Forest Biome

Temperate Forests

Boreal Forest

Animals found in the Boreal Forest

Animals found in the Temperate Forests

Pine Marten (Martes martes) - The pine marten is a medium-sized mustelid that inhabits the temperate forests of Europe. Pine martens have sharp claws are good climbers. They feed on small mammals, birds, carrion, as well as some plant materials such as berries and nuts. Pine martens are most active at dusk and during the night.

Eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) - The eastern chipmunk is a species of chipmunk that lives in the deciduous forests of eastern North America. Easter chipmunks are small rodents that have red-brown fur and dark and light brown stripes that run the length of its back.

American black bear (Ursus americanus) - American black bears are one of three bear species that live in North America, the other two being the brown bear and the polar bear. Of these bear species, black bears are the smallest and most timid.

Lynx are generally found in moist, boreal forests that have cold, snowy winters and a high density of their favorite prey: the snowshoe hare. Lynx can be found throughout much of the boreal forests of Alaska and Canada.

Forest Biomes

• Temperate forests (also called Deciduous), as the name alludes, exist in the world’s temperate regions, namely North America, Western Europe, and Northern Asia.
• Temperate forests are characterized by experiencing well-defined four seasons, with winter being particularly distinctive. Annual precipitation in temperate forests ranges between 30 and 50 inches.
• Canopy consists mainly of broadleaf trees.

• Boreal forests exist in the high northern latitudes and are bound by the latitudes of 50 degrees north and 70 degrees north.
• Boreal forests are also known as taiga, a Russian word which simply means swampy, moist forest.
• Due to their proximity to the Arctic, boreal forests experience low temperatures and long winters.
• The trees found in boreal forests are mainly coniferous, which can survive the freezing temperatures and include pine, fir, and spruce. Annual precipitation in boreal forests is low and ranges between 7.8 and 30 inches.

• Forests cover about 30% of the Earth's land area.
• Despite covering a relatively small portion, forests support more animal and plant species than any other terrestrial ecosystem.
• For example, tropical forests alone support more than half of the world’s animal and plant species.
• Forests can be classified into three main types based on the latitudes where they are located: tropical forests; boreal forests; and temperate forests.

• Tropical forests exist between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, and usually between the latitudes of 10 degrees north and 10 degrees south of the equator.
• Tropical forests have the highest diversity of both flora and fauna of any type of forest. Examples of tropical forests include the Amazon rainforest and the Congo rainforest.
• Rainforests are essential to life on Earth. Not only do they provide air, water, medicine, food, and shelter to a multitude of living beings, they are also one of our best natural defenses against climate change because of their capacity to absorb greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.
• According to Global Forest Watch, our planet loses tropical forestland equivalent to the size of Bangladesh every year. In 2017 alone, we lost 15.8 million hectares of tropical forests; all told, humans have destroyed nearly half of the world’s original forest cover.

Animals found in Tropical Rainforests

The tapir (Tapirus sp.) is a pig-like herbivorous mammal with a short snout. These tropical rainforest animals are found in forests of South and Central America as well as Southeastern Asia.

The jaguar (Panthera onca) is the biggest cat species living in the Americas and is the third largest in the world after the lion and the tiger. The jaguar is a solitary, apex predator of the ecosystem it inhabits.

The boa constrictor (Boa constrictor) is a massive snake that is found in forests throughout the Americas and also the Caribbean islands. Though the boa constrictor is found in a wide variety of habitats, it prefers the rainforests in its range due to the high humidity and temperatures of such habitat.

Primary Threat to the Forest Biomes

• Deforestation in the form of burning and illegal logging is the main threat faced by forests around the world.
• Governments have introduced measures aimed at curtailing these destructive practices, but the destruction of forests remains a concern.
• For example, researchers believe that forests in certain regions of Southeast Asia could disappear by the next century based on the current rate of deforestation.