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The Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests is a temperate broadleaf forest
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 ...
found in the middle elevations of the eastern
Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...
, including parts of
Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
,
Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...
,
Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. These forests have an outstanding richness of wildlife.


Setting

This ecoregion covers an area of and constitutes a band of temperate broadleaf forests lying on steep mountain slopes of the Himalayas between approximately . It extends from the Kali Gandaki River in
Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
across
Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...
and
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
in India,
Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...
, the Indian state of
Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...
and neighboring
Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
.
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
's Chayu Nature Reserve also has a very small part of this ecoregion. The temperate broadleaf forests transition into the Himalayan subtropical pine forests and the Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests at lower elevations, and into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests at higher elevations. This area receives over 2000 mm of rainfall per year, mostly falling from May to September during the
monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...
.


Flora

The Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests are diverse and species-rich, with a great diversity (of
oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...
s and
rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...
s in particular) and many endemic species including plants of Indomalayan,
Indochinese Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...
, Himalayan, Eastern Asiatic and even
Gondwana Gondwana ( ; ) was a large landmass, sometimes referred to as a supercontinent. The remnants of Gondwana make up around two-thirds of today's continental area, including South America, Africa, Antarctica, Australia (continent), Australia, Zea ...
n origin. The ecoregion has two broad forest types: evergreen and deciduous. In both types of forests, the dominant trees are ''
Pinus roxburghii ''Pinus roxburghii'', commonly known as chir pine or longleaf Indian pine, is a species of pine tree Native plant, native to the Himalayas. It was named after William Roxburgh. Description ''Pinus roxburghii'' is a large tree reaching with a ...
'', '' Pinus hwangshanensis'', '' Juniperus tibetica'', ''
Shorea robusta ''Shorea robusta'', the sal tree, sāla, shala, sakhua, or sarai, is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The tree is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet and across the Himalayan regions. Evolution Fossil evidence from lig ...
'', '' Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata'', and ''
Taxus sumatrana ''Taxus sumatrana'', or the Sumatran yew, is a large evergreen shrub and one of the eight species of yew. Its taxonomic namesake is indicative of the species being found in Indonesia (specifically, the island of Sumatra); however, ''T. sumatrana ...
''. Evergreen forests are characterized by oaks ''(Quercus'' spp.), chiefly '' Quercus lamellosa,'' together with '' Lithocarpus pachyphylla, Rhododendron arboreum, Rhododendron falconeri, Rhododendron thomsonii, Magnolia doltsopa, Magnolia cathcartii, Exbucklandia populnea, Symplocos cochinchinensis, Taiwania cryptomerioides,
Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendr ...
'' spp., ''
Cinnamomum ''Cinnamomum'' is a genus of evergreen aromatic trees and shrubs belonging to the laurel family, Lauraceae. The species of ''Cinnamomum'' have aromatic oils in their leaves and bark. The genus contains approximately 234 species, distributed in ...
'' spp., and '' Machilus'' spp. The many rhododendron species include more than fifty in Sikkim and another sixty in Bhutan. In the deciduous forests meanwhile the predominant tree species are Himalayan maple ('' Acer campbellii''), ''
Juglans regia ''Juglans regia'', known by various common names including the common walnut, English walnut, or Persian walnut amongst other names, is a species of walnut. It is native to Eurasia in at least southwest and central Asia and southeast Europe, ...
'', '' Alnus nepalensis'', '' Betula alnoides'', '' Betula utilis'', '' Larix griffithii'', '' Tsuga dumosa'', '' Picea brachytyla'', and '' Echinocarpus dasycarpus''. Finally in Eastern Nepal there are wetter areas dominated by a mixture of '' Magnolia campbellii'', ''Acer campbellii'' and '' Osmanthus suavis'' along with Himalayan hazel ('' Corylus ferox'').


Fauna

The forests are home to over 500 species of bird some of which migrate to the higher Himalayas in the hot summer. There are twelve near-endemic bird species as well as the strictly endemic rufous-throated wren-babbler. A number of bird species especially
pheasant Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera's native range is restricted to Eura ...
, tragopan and
hornbill Hornbills are birds found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia of the family Bucerotidae. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a horny casque on the upper ...
are easily threatened by changes to their habitat and those found here include the globally threatened rufous-necked hornbill (''Aceros nipalensis''), Sclater's monal (''Lophophorus sclateri''), white-bellied heron (''Ardea insignis''),
Blyth's tragopan Blyth's tragopan (''Tragopan blythii'') or the grey-bellied tragopan, is a pheasant that is a vulnerable species. The common name commemorates Edward Blyth (1810–1873), English zoologist and Curator of the Museum of the Asiatic Society of Benga ...
(''Tragopan blythii'') and Ward's trogon (''Harpactes wardi''). There are four endemic or near-endemic mammals including Gee's golden langur ('' Trachypithecus geei'') which is found north of the
Brahmaputra River The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Southwestern China, Northeastern India, and Bangladesh. It is known as Brahmaputra or Luit in Assamese language, Assamese, Yarlung Tsangpo in Lhasa Tibetan, Tibetan, the Siang/Dihan ...
between the Sankosh and Manas Rivers. Other endemic mammals are Hodgson's giant flying squirrel ('' Petaurista magnificus''), Namdapha flying squirrel ('' Biswamoyopterus biswasi'') and Brahma white-bellied rat ('' Niviventer brahma''), while
endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...
found here include a population of
Bengal tiger The Bengal tiger is a population of the ''Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late ...
s adapted to higher mountain slopes and having a high conservation priority. Other endangered species include
takin The takin (''Budorcas taxicolor''; ), also called cattle chamois or gnu goat, is a large species of ungulate of the subfamily Caprinae found in the eastern Himalayas. It includes four subspecies: the Mishmi takin (''B. t. taxicolor''), the golde ...
(''Budorcas taxicolor'') and
Himalayan serow The Himalayan serow (''Capricornis sumatraensis thar''), also known as the thar ( , ), is a subspecies of the mainland serow native to the Himalayas. It was previously considered its own species, as ''Capricornis thar''. It is the official stat ...
(a subspecies of ''Capricornis sumatraensis'') as well as the vulnerable Mandelli's mouse-eared bat ('' Myotis sicarius''), Assam macaque (''Macaca assamensis''), stump-tailed macaque (''Macaca arctoides''), dhole (''Cuon alpinus''), back-striped weasel (''Mustela strigidorsa''), clouded leopard (''Neofelis nebulosa''), and Irrawaddy squirrel (''Callosciurus pygerythrus''). The area also includes patches of
fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...
forest with a bamboo undergrowth that are home to the endangered
red panda The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzz ...
(''Ailurus fulgens'').


