The East Siberian taiga ecoregion

Ecoregion

An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...

, in the Taiga and Boreal forests

Taiga

Taiga , also known as the boreal forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests.Taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome. In North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States and is known as the Northwoods...

 Biome

Biome

Biomes are climatically and geographically defined as similar climatic conditions on the Earth, such as communities of plants, animals, and soil organisms, and are often referred to as ecosystems. Some parts of the earth have more or less the same kind of abiotic and biotic factors spread over a...

, is a very large biogeographic region in eastern Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

.

Setting

This vast ecoregion is located in the heart of Siberia

Siberia

Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...

, stretching over 20° of latitude

Latitude

In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...

 and 50° of longitude

Longitude

Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....

. The climate in the East Siberian taiga is subarctic

Subarctic climate

The subarctic climate is a climate characterized by long, usually very cold winters, and short, cool to mild summers. It is found on large landmasses, away from the moderating effects of an ocean, generally at latitudes from 50° to 70°N poleward of the humid continental climates...

 and displays high continentality

Continentality

Continentality is the tendency of land to experience more thermal variation than water, due to the land's lower specific heat capacity. Continental climate also tends to be dryer than oceanic climate as there is less moisture input to the atmosphere from evaporation...

, with extremes ranging from 40 °C (104 °F) to -62 °C. Winters are long and very cold, but dry, with little snow

Snow

Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...

fall due to the effects of the Siberian anticyclone

Siberian High

The Siberian High is a massive collection of cold or very cold dry air that accumulates on the Eurasian terrain for much of the year. It reaches its greatest size and strength in the winter, when the air temperature near the center of the high-pressure cell or anticyclone is often lower than...

. Summers are short, but can be quite warm for the northerly location. Precipitation is low, ranging from 600 millimetres (23.6 in) to 200 millimetres (7.9 in), decreasing from east to west. The topography of this ecoregion is varied, consisting of wide, flat plains and areas of karst topography

Karst topography

Karst topography is a geologic formation shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite, but has also been documented for weathering resistant rocks like quartzite given the right conditions.Due to subterranean drainage, there...

. In contrast to the neighbouring West Siberian taiga, large bog

Bog

A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....

s and wetland

Wetland

A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....

s are conspicuously absent.

Flora

Vegetation consists mainly of vast, dense forests of Dahurian Larch (Larix gmelinii), with Siberian Larch (Larix sibirica) and the hybrid between the Dahurian and Siberian Larches (Larix x czekanowskii) occurring in the west. Throughout the ecoregion, smaller areas dominated by Siberian Pine

Siberian Pine

The Siberian Pine, Pinus sibirica, in the family Pinaceae is a species of pine tree that occurs in Siberia from 58°E in the Ural Mountains east to 126°E in the Stanovoy Range in southern Sakha Republic, and from Igarka at 68°N in the lower Yenisei valley, south to 45°N in central...

 (Pinus sibirica), Scots Pine

Scots Pine

Pinus sylvestris, commonly known as the Scots Pine, is a species of pine native to Europe and Asia, ranging from Scotland, Ireland and Portugal in the west, east to eastern Siberia, south to the Caucasus Mountains, and as far north as well inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia...

 (Pinus sylvestris), Siberian Spruce

Siberian Spruce

Siberian Spruce is a spruce native to Siberia, from the Ural Mountains east to Magadan Oblast, and from the arctic tree line south to the Altay Mountains in northwestern Mongolia.-Description and uses:...

