308 



LIVES OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS: 



Wr^^/XVZZ&ZVZlZX 



Distribution of animals on the continents. How do you account for the fact 



Where and why do you 



Higher still, between 8200 and 9500 feet, we find a typical Canadian 

 vegetation, timber pine, Douglas and balsam fir and aspens, while 

 the woodchuck, porcupine, rabbit, marten, fox, wolf, and other 

 northern forms are found. From 9500 to 11,500 feet we find a 

 fauna and flora almost like that of northern Canada and called 

 Hudsonia. Stunted spruce and pine exist up to the timber fine with 

 a few typical mountain mammals such as the marmot and pika or 

 mountain hare. Above this area lies the rocky Alpine zone, snow- 

 clad for one half of the year even in this warm, sunny climate. 

 Lichens on the rocks and a few low herbs are the only plant life 

 visible, while a few insects and an occasional mammal of the 

 Hudsonian zone are the only signs of animal life. 



Ecological realms. The facts that the ecologist has found out 

 concerning life zones have been put to practical use by the Biological 

 Survey of the United States Department of Agriculture. A life 

 zone map has been prepared so that the settler going into a new 

 region will know at once the kind of plants and animals best 

 adapted to live there. In addition, the character of the soil, the 



