The Northern Anatolian conifer and deciduous forests is a

temperate coniferous forests Temperate coniferous forest is a terrestrial ecoregion, terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Temperate coniferous forests are found predominantly in areas with warm summers and cool winters, and vary in their kinds of plant ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

located in northern

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Geography

The ecoregion covers an area of . It covers portions of the Pontic Mountains, which extend east and west across Northern Anatolia parallel to the southern coast of the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

. The ecoregion lies between humid Euxine-Colchic deciduous forests, which cover the northern slope of the mountains and the Black Sea coast, and the drier forests, woodlands, and steppes of the Anatolian interior. The peaks are seldom higher than 2000 meters in the western and central mountains, and over 3000 meters in the Kaçkar Mountains in the northeast.

Climate

The climate is transitional between the humid and moderate Black Sea coast, and the drier and more continental Anatolian interior. Average annual rainfall varies from 500 to 1,000 mm. In the western and central portions of the ecoregion, winter is the rainiest season, and in the east spring is the rainiest season.

Flora

The ecoregion's forests are mostly conifers, with deciduous broadleaf trees. In the western portion of the northern ranges, Turkish fir ('' Abies nordmanniana'' subsp. ''equi-trojani'', syn. ''Abies bornmuelleriana'') is predominant, mixed with oriental beech (''Fagus orientalis''), Scots pine (''Pinus sylvestris''), or both. Oriental spruce (''Picea orientalis'') is predominant in the northeast, along with Caucasian fir (''Abies nordmanniana''). The southern ranges have a drier and more continental climate, and pines are the dominant trees. Anatolian black pine (''Pinus nigra'' ssp. ''pallasiana'') is more common in the west, and Scots pine in the east. Deciduous broadleaf trees are part of the southern forest, including species of oak (''Quercus''), maple (''Acer''), and '' Sorbus''. Open scrublands and small forest patches of juniper (''

Juniperus oxycedrus ''Juniperus oxycedrus'', vernacularly called Cade, cade juniper, prickly juniper, prickly cedar, or sharp cedar, is a species of juniper, native across the Mediterranean region, growing on a variety of rocky sites from sea level. The specific ep ...

'' and '' Juniperus communis'') and birch ('' Betula'' spp.) occur at high altitudes.

Fauna

Large mammal predators include the brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') and gray wolf (''Canis lupus'').

Red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...

(''Cervus elaphus'') and roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus'') roam the west, and Anatolian chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra asiatica'') and wild goat (''Capra aegagrus'') are found in the east.

Protected areas

Protected areas include Kaçkar National Park, Altındere Valley National Park, Mount Ilgaz National Park, Yedigöller National Park,

Soğuksu National Park Soğuksu National Park (), established on February 19, 1959, is a national park in central Anatolia, Turkey. It is located in the Kızılcahamam district of Ankara Province. Geography Soğuksu National Park is located about north of Ankara ...

, Yozgat Pine Grove National Park, Örümcek Gümüşhane Nature Reserve, Akdogan and Ruzgarlar Nature Reserve, Kale Bolu Hazelnut Nature Reserve, Kökez Bolu Nature Reserve, and Sülüklügöl Bolu Nature Reserve.

External links

References

{{reflist Temperate coniferous forests Ecoregions of Turkey Natural history of Anatolia * Forests of Turkey Ecoregions of Asia Palearctic ecoregions Montane forests