 (Picea obovata) and Siberian Fir (Abies sibirica) can be found. Pine forests and deciduous forests composed of birch

Birch

Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...

 and poplar species become more common as one moves south, and at the headwaters

Source (river or stream)

The source or headwaters of a river or stream is the place from which the water in the river or stream originates.-Definition:There is no universally agreed upon definition for determining a stream's source...

 of the Lena River

Lena River

The Lena is the easternmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean . It is the 11th longest river in the world and has the 9th largest watershed...

 and the Nizhnyaya Tunguska River, as well as in the Angara River

Angara River

The Angara River is a long river in Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai, south-east Siberia, Russia. It is the only river flowing out of Lake Baikal, and is the headwater tributary of the Yenisei River....

 basin, steppe

Steppe

In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...

 and shrub-steppe

Shrub-steppe

Shrub-steppe is a type of low rainfall natural grassland. Shrub-steppes are distinguishable from deserts, which are too dry to support a noticeable cover of perennial grasses or other shrubs, while the shrub-steppe has sufficient moisture levels to support a cover of perennial grasses and/or...

 communities can be found along with areas of forest-steppe.

Fauna

Mammals of the East Siberian taiga include Siberian Musk Deer

Siberian musk deer

The Siberian musk deer is a musk deer found in the mountain forests of Northeast Asia. Its is most common in the taiga of southern Siberia, but is also found in parts of Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, Manchuria and the Korean peninsula. It is largely nocturnal, and migrates only over short distances. ...

 (Moschus moschiferus), moose

Moose

The moose or Eurasian elk is the largest extant species in the deer family. Moose are distinguished by the palmate antlers of the males; other members of the family have antlers with a dendritic configuration...

 (Alces alces), elk

Elk

The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...

 (Cervus canadensis) and wild boar (Sus scrofa). Birds of this ecoregion include the Golden Eagle

Golden Eagle

The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...

 (Aquila chrysaetos), Peregrine Falcon

Peregrine Falcon

The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

 (Falco peregrinus), Osprey

Osprey

The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...

 (Pandion haliaetus), Black Stork

Black Stork

The Black Stork Ciconia nigra is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It is a widespread, but rare, species that breeds in the warmer parts of Europe, predominantly in central and eastern regions. This is a shy and wary species, unlike the closely related White Stork. It is seen in...

 (Pandion haliaetus), Hooded Crane

Hooded Crane

The Hooded Crane, Grus monacha is a small, dark crane. It has a grey body. The top of the neck and head is white, except for a patch of bare red skin above the eye...

 (Grus monacha), Carrion Crow

Carrion Crow

The Carrion Crow is a member of the passerine order of birds and the crow family which is native to western Europe and eastern Asia.-Taxonomy:...

 (Corvus corone), the Siberian Blue

Siberian Blue Robin

The Siberian Blue Robin, Luscinia cyane, is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, family Muscicapidae. It, and similar small European species, are often called chats...

 and Rufous-tailed Robin

Rufous-tailed Robin

The Rufous-tailed Robin Luscinia sibilans, also known as Swinhoe's Robin, Swinhoe's Nightingale or Whistling Nightingale, is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...

s (Luscinia cyane and L. sibilans, respectively), the Thrush Nightingale

Thrush Nightingale

The Thrush Nightingale, Luscinia luscinia , is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...

 (Luscinia luscinia), Pallas's Rosefinch

Pallas's Rosefinch

The Pallas' Rosefinch is a species of bird in the finch family Fringillidae.It is found in China, Japan, Kazakhstan, North Korea, South Korea, Mongolia, and Russia...

 (Carpodacus roseus), Pacific Swift

Pacific Swift

The Pacific Swift , is a small bird, superficially similar to a House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes...

 (Apus pacificus) and Baikal Teal

Baikal Teal

The Baikal Teal , also called the Bimaculate Duck or Squawk Duck, is a dabbling duck that breeds in eastern Russia and winters in East Asia.- Description :...

 (Anas formosa).
also siberian tiger

Conservation status, threats and protected areas

Although little of this ecoregion is protected, its conservation status is listed as "Relatively Stable/Intact". Protected areas include the Stolby, Olyokma, Tunguska and Central-Siberia zapovedniks (roughly "scientific nature reserves"). The main threats to this ecoregion's integrity are forest fires

Wildfire

A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...

, poaching

Poaching

Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...

and clear-cut logging in the southern and central portions of the region.