The Eastern forest-boreal transition is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests

Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests

Mixed forests are a temperate and humid biome. The typical structure of these forests includes four layers. The uppermost layer is the canopy composed of tall mature trees ranging from 33 to 66 m high. Below the canopy is the three-layered, shade-tolerant understory that is roughly 9 to...

 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...

 of North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, mostly in eastern Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

Setting

The ecoregion includes most of the southern Canadian Shield

Canadian Shield

The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...

 in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

 and Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 north and west of the Saint Lawrence River

Saint Lawrence River

The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...

 lowlands including the eastern shores of Lake Superior

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...

 and other areas of the Great Lakes

Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...

, Lake Timiskaming

Lake Timiskaming

Lake Timiskaming is a large freshwater lake on the provincial border between Ontario and Quebec, Canada. The lake, which forms part of the Ottawa River, is in length and covers an area of almost . Its water level ranges between and above sea-level, with a mean annual average of . The lake is...

, the southern Laurentian Mountains

Laurentian mountains

The Laurentian Mountains are a mountain range in southern Quebec, Canada, north of the St. Lawrence River and Ottawa River, rising to a highest point of 1166 metres at Mont Raoul Blanchard, north east of Quebec City in the Reserve Faunique des Laurentides. The Gatineau, L'Assomption, Lièvre,...

, Lake Nipissing

Lake Nipissing

Lake Nipissing is a lake in the Canadian province of Ontario. It has a surface area of , a mean elevation of above sea level, and is located between the Ottawa River and Georgian Bay. Excluding the Great Lakes, Lake Nipissing is the fifth-largest lake in Ontario. It is relatively shallow for a...

, Quebec City

Quebec City

Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...

, the Saguenay River

Saguenay River

The Saguenay River is a major river of Quebec, Canada.It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east, and passes the city of Saguenay. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River at Tadoussac....

 and parts of Georgian Bay

Georgian Bay

Georgian Bay is a large bay of Lake Huron, located entirely within Ontario, Canada...

, Greater Sudbury/North Bay, Ontario

North Bay, Ontario

North Bay is a city in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It is the seat of Nipissing District, and takes its name from its position on the shore of Lake Nipissing.-History:...

, Saguenay, Quebec

Saguenay, Quebec

Saguenay is a city in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, on the Saguenay River, about north of Quebec City....

, the Clay Belt

Clay Belt

The Clay Belt is a vast tract of fertile soil in northeastern Ontario, Canada, between the area of Cochrane District, and Abitibi County, Quebec covering around 29,000,000 acres in total...

 and Temagami in Ontario. There is a separate section of the ecoregion in the Adirondack Mountains

Adirondack Mountains

The Adirondack Mountains are a mountain range located in the northeastern part of New York, that runs through Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties....

 in upper New York State, USA. However the higher elevations of the Laurentian Mountains and the northern Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...

 in Canada constitute the Eastern Canadian forests

Eastern Canadian forests

The Eastern Canadian forests is an ecoregion of Canada as defined by the World Wildlife Fund categorization system.-Setting:This ecoregion contains a number of mountainous areas on the east coast of Canada and along the Saint Lawrence River in eastern Quebec The Eastern Canadian forests is an...

 ecoregion.

The region has a humid continental climate

Humid continental climate

A humid continental climate is a climatic region typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot summers and cold winters....

 consisting of warm summers and cold, snowy winters, and is warmer towards the south.

Flora

The flora in this ecoregion varies considerably based on soil conditions and elevation. These mixed forests are distinct from the deciduous forests south of the Canadian Shield and the cooler boreal

Boreal ecosystem

The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....

 forests to the north.

Conifer swamp

Conifer swamps occur in areas that seasonally flooded. Trees can be very dense or sparse; mats of sphagnum

Sphagnum

Sphagnum is a genus of between 151 and 350 species of mosses commonly called peat moss, due to its prevalence in peat bogs and mires. A distinction is made between sphagnum moss, the live moss growing on top of a peat bog on one hand, and sphagnum peat moss or sphagnum peat on the other, the...

 moss cover the ground. Black spruce (Picea mariana) and tamarack (Larix laricina) are the predominant tree species. Where the soil is not saturated year round grows northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis

Thuja occidentalis

Thuja occidentalis is an evergreen coniferous tree, in the cypress family Cupressaceae, which is widely cultivated for use as an ornamental plant known as American Arbor Vitae. The endemic occurrence of this species is a northeastern distribution in North America...

). Speckled alder (Alnus incana) grows around the edges of these swamps and red spruce (Picea rubens) and white pine (Pinus strobus) grow on higher, drier ground.

Lowland conifer forests

Lowland conifer forests occur on flats, low ridges, and knolls near bodies of water. They are dominated by balsam fir (Abies balsamea) and red spruce, although white pine and paper birch (Betula papyrifera) also occur. The ground is often stony with little vegetation.

Hardwood-conifer mixed forests

Hardwood-conifer mixed forests occur in a transition zone between lowland conifer and northern hardwood forests. The ground is less rocky than in the lowland conifer forests and thus supports more vegetation. Trees include red spruce, balsam fir, eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), red maple (Acer rubrum), and yellow birch (betula alleghaniensis). The understory vegetation is abundant, with witchhobble (Viburnum lantanoides

Viburnum lantanoides

Viburnum lantanoides is a perennial shrub of the family Adoxaceae growing 2–4 meters high with pendulous branches that take root where they touch the ground...

), honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.), and striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum). The herbaceous layer include common wood sorrel (Oxalis

Oxalis

Oxalis is by far the largest genus in the wood-sorrel family Oxalidaceae: of the approximately 900 known species in the Oxalidaceae, 800 belong here...

spp.), bunchberry (Cornus canadensis

Cornus canadensis

Cornus canadensis is a herbaceous member of the Cornaceae family...

), yellow clintonia (Clintonia borealis), ferns, and mosses.

Northern hardwood forests

Northern hardwood forest

Northern hardwood forest

The northern hardwood forest is a general type of North American forest ecosystem found over much of southeastern and south central Canada, extending south into the United States in northern New England and New York, and west along the Great Lakes to Minnesota and western Ontario...

s occur on the richest, most productive soils. Sugar maple (Acer saccharum), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), and yellow birch are the predominant tree species. In secondary forest

Secondary forest

A secondary forest is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a major disturbance such as fire, insect infestation, timber harvest or windthrow, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident...

s, red spruce, white pine, white ash (Fraxinus americana), eastern hemlock, black cherry (Prunus serotina), and red maple are present. Witchhobble is a common understory shrub. Ferns clubmosses grow in the herbaceous layer.

Upper slope hardwood-conifer mixed forests

Upper slope hardwood-conifer mixed forests are an area of transition between the northern hardwood and the mountain conifer forests. They are similar to hardwood-conifer forests, but with no red maple. Red spruce and eastern hemlock, together with sugar maple, yellow birch, and American beech are the dominant species, with scattered white pine.

Mountain conifer forests

Red spruce and balsam fir are common at lower elevations of the mountain conifer forests. Hardwood

Hardwood

Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees . It may also be used for those trees themselves: these are usually broad-leaved; in temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen.Hardwood contrasts with softwood...

s that grow among the conifers include paper birch, yellow birch, and American mountain-ash (Sorbus americana

Sorbus americana

The tree species Sorbus americana is commonly known as the American Mountain-ash. It is a relatively small deciduous perennial tree, native to eastern northern North America....

). With increasing elevation, balsam fir becomes more abundant. Near treeline, black spruce joins balsam fir in the krummholz

Krummholz

Krummholz or Krumholtz formation — also called Knieholz — is a particular feature of subarctic and subalpine tree line landscapes. Continual exposure to fierce, freezing winds causes vegetation to become stunted and deformed...

. Herbaceous plants include wood sorrel, bunchberry, yellow clintonia, and spinulose woodfern (Dryopteris carthusiana

Dryopteris carthusiana

Dryopteris carthusiana H.P. Fuchs is a species of fern native to damp forests throughout the Holarctic Kingdom...

). Mosses and lichen

Lichen

Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...

s cover exposed rocks.

Alpine

Rocks are exposed and covered with lichens and mosses. Low-lying plants more common in the tundra

Tundra

In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine...

 to the north grow here. They include gold-colored deer’s hair (Trichophorum cespitosum), alpine bilberry (Vaccinium uliginosum

Vaccinium uliginosum

Vaccinium uliginosum is a flowering plant in the genus Vaccinium.-Distribution:Vaccinium uliginosum is native to cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, at low altitudes in the Arctic, and at high altitudes south to the Pyrenees, the Alps, and the Caucasus in Europe, the mountains of...

), lapland rosebay (Rhododendron lapponicum), bearberry willow (Salix uva-ursi), mountain sandwort (Minuartia groenlandica

Minuartia groenlandica

Minuartia groenlandica, the Greenland stitchwort or mountain stitchwort, is a rare perennial which grows low to the ground in clumps linked together at the bottom. It has three to five pairs of leaves in a linear opposite pattern along the length of the slender stem. The main stem breaks into one...

), and alpine holygrass (Hierochloe alpina). In the Adirondacks, theses communities are limited to 85 acres (34.4 ha) on 11 peaks.

Fauna

Old-growth forest such as the pinewoods found in this ecoregion are home to a complex variety of long-established wildlife including many invertebrates and reptiles and birds such as American Black Duck

American Black Duck

The American Black Duck is a large dabbling duck. American Black Ducks are similar to Mallards in size, and resemble the female Mallard in coloration, although the Black Duck's plumage is darker...

 (Anas rubripes), wood duck

Wood Duck

The Wood Duck or Carolina Duck is a species of duck found in North America. It is one of the most colourful of North American waterfowl.-Description:...

 (Aix sponsa), Hooded Merganser

Hooded Merganser

The Hooded Merganser is a small duck and is the only member of the genus Lophodytes.Hooded Mergansers have a crest at the back of the head which can be expanded or contracted. In adult males, this crest has a large white patch, the head is black and the sides of the duck are reddish-brown...

 (Lophodytes cucullatus), and Pileated Woodpecker

Pileated Woodpecker

The Pileated Woodpecker is a very large North American woodpecker, almost crow-sized, inhabiting deciduous forests in eastern North America, the Great Lakes, the boreal forests of Canada, and parts of the Pacific coast. It is also the largest woodpecker in America.Adults are long, and weigh...

 (Dryocopus pileatus).

Mammals found here include the endangered Eastern Wolf

Eastern Wolf

The Eastern Wolf , also known as Eastern Canadian Wolf or Eastern Canadian Red Wolf, may be a subspecies of gray wolf or a distinct species of canid native to the eastern part of North America since the Pleistocene era. It seems to be closely related to the Red Wolf...

, North American Cougar (Felis concolor), 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), American Black Bear

American black bear

The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...

, Canada Lynx

Canada Lynx

The Canada lynx or Canadian lynx is a North American mammal of the cat family, Felidae. It is a close relative of the Eurasian Lynx . Some authorities regard both as conspecific. However, in some characteristics the Canada lynx is more like the bobcat than the Eurasian Lynx...

 (Lynx canadensis), Snowshoe Hare

Snowshoe Hare

The Snowshoe Hare , also called the Varying Hare, or Snowshoe Rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet and the marks its tail leaves. The animal's feet prevent it from sinking into the snow when it hops and walks...

 (Lepus americanus), wolf (Canis lupus), coyote

Coyote

The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...

 (Canis latrans) and White-tailed deer

White-tailed Deer

The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...

 (Odocoileus virginianus).