Conservation

Most of the forest is intact as these are steep inaccessible slopes, although the '' Quercus lanata'' forests of the lower elevations are vulnerable to clearance, while the upper slopes are liable to be used for livestock grazing, especially in more densely populated Nepal. Protected areas include Namdapha National Park and Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh, Makalu Barun National Park in Nepal, and parts of Thrumshingla, Jigme Dorji, and Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Parks and Kulong Chu Wildlife Sanctuary in Bhutan. There are plans to create corridors of protection linking some of these areas in Bhutan and in India. The area around Namdapha National Park has been increasingly settled by Chakma refugees from Bangladesh. Another threat is the plan to build a dam on the Dihing River. One area of importance that is currently unprotected is Mount Phulchowki in the
Kathmandu valley The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾π‘₯𑐡𑑅 𑐐𑐡𑑅, ΰ€¨ΰ₯‡ΰ€ͺΰ€Ύΰ€ƒ ΰ€—ΰ€Ύΰ€ƒ), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...
.


Protected areas

In 1997, 15 protected areas were identified in this ecoregion, with a combined area of approximately that includes 7% of the ecoregion's area: * Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary,
Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...
(also extends into the Himalayan subtropical pine forests) () * Mouling National Park, Arunachal Pradesh (also extends into the Himalayan subtropical pine forests) () * Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh (also extends into the Himalayan subtropical pine forests and
Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests The Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of Northeastern India, southern Bhutan and adjacent Bangladesh. Location and description The ecoregion covers and encompasses the alluvial plain of the ...
) (() * Royal Manas National Park, Bhutan (also extends into the Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests) () *
Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park is the ninth national park in Nepal and was established in 2002. It is located in the country's mid-hills on the northern fringe of the Kathmandu Valley and named after Shivapuri Peak at altitude. It covers an ar ...
, Nepal ()Bhuju, U. R., Shakya, P. R., Basnet, T. B., Shrestha, S. (2007). Nepal Biodiversity Resource Book. Protected Areas, Ramsar Sites, and World Heritage Sites. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology, in cooperation with United Nations Environment Programme, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Kathmandu, * Makalu-Barun National Park, Nepal (); also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests and
Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows The Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the eastern portion of the Himalaya Range. Setting The ...
* Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal ()Shakya, B., Joshi, R. M. (2008). Protected Areas and Biodiversity Conservation in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region with Special Reference to the Kangchenjunga Landscape. In: N. Chettri, B. Shakya, E. Sharma (eds.) Biodiversity Conservation in the Kangchenjunga Landscape. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, Kathmandu. Pp. 13–20. * Torsa Strict Nature Reserve, Bhutan (); also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests and Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows *
Jigme Dorji National Park Jigme Dorji National Park (JDNP), named after the late Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, is the second-largest National Park of Bhutan. History It was established in 1974 and stretches over an area of 4316 km2, thereby spanning all three climate z ...
, Bhutan (also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests and Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows) () * Thrumshingla National Park, Bhutan (also extends into the Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows) () *
Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary The Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary (also spelled Bumdelling or Bomdeling), which contains the former Kulong Chu Wildlife Sanctuary, covers in northeastern Bhutan at elevations between and . The sanctuary covers most of Trashiyangtse Distri ...
, Bhutan (also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests) () * Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park, Bhutan (also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests and Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows) () * Namdapha National Park,
Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...
() * Kamlang Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh () * Chayu Nature Reserve, Tibet (also extends into the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests) ()


See also

* List of ecoregions in India


References


External links


WWF: ''Map of ecoregions in Nepal'', showing the Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests
{{ecoregions of India Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Ecoregions of the Himalayas Himalayan forests . Ecoregions of Bhutan Ecoregions of India Ecoregions of Nepal Forests of India Ecoregions of Asia Indomalayan ecoregions Forests of Nepal