The temperate forest is a biome found in central Europe, southern Australia, Chile, eastern Asia, mainly Korea, Japan and some parts of China and the eastern United States.
It is also called temperate deciduous forest or deciduous forest because the leaves fall in late autumn.
Characteristics
Discover the main characteristics of temperate forests:
Typical landscape of a temperate forest
Climate
Temperate forests have a temperate climate , with four well-defined seasons. Summer is hot and humid, while winter is cold and snowy.
Rainfall rates vary from 75 to 100 centimeters per year. The decomposition of the leaves that fall in winter ensures the richness of nutrients in the soil, which acquires a darker color.
Due to differences in climate during the year, animals and plants have survival strategies for each season.
Flora
The flora is made up of three main groups of deciduous, coniferous and broadleaf trees.
The leaves vary in color during the autumn, ranging from reddish to brown and golden tones. At the beginning of winter, they lose their leaves, as a way of reducing metabolism, which only reappear in spring.
Examples of temperate forest trees include maples, oaks, chestnuts, beeches, and elms.
Coniferous trees are so named because the seeds develop in a cone shape. These trees are also called evergreens because they are green at all times of the year. Examples of coniferous trees are spruce and cedar.
In addition to trees, the vegetation cover also features shrubs, herbaceous and creeping plants.
Fauna
Animals found in temperate forests
The fauna in temperate forests is quite varied. Wild boars, wild cats, lynxes, wolves, foxes, large birds, bears, squirrels and deer are found in this biome.
Due to the clear definition of the seasons, there are animals that have a peculiar behavior in winter, such as bears, which hibernate, and squirrels, which store food. There are also nocturnal animals, such as bats, owls, possums and wild cats.
Due to the particularities of the regions, the occurrence of animals varies from forest to forest. Animals such as marsupials, koala bears, possums and kangaroos are commonly found in Australia.
Deer, bears, mountain lions and rabbits live in the temperate forests of Canada and the United States. Giant panda bears and red pandas are characteristic of China.
In Canada and the United States, deer, bears, mountain lions, bobcats, rabbits, woodpeckers and many smaller birds are typical of this biome. In China, endangered species such as giant pandas and red pandas survive in the temperate rainforest.