The Lake Nipissing area in particular is home to Eastern chipmunk

Eastern Chipmunk

The eastern chipmunk is a small squirrel-like rodent found in eastern North America, the sole living member of the chipmunk genus and subgenus Tamias....

 (Tamias striatus), Mourning Dove

Mourning Dove

The Mourning Dove is a member of the dove family . The bird is also called the Turtle Dove or the American Mourning Dove or Rain Dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina Pigeon or Carolina Turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds...

 (Zenaida macroura), Northern Cardinal

Northern Cardinal

The Northern Cardinal or Redbird or Common Cardinal is a North American bird in the genus Cardinalis. It can be found in southern Canada, through the eastern United States from Maine to Texas and south through Mexico...

 (Cardinalis cardinalis), and Wood Thrush

Wood Thrush

The Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico...

 (Hylocichla mustelina).

Threats and preservation

These forests have been severely damaged by centuries of clearance for timber, roads, agricultural and urban development. This development now includes ski facilities, while logging and mining are ongoing. Protected areas include: Papineau-Labelle Wildlife Reserve

Papineau-Labelle Wildlife Reserve

Papineau-Labelle Wildlife Reserve is a reserve in the Laurentian Mountains of Quebec, Canada, stretching across the Laurentides and Outaouais regions.The area was extensively logged in the late 19th to the mid 20th century...

, Mont-Tremblant

Mont-Tremblant National Park

Mont-Tremblant National Park is a 1,510.10 km² provincial park located north of the town of Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, and the village of Saint-Donat and Saint-Côme...

, Jacques-Cartier

Jacques-Cartier National Park

Jacques-Cartier National Park is a provincial park located 50 km north of Quebec City. The park has the mission of protecting a representative territory of the Laurentian massif.It is quite close to Canadian Forces Military Base Valcartier...

, Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie and La Mauricie National Park

La Mauricie National Park

La Mauricie National Park is located in the Laurentian mountains in the Mauricie region of Québec, Canada. It covers 536 km² in the southern Canadian Shield region bordering the Saint Lawrence lowlands. The park contains 150 lakes and many ponds....

s in Quebec; Algonquin Provincial Park

Algonquin Provincial Park

Algonquin Provincial Park is a provincial park located between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River in Central Ontario, Canada, mostly within the Unorganized South Part of Nipissing District. Established in 1893, it is the oldest provincial park in Canada. Additions since its creation have increased...

, Lake Superior Provincial Park

Lake Superior Provincial Park

Lake Superior Provincial Park is one of the largest provincial parks in Ontario, covering about along the northeastern shores of Lake Superior between Wawa and Sault Ste. Marie in Algoma District, Northeastern Ontario, Canada...

, Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park

Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park

Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park is a remote park in northeastern Ontario, Canada, near Lake Temagami. It is one of the several provincial parks located in the Temagami area....

 French River Provincial Park

French River (Ontario)

The French River is a river in Central Ontario, Canada. It flows from Lake Nipissing west to Georgian Bay. The river largely follows the boundary between the Parry Sound District and the Sudbury District, and in most contexts is considered the dividing line between Northern Ontario and Southern...

, Killarney Provincial Park

Killarney Provincial Park

Killarney Provincial Park is a provincial park in central Ontario, Canada.Although not as well known as the world famous Algonquin Provincial Park, Killarney is one of Ontario's most popular wilderness destinations...

 and a number of parks in Algoma District

Algoma District, Ontario

Algoma District is a district and census division in Northeastern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was created in 1858 comprising territory as far west as Minnesota...

 in Ontario; and Adirondack Park in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. Adirondack Park contains the largest areas of original red pine and eastern white pine in the world and one of the largest areas of original forest in the United States, the Five Ponds Wilderness Area

Five Ponds Wilderness Area

The Five Ponds Wilderness Area, an Adirondack Park unit of New York's Forest Preserve, is located in the towns of Fine and Clifton in St. Lawrence County, the town of Webb in Herkimer County and the town of Long Lake in Hamilton County...

.