Algoma Highlands, Ontario, Canada Photograph by M. O'Connor / CPAWS   Eastern North America: Southeastern Canada into northeastern United States Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests   139,000 square miles (347,000 square kilometers) -- slightly smaller than Montana Vulnerable

· Ancient Forests Live On
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Ancient Forests Live On

The Eastern Forest -- Boreal Transition ecoregion includes a mixture of forests supporting a diversity of species from balsam fir to black ash and from wood ducks to moose. Among these forests are the most widespread old-growth red and white pine stands