The Temperate Deciduous Forest
Why we should all start our new lives here! By: RJ Tavani
Geographical Location
The Temperate Deciduous Forest is located in three main parts of the world: the eastern half of the United States, central to western Europe, and the eastern half of China. Though it's spread out sparsely in parts of Australia, the western seaboard of the US, and in South America. Because of this, you have easy access to live wherever you want on Earth!
Some Abiotic Factors and Native Plants and their Adaptations
Since the Deciduous Forest is covered in many trees, 3 important abiotic factors are water, sunlight, and soil (the building block of the trees' life). Others include air, temperature, wind, and rocks. A few plants that are home to this biome are small plants like moss, lichen, ferns and wildflowers, shrubs and tall hardwood trees such as maple, oak, birch, magnolia, sweet gum, and beech trees. The trees have to adapt to the seasons. When spring rolls around, the trees produce thin, broad, light-weight leaves that can easily capture lots of sunshine needed for photosynthesis. Though when winter hits, the leaves expose too much surface area to water loss and tissue damage, and the trees drop the leaves onto the ground. Smaller plants like moss (which are rootless) can grow basically anywhere that has enough nutrients and sufficient climate. Mosses like to grow close to one another so they can survive and reproduce more efficiently. This helps with survival because moss is a big food source for animals so staying close to one another is best. And for flowers such as the Northern Arrow Wood, They have blue and black berries on them that a lot of animals eat. They contain seeds that are poisonous and might kill the animal. They can also grow to be 15 ft. tall which helps them photosynthesize!
Native Animals and their Adaptions and Cooperation/Competion
Native Animals
A few animals home to the Deciduous Forest are frogs, hawks, woodpeckers, deer, and bears.
Their Adaptations
During the winter birds, such as hawks and woodpeckers, migrate to warmer biomes in the changing seasons, but eventually return when the temperature increases. Also during the winter, mammals such as bears and bats hibernate during the cold months and come back out in the environment in the spring. The must gather a lot of food before hibernation.
Cooperation/Competition
An example of competition is a cougar and a bear fighting over a food source, such as fish. If the bear or cougar gets most of the fish, the other will have to move on to another food source, if there's even any left. An example of cooperation is a plant, such as moss, releasing oxygen for an animal to obtain.
Recreational Activities (Attractions)
Three recreational activities that you can partake in in the Deciduous forest are hiking, zip lining, and camping. You can zip line as high as the trees are, camp in the forest or next to a river, and hike in the forest. You can't get that in the grassland or desert! One place of interest is the famous Appalachian Trail that runs from Maine to Georgi, that you can hike on. You can also zip line and/or raft on the Nantahala River Gorge in the Great Smoky Mountains. Two nearby biomes are grasslands and Tropical Rainforests (next to China).
Weather Report
The average amount of rainfall in the Deciduous Forest is 30 to 60 inches a year, which is not too much and not too little. The average temperature is roughly 50 degrees fahrenheit (good for me), but of course it gets warmer than that in the summer and colder in the winter. If you are planning to visit during the winter, you should dress in layers (sweatshirts and jackets). For pants, wear jeans. In the spring, summer, and fall you can dress lightly with shorts and maybe a long sleeve t-shirt. For shoes, wear sneakers. No matter when you're going, make sure to bring flashlights, batteries, a first-aid-kit, a tent (if you're camping), a lamp/candles, and a map of the area
Warnings
2 threats to this biome are wildfires that result from warm and dry weather that have been happening for a long time. They can burn down man trees in the forest and cause some animals to lose their habitat. Also, deforestation is a problem. There are some species in the Deciduous Forest that are endangered. The Red Wolf population started to decrease in the 60s and 70s and is just starting to restore, but is still endangered. The European bison is also endangered in the European Deciduous Forest, and so is the European Mink. There is not any fear of climate change in the Deciduous Forest. First of all, there are four seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. The climate is already changing based on the season that it's in, not due to the greenhouse effect. And since climate is a mix of temperature and precipitation, the Deciduous Forest gets more than enough rainfall (14 in. in the winter and 18 in. in the summer). So because of all this, there is no fear of climate change.
Analysis/Evaluation
The Temperate Deciduous Forest is globally important because it's home to the most biodiverse group of organisms in the world. So many species rely on the forest to have a place for them to live. It is also a major supply of oxygen from carbon dioxide. They also prevent erosion of land and provide species a place to live.