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Evergreen forests fill many corners of the planet with life, where they are commonly known as "evergreen" forests. Unlike forests of deciduous plant species that lose their leaves in autumn, evergreen forests maintain their greenery and foliage with the passing of the seasons. Thus, the various animals of the evergreen forest have shelter and food throughout the year, forming part of some of the richest, most stable and complex ecosystems in all of nature. From the extensive tropical forests, to the distant boreal forests, passing through the semi-arid Mediterranean forests, all these ecosystems are characterized by maintaining their leaves with the passage of the seasons.
Continue reading this Green Exology article and you will discover in detail the evergreen forest: what is it, characteristics, flora and fauna.
What is an evergreen forest and its characteristics
From Latin perennis (durable) and follium (leaf), the term evergreen is used within botany to group those plant species whose leaves remain during all seasons, that is, those trees and shrubs that maintain their foliage and do not suffer from the fall of their leaves during the months of autumn and winter.
Thus, in different parts of the planet, evergreen trees and shrubs coexist constituting dense and varied evergreen forests, sharing many common characteristics. These are the main characteristics of evergreen forests:
- Only part of the leaves of perennials die each year, so those that are younger remain on the plant, along with those that sprout in spring.
- The life span of each leaf in perennials lasts several years.
- The evergreen tree canopy is never bare.
- Evergreen forests stand out for their lushness, resistance, ecosystem stability, and longevity.
- They grow in Asia, America and Europe.
Depending on the climatic conditions of the area of the planet in which they are found, evergreen forests constitute one type of ecosystem or another, such as the gigantic evergreen forests of Central America or the coniferous forests of the Eurasian North.
In this other Green Ecologist article you can learn more Types of forests, their characteristics and photos.
Evergreen forest: flora
As we have seen in the previous section, there are different types of evergreen forests on the planet, so that in each of them there will be a specific plant species, always characterized by the permanence of their leaves throughout the year. Next we will see some examples of evergreen forest plant species best known:
Mediterranean evergreen forests
- Cork oaks (Quercus suber)
- Encinas (Quercus ilex)
- Laurel (Laurus nobilis)
- Rosemary (Salvia romarinus)
- Olives (Olea europaea)
- Willows (Salix Babylonto)
Learn more about this type of biome in this other post by Green Ecologist about the Mediterranean Forest: characteristics, flora and fauna.
Coniferous evergreen forests
- Fir (genus Abies)
- Alaska Birch (Betula neolaskana)
- Cedar (genus Cedrus)
- Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens)
- Pine (genus Pinus)
- Pinsapo (Abies pinsapo)
- Sequoia (Sequoia sempervirens)
- Yew (Taxus baccata)
Learn more about Coniferous Forests: characteristics, flora and fauna here.
Evergreen tropical forests
- Ficus (Ficus aurea)
- Mexican elm (Mexican ulmus)
- Zapollito (Cynometra retusa)
- Mayan walnut (Brosimum alicastrum)
- Curumuta or wine palm (Attalea butyracea)
You can consult this other article to learn more about tropical forests: characteristics, flora and fauna.
Evergreen forest: fauna
Like flora, evergreen forest animals They are very varied, including mainly species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects. Depending on the humidity, rainfall and temperature conditions that characterize one or another evergreen forest, as well as the type of resource that the forest offers (shelter, food, shelter), the animals that inhabit these ecosystems will be very varied:
Mediterranean evergreen forest fauna
- Rabbits (family Leporidae)
- Hares (family Leporidae)
- Partridges (family Phasianidae)
- Mountain lizard (Iberolacerta monticola)
- BeesApis mellifera)
Coniferous evergreen forest fauna
- Grizzly (Ursus arctos)
- Lemings (genus Lemmus)
- I raised (Moose moose)
- Kite borealis (Ictinia mississippiensis)
- Caterpillars of the species Mesopolobus spermotrophus
Evergreen tropical forest fauna
- Capybaras (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris)
- Toucan tocoRamphastos played)
- Yellow-headed woodpecker (Straw Pompadour)
- Jacana (Jacana jacana)
- Harpy eagle (Harpyopsis novaeguineae)
- Green Anaconda (Eunectes murinus)
- Poison arrow frogPhyllobates terribilis)
- Tarantula or chick spider (Grammostola mollicoma)
- Amazonian ants (Polyergus breviceps)
If you want to read more articles similar to Evergreen forest: what is it, characteristics, flora and fauna, we recommend that you enter our Ecosystems category.
Bibliography- Pérez, M. A. (2016) Structure, floristic composition and diversity of the evergreen tropical forest of the area subject to ecological conservation La Pera, Berriozábal, Chiapas. Institute of Biological Sciences- UNICACH.
- Ibarra, G. & Cornejo, G. (2009) Diversity of fruits of the trees of the evergreen tropical forest of Mexico. Acta Botánica Mexicana Magazine, volume 90.
- Martínez, J. L. (2016) Comparison of the structural diversity of a tall evergreen forest and a medium sub-evergreen forest in Tabasco, Mexico. Wood and forests magazine, volume 22 (2).
