The Western European broadleaf forests is an

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

, and parts of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

. It comprises temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, that cover large areas of France, Germany and the Czech Republic and more moderately sized parts of Poland, Austria, Switzerland and Belgium. Luxembourg is also part of this ecoregion.

Geography

The Western European broadleaf forests ecoregion covers an area of , including the

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,0 ...

, Central German Uplands, Jura Mountains, Bavarian Plateau, and Bohemian Massif. This area has been inhabited for thousands of years and holds several large cities such as

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

, Nancy and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

. Most of the countryside has been cleared for agricultural land, cultivated with

cereal A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food ...

s ( corn,

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

, oats), and to a smaller extent grapes. The ecoregion hosts a good variety of animal species, birds in particular, but most large mammals are in decline.

Forests

The forest habitats of the ecoregion comprise mainly lowland and alti- montane mixed beech forests. There is also some

natural beech wood Natural beech wood is a beech wood, that is able to replenish and sustain itself on its own. Beech is a valued timber, but most beech woods require human intervention to replace old trees, since the young trees are not able to survive at all, or ...

s, and the region also includes small parts of sub-Mediterranean forest habitats. File:Detmold - 2014-08-27 - Hohe Warte (30).jpg, Broadleaf forests (

Teutoburger Forest The Teutoburg Forest ( ; german: Teutoburger Wald ) is a range of low, forested hills in the German states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. Until the 17th century, the official name of the hill ridge was Osning. It was first renamed ...

, Germany) File:ViewtoWuerttemberg.jpg, Conifer in the montane parts File:Licht im Schwarzwald.jpg, Inside the conifer forests (

Black Forest The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is ...

, Germany) File:Waldweg in den Nordvogesen.jpg, European beech is abundant in many submontane parts File:Black Forest- Stream (10562132523).jpg, Mountain streams, rocky ground, and deciduous trees in a mix with conifer File:Black Forest- Road (10561950824).jpg, Autumn File:Simonswälder Tal 150707.JPG, Many valleys have been cleared for villages and agriculture

Fauna

File:Wolf im Nationalpark Bayerischer Wald 1.jpg, Wolf File:Luchs im Nationalpark Bayerischer Wald 8.jpg, Lynx File:Wildschweine im Nationalpark Bayerischer Wald.jpg, Wild boar File:Hirsch im Nationalpark Bayerischer Wald 1.jpg, Stag File:Feuersalamander Larve Quellfassung.jpg, Fire salamander File:150712-Steigerkopf-02.jpg, Anthill

Status and conservation

Most of the original forest of the ecoregion has been cleared in the last 200 years, but a few larger patches remain, typically in non-arable montane areas that are part of national parks or protections. The woodlands of the ecoregion is generally second-growth and heavily fragmented. National parks and larger nature protections in the ecoregion includes: 20140531 Kermeter-Urft 01

Luxembourg maintains the Upper Sûre Natural Park, but this park covers mostly the Upper Sûre Lake, an artificial dam created in 1959, and no land area of significance. The lake is an important bird area. Luxembourg also holds part of the cross-border German-Luxembourg Nature Park in addition to several smaller nature reservations. Here eco-typical patches of forest are growing. Austria does not have any protections in this ecoregion.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Western European broadleaf forests Ecoregions of Austria Ecoregions of Belgium Ecoregions of the Czech Republic Ecoregions of Europe Ecoregions of France Ecoregions of Metropolitan France Ecoregions of Germany Ecoregions of Poland Ecoregions of Switzerland * * * * * * Montane forests Natural history of Luxembourg Palearctic ecoregions Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests