF AREAS IN THE TROPICS AFFECTED BY SEASONAL DROUGHT. THE SEASONALITY OF RAINFALL IS USUALLY REFLECTED IN THE DECIDUOUSNESS OF THE FOREST CANOPY, WITH MOST TREES BEING LEAFLESS FOR SEVERAL MONTHS OF THE YEAR. HOWEVER, UNDER SOME CONDITIONS, E.G. LESS FERTILE SOILS OR LESS PREDICTABLE DROUGHT REGIMES, THE PROPORTION OF EVERGREEN SPECIES INCREASES AND THE FORESTS ARE CHARACTERISED AS "SCLEROPHYLLOUS". THORN FOREST, A DENSE FOREST OF LOW STATURE WITH A HIGH FREQUENCY OF THORNY OR SPINY SPECIES, IS FOUND WHERE DROUGHT IS PROLONGED, AND ESPECIALLY WHERE GRAZING ANIMALS ARE PLENTIFUL. ON VERY POOR SOILS, AND ESPECIALLY WHERE FIRE IS A RECURRENT PHENOMENON, WOODY SAVANNAS DEVELOP (SEE 'SPARSE TREES AND PARKLAND').

Tropical dry

SPARSE TREES AND PARKLAND SPARSE TREES AND PARKLAND ARE FORESTS WITH OPEN CANOPIES OF 10–30% CROWN COVER. THEY OCCUR PRINCIPALLY IN AREAS OF TRANSITION FROM FORESTED TO NON-FORESTED LANDSCAPES. THE TWO MAJOR ZONES IN WHICH THESE ECOSYSTEMS OCCUR ARE IN THE BOREAL REGION AND IN THE SEASONALLY DRY TROPICS. AT HIGH LATITUDES, NORTH OF THE MAIN ZONE OF BOREAL FOREST OR TAIGA, GROWING CONDITIONS ARE NOT ADEQUATE TO MAINTAIN A CONTINUOUS CLOSED FOREST COVER, SO TREE COVER IS BOTH SPARSE AND DISCONTINUOUS. THIS VEGETATION IS VARIOUSLY CALLED OPEN TAIGA, OPEN LICHEN WOODLAND, AND FOREST TUNDRA. IT IS SPECIES-POOR, HAS HIGH BRYOPHYTE COVER, AND IS FREQUENTLY AFFECTED BY FIRE.

Sparse trees and parkland

FOREST PLANTATIONS FOREST PLANTATIONS, GENERALLY INTENDED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF TIMBER AND PULPWOOD INCREASE THE TOTAL AREA OF FOREST WORLDWIDE. COMMONLY MONO-SPECIFIC AND/OR COMPOSED OF INTRODUCED TREE SPECIES, THESE ECOSYSTEMS ARE NOT GENERALLY IMPORTANT AS HABITAT FOR NATIVE BIODIVERSITY. HOWEVER, THEY CAN BE MANAGED IN WAYS THAT ENHANCE THEIR BIODIVERSITY PROTECTION FUNCTIONS AND THEY ARE IMPORTANT PROVIDERS OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES SUCH AS MAINTAINING NUTRIENT CAPITAL, PROTECTING WATERSHEDS AND SOIL STRUCTURE AS WELL AS STORING CARBON. THEY MAY ALSO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN ALLEVIATING PRESSURE ON NATURAL FORESTS FOR TIMBER AND FUEL WOOD PRODUCTION.

Forest plantations