Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests | |
---|---|
Ecology | |
Realm | Palearctic |
Biome | temperate coniferous forests |
Borders | |
Bird species | 430 [1] |
Mammal species | 88 [1] |
Geography | |
Area | 46,300 km2 (17,900 sq mi) |
Countries | |
Conservation | |
Conservation status | Vulnerable [2] |
Habitat loss | 4.26% [1] |
Protected | 16.7% [1] |
The Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests are a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of the middle to upper elevations of the eastern Himalayas and southeast Tibetan Plateau. The ecoregion occurs in southeastern Tibet Autonomous Region, China, in northern and eastern Arunachal Pradesh, India, and extreme eastern Bhutan.
Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests cover 46,300 square kilometres (17,900 sq mi) in the southeast Tibetan Plateau, occurring between 2,500 and 4,200 metres (8,200 and 13,800 ft). The forests are mostly in the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, where the Yarlung Tsangpo River wraps around the eastern edge of the Himalayas and descends from the Tibetan Plateau. Tributary valleys of the Yarlung Tsangpo, including those of the Nyang River and Parlung Tsangpo, host connected portions of the Northeast Himalayan subalpine conifer forests. Isolated pockets of this ecoregion also occur in the Zayü River valley and Tawang Valley. Many of these forests are found in so-called "inner valleys", which are valleys that are shielded from the South Asian monsoon by mountain ridges but still receive enough precipitation to support thriving forests.
In higher elevations, this ecoregion grades into Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows and Southeast Tibet shrub and meadows. In lower elevations it grades into Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests.
The dominant trees are Tsuga dumosa, Picea brachytyla, Picea likiangensis, and Abies spp. Less common are Larix griffithiana, Larix potaninii, Pinus wallichiana , and Taxus baccata . Near timberline are found various junipers: Juniperus indica, Juniperus recurva , and Juniperus squamata . Betula utilis is often found with the conifers. Conifer trees in this ecoregion can grow up to be very tall, sometimes up to 70-80m. Cupressus torulosa (Himalayan cypress) is one of the tallest known species of trees(can grow up to 102.3m), [3] and it can be found in this ecoregion. Other broadleaf plants include Acer spp., Magnolia spp., Sorbus spp., Viburnum spp., Lauraceae, and Araliaceae. Rhododendrons reach their pinnacle in this ecoregion. The number of rhododendron species seems to increase above 2,000 metres (6,600 ft), and the Yarlung Tsangpo River gorge alone may harbor over 60 of them.
The highest forest in the world is found in this ecoregion, with Tibetan juniper reaching heights of 4,900 m (16,100 ft) in Baxoi County, Tibet Autonomous Region. [4]
Important mammals in this ecoregion include the red panda, takin, musk deer, red goral, Asiatic black bear, and leopard.
Significant birds include the Tibetan eared-pheasant, white-eared pheasant, and the giant babax.
This ecoregion tends to be found on steep, inaccessible terrain and thus has avoided significant human settlement.
The Tibetan Plateau, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qing–Zang Plateau or as the Himalayan Plateau in India, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central, South, and East Asia covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region, most of Qinghai, western half of Sichuan, Southern Gansu provinces in Western China, southern Xinjiang, Bhutan, the Indian regions of Ladakh and Lahaul and Spiti as well as Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan, northwestern Nepal, eastern Tajikistan and southern Kyrgyzstan. It stretches approximately 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) north to south and 2,500 kilometres (1,600 mi) east to west. It is the world's highest and largest plateau above sea level, with an area of 2,500,000 square kilometres (970,000 sq mi). With an average elevation exceeding 4,500 metres (14,800 ft) and being surrounded by imposing mountain ranges that harbor the world's two highest summits, Mount Everest and K2, the Tibetan Plateau is often referred to as "the Roof of the World".
The Qinling or Qin Mountains, formerly known as the Nanshan, are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, China. The mountains mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Yellow River systems, providing a natural boundary between North and South China and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on earth.
Mêdog, formerly known as Pemako, is a county of Nyingchi in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. Pemako is considered famous because it is the Nyingma master Dudjom Rinpoche's birthplace, and it is a prophesied refuge for Tibetan Buddhists by Padmasambhava
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 Yarlung Tsangpo, also called Yarlung Zangbo and Yalu Zangbu River is the upper stream of the Brahmaputra River located in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It is the longest river of Tibet and the fifth longest in China. The upper section is also called Dangque Zangbu meaning "Horse River."
The Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Nepal, India, and Tibet, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the western portion of the Himalaya Range.
The Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the eastern portion of the Himalaya Range.
The Northern Triangle temperate forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion of thick forest covering the mountains of northern Myanmar.
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 Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of the elevations of the northwestern Himalaya of China, India, and Pakistan.
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 Karakoram-West Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion found in parts of Pakistan, China, Afghanistan, and India.
The eastern forest–boreal transition is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of North America, mostly in eastern Canada. It is a transitional zone or region between the predominantly coniferous Boreal Forest and the mostly deciduous broadleaf forest region further south.
The ecology of the Himalayas varies with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of climate, altitude, rainfall and soil conditions supports a variety of distinct plant and animal species, such as the Nepal gray langur
Kangri Karpo, also spelt Gangri Garbo, is a mountain range in eastern Tibet, located primarily in Nyingchi Prefecture as well as a portion of Qamdo Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. The mountain range lies to the east of the Himalayas and to the west of the Hengduan Mountains. The mountains are geographically a southern extension of the eastern Transhimalayas.
The Yarlung Tsangpo arid steppe ecoregion covers the river valley of the Yarlung Tsangpo River on the southern edge of Tibet. The river runs parallel to the northern borders of Nepal, Bhutan and India, between the Himalayas to the south and the Tibet Plateau to the north. The river valleys are the most populated areas of Tibet, putting pressure on wildlife. The area ranges from cold desert in the west to steppe shrub land in the east; the few trees are in the lowest river valleys to the east.
The Carpathian montane conifer forests, also known as Carpathian montane forests, is a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion in the Carpathian Mountains of the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and Ukraine.