THE ADAPTATION OF ANIMALS TO THE ENVIRONMENT 



791 



Northern Coniferous Forest. This biome, stretching across both 

 North America and Eurasia just south of the tundra, has long, cold 

 winters, cool summers, and moderate amounts of rainfall or snow. The 

 forest is made up of spruce, pine, fir and cedar trees which grow very 

 densely, shading the ground so that herbs and shrubs do not grow well. 

 The forest floor is typically covered with a thick layer of needles from 

 the evergreen trees. The snowshoe hare, lynx, wolf, moose, marten, 

 fisher, wolverine, some small rodents, grouse, jays and a few reptiles and 

 amphibians are found in the forest or in the occasional patches of open 

 grassland interspersed in the forest. 



Temperate Deciduous Forest. The areas with abundant, evenly 

 distributed rainfall and moderate temperatures and with distinct summer 

 and winter seasons, e.g., eastern North America, Europe, eastern China, 

 Japan and the east coast of Australia, were originally covered with ex- 

 tensive forests of beech, maple, oak, hickory and chestnut trees. Most 

 of these forests have now been replaced by cultivated fields. The animals 

 that live in the temperate deciduous forests of North America include 

 Virginia deer, bears, squirrels, foxes, bobcats, wild turkeys, woodpeckers 

 and thrushes and many snakes and amphibians. 



Broad-leaved Evergreen Subtropical Forest. In regions of fairly 

 high rainfall, but where the temperatures are generally higher and the 

 differences between winter and summer are less marked, as in Florida, 

 the characteristic trees are live oaks, magnolias, tamarinds and palms, 

 with many vines and epiphytes such as orchids and Spanish moss. A 

 rich fauna of insects and arachnids, many amphibia and reptiles such 

 as the alligator and coral snake are found in this biome. 



Grasslands. This biome (Fig. 38.8) occurs where rainfall is about 



Fiaure 38 8 The grassland biome; chavaccnstic animals ..1 the African grasslands 

 zebra 'and wfldebeest.' Kruger National Park, Transvaal. (Photograph by Herbert 

 Lang.) 



