| Northeast India–Myanmar pine forests | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Ecoregion territory (in purple) | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Indomalayan |
| Biome | tropical and subtropical coniferous forests |
| Borders | |
| Geography | |
| Area | 9,700 km2 (3,700 sq mi) |
| Countries | |
| States | |
| Coordinates | 25°54′N94°46′E / 25.900°N 94.767°E |
The Northeast India-Myanmar pine forests is a montane subtropical coniferous forest ecoregion in the mountains of Northeastern India and adjacent portions of Myanmar (also known as Burma).
The ecoregion covers an area of 9,700 square kilometres (3,700 sq mi) of the Naga Hills that with the Patkai (including the Lushai Hills) and the Manipur Hills form part of the Burmese-Java arc of folded mountains that run south-east of the Himalayas and make up the India-Myanmar border region. The pine forests are found between 1,500–2,500 metres (4,900–8,200 ft) in elevation, and occur in three separate enclaves. The largest enclave straddles the boundary between India's Nagaland state and Myanmar, and the two smaller enclaves grows in the southern part of India's Mizoram state, also along the Myanmar border. The pine forests are surrounded at lower elevations by the predominantly broadleaf Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests and are part of the huge Burma Monsoon Forest transition zone between the South Asia and Indochina regions. [1]
The pine forests forms a habitat that is rare in the Indomalayan realm. Cinnamomum cassia , Durio zibethinus , Artocarpus heterophyllus , Ficus benghalensis , Gnetum gnemon , Mangifera indica , Toona ciliata , Toona sinensis , Cocos nucifera , Tetrameles nudiflora , Ginkgo biloba , Prunus serrulata , Camphora officinarum , Pinus roxburghii , Pinus hwangshanensis , Juniperus tibetica , Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata , Taxus sumatrana , Juglans regia , Alnus nepalensis , Betula alnoides , Betula utilis , Larix griffithii , Picea brachytyla , Cathaya argyrophylla , Taiwania cryptomerioides , Cyathea spinulosa , Sassafras tzumu , Davidia involucrata , Metasequoia glyptostroboides , Glyptostrobus pensilis , Castanea mollissima , Quercus myrsinifolia , Quercus acuta , Machilus thunbergii , Tetracentron , Tsuga dumosa , Ulmus lanceifolia , Tectona grandis , Terminalia elliptica , Terminalia bellirica , Larix gmelinii , Larix sibirica , Larix × czekanowskii , Betula dahurica , Betula pendula , Pinus koraiensis , Pinus sibirica , Pinus sylvestris , Picea obovata , Abies sibirica , Quercus acutissima , Quercus mongolica , Prunus padus , Tilia amurensis , Salix babylonica , Acer palmatum , Populus tremula , Ulmus davidiana , Ulmus pumila , Pinus pumila , Haloxylon ammodendron , Elaeagnus angustifolia , Tamarix ramosissima , Prunus sibirica , are the dominant species in this region. Tenasserim pine (Pinus latteri) is the dominant species at lower elevations, sometimes associated with dipterocarps. At higher elevations, Khasi pine (P. kesiya) and blue pine (P. wallichiana) are the predominant species, associated with other evergreens including hemlocks (Tsuga) and firs (Abies), and broadleaf trees, including oaks (Quercus) and maples (Acer), while Rhododendron , Ilex , Prunus , and bamboo (Arundinaria) are common understory shrubs.
Although home to a smaller variety of wildlife than the surrounding rainforest these pine forests are relatively unspoilt and therefore still important habitat for a number of species adapted to the rocky heights. When the area was surveyed by the Wildlife Conservation Society in the 1950s mammals of the pine forest included Red serow (Capricornis rubidus), sambar (rusa unicolor), Indian muntjac (Muntiacus muntjac), wild boar (Sus scrofa), and Asian black bear (ursus thibetanus) while smaller mammals include Oriental giant squirrels, Indian giant flying squirrel and civets. None of these mammals are endemic to this ecoregion.
Birds reported in the survey include the silver-breasted broadbill (Serilophus lunatus), white-naped yuhina (Yuhina bakeri), rufous-vented tit (Periparus rubidiventris), stripe-throated yuhina (Yuhina gularis), a number of Old World babblers, grey-sided laughingthrush (Garrulax caerulatus), rufous-chinned laughingthrush (Garrulax rufogularis), striated laughingthrush (Garrulax striatus), purple and green cochoas, beautiful nuthatch (Sitta formosa), sultan tit (Melanochlora sultana), some leafbirds and white-browed fulvetta (fulvetta vinipectus) while large numbers of shelduck and bar-headed goose were seen on the Chindwin River. Two more species of laughingthrush are thought to be endemic to these mountains: brown-capped laughingthrush (Garrulax austeni) and striped laughingthrush (Garrulax virgatus).
These mountains have been poorly researched since the 1950s, when it was noted that patches were being systematically cleared for farming and this shifting cultivation continues today resulting in soil erosion and loss of habitat for wildlife.
The Himalayan subtropical pine forests are a large subtropical coniferous forest ecoregion covering portions of Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.
The Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests is an ecoregion that extends from the middle hills of central Nepal through Darjeeling into Bhutan and also into the Indian States of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. It represents the east–west-directed band of subtropical broadleaf forest at an altitude of between 500 and 1,000 m along the Outer Himalayan Range, and includes several forest types traversing an east to west moisture gradient.
The Taiwan subtropical evergreen forests is an ecoregion that covers most of the island of Taiwan, with the exception of the southern tip of the island, which constitutes the South Taiwan monsoon rain forests ecoregion. The island's concentrated steep mountains host a range of forest types, from subtropical forests in the lowlands to temperate and alpine or montane forests.
The Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests is a temperate broadleaf forest ecoregion found in the middle elevations of the eastern Himalayas, including parts of Nepal, India, Bhutan, Myanmar and China. These forests have an outstanding richness of wildlife.
The Northern Indochina subtropical forests are a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of northern Indochina, covering portions of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, and China's Yunnan Province.
The Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests is a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion which occupies the lower hillsides of the mountainous border region joining Bangladesh, China's Yunnan Province, India, and Myanmar. The ecoregion covers an area of 135,600 square kilometres (52,400 sq mi). Located where the biotas of the Indian Subcontinent and the Indochinese Peninsula meet, and in the transition between subtropical and tropical regions of Asia, the Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests are home to great biodiversity. The WWF rates the ecoregion as "Globally Outstanding" in biological distinctiveness.
The Taiheiyo evergreen forests is a temperate broadleaf forest ecoregion of Japan.
The Western Himalayan broadleaf forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion which is found in the middle elevations of the western Himalayas, including parts of Nepal, India, and Pakistan.
The Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests is a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion which is found in the middle and upper elevations of the eastern Middle Himalayas, in western Nepal, Bhutan, northern Indian states including Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim and adjacent Myanmar and China.
The Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests is a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of the middle and upper elevations of the western Middle Himalayas of Nepal, India, and Pakistan.
The Southern Korea evergreen forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion at the southern end of the Korean Peninsula.
The Sichuan Basin evergreen broadleaf forests are a critically endangered WWF ecoregion. The ecoregion occupies the Sichuan Basin in China and covers an area of 9,816,054 ha. The broadleaf forest habitat once covered the Sichuan Basin, but today is limited to mountains and preserved temple grounds in the basin and around the basin's rim. An especially well-preserved example of remaining forest exists on Mount Emei at the western edge of the Sichuan Basin. The original forests are thought to have been made up of subtropical oaks, laurels, and Schima. Much of the remaining Sichuan Basin has been converted to anthropogenic agricultural use in the last 5,000 years.
The Daba Mountains evergreen forests are a Global 200 endangered ecoregion located on the Daba Mountains in China. The forests are part of temperate broadleaf and mixed forests containing both coniferous and broadleaf trees covering a swath of Central China. Forests here provide a transitional area between evergreen forests to the south and deciduous forests to the north. The Daba Mountains evergreen forests cover areas of northeast Sichuan Province, southern Shaanxi Province, the northern half of Chongqing Municipality, and western Hubei Province.
The Yunnan Plateau subtropical evergreen forests is an endangered ecoregion in southwestern China. These forests once covered the western parts of the Yungui Plateau but have been significantly reduced and replaced with agricultural land uses. The Yunnan evergreen forests and the neighbouring Guizhou Plateau broadleaf and mixed forests are the only two ecoregions in the Palearctic realm to be classified as part of tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome.
The Guizhou Plateau broadleaf and mixed forests are a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Yungui Plateau of China. Much of the original forest has been replaced by secondary forests.
The Changjiang Plain evergreen forests ecoregion covers the plain of the Yangtze River (Changjiang) from where it leaves the mountains at the Three Gorges in the west, to the mouth of the Yangtze at the East China Sea. This plain is one of the most densely populated areas on Earth, and most of the original oak and conifer forests have long been converted to agriculture. Extensive wetlands, however, provide habitat for migratory waterfowl and for diverse aquatic species.
The South China-Vietnam subtropical evergreen forests ecoregion covers the mountainous coastal region of southeastern China and northeastern Vietnam. The ecoregional also covers the coastal plain along the South China Sea and Hainan Island. The area has significant biodiversity and ecological importance, with high levels of both endemic and threatened species. Rapid urban expansion is reducing biologically-rich forests and wetlands. Ecologically, the subtropical forests are at the northeastern extent of the Indomalayan realm.
The Jiang Nan subtropical evergreen forests ecoregion covers the mountainous divide between the lower Yangtze River and the coastal plain of South China. The region is also a climatic divide between the temperate valleys of the north and the subtropical forests of the south. The region is important for biodiversity and endemic species. The rugged limestone karst hills have been relatively protected from conversion to agriculture, and support specialized plant and animal communities.
The Hokkaido montane conifer forests ecoregion covers the mountainous central regions of Hokkaido Island, the northernmost of Japan's main islands. Forests of spruce and fir thrive in the subalpine, cool climate. On the northeastern edge of the island, the conifer forests extend down to the sea under the influence of the cold Oyashio Current coming down from the north, although logging in recent years has put pressure on these stands.
The Northern Triangle subtropical forests ecoregion covers remote, mountainous terrain in the far north of Myanmar. Due to the regions isolation it is relatively untouched and unexplored by humans. Over 95% of the ecoregion is covered with closed evergreen forest, and importantly for conservation, these forests exist in large contiguous blocks. As of the late 1990s, 140 mammal species were known to be in the region, and new species, such the Leaf muntjac discovered in 1997, are still being found.