The Hokkaidō deciduous forests

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 ...

(WWF ID: PA0423) covers the northern and southern coasts of the island of

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

, the northernmost of the main islands of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The region sits in the transition zone between the colder subarctic forests to the north and the more temperate forests to the south. Characteristic trees include Mongolian oak, Basswood, and Ash trees.

Location and description

The terrain in the ecoregion is mostly low hills and plains. The west and northern coasts face the colder

Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk; Historically also known as , or as ; ) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, Japan's island of Hokkaido on the sou ...

. The ecoregion surrounds the

Hokkaidō montane conifer forests The Hokkaido montane conifer forests ecoregion covers the mountainous central regions of Hokkaido Island, the northernmost of Japan's main islands. Forests of spruce and fir thrive in the subalpine, cool climate. On the northeastern edge of the ...

ecoregion which is at higher altitudes.

Climate

The climate of the ecoregion is '' Humid continental climate, warm summer'' (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

(Dfb)). This climate is characterized by large seasonal temperature differentials and a warm summer (at least four months averaging over , but no month averaging over . Average annual precipitation is 1,150 mm.

Flora and fauna

Dominant trees of the lowland forests are Mongolian oak ''(

Quercus mongolica ''Quercus mongolica'', commonly known as Mongolian oak, is a species of oak native to Japan, China, Korea, Mongolia, and Siberia. The species can grow to be tall. The flavono-ellagitannins mongolicin A and B can be found in ''Quercus mongo ...

)'', Lime trees ''(

Tilia ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperateness, temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Great Bri ...

)'', and Ash trees ''(

Fraxinus ''Fraxinus'' (), commonly called ash, is a genus of plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae, and comprises 45–65 species of usually medium-to-large trees, most of which are deciduous trees, although some Subtropics, subtropical specie ...

)''. The main underbrush is Sasa, a form of dwarf bamboo. The ecoregion is generally too cold to support the Japanese beech that is common on Honshu to the south. Biodiversity is relatively low in the area, and there are no endemic species.

References

{{Paleartic temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Palearctic ecoregions Ecoregions of Japan Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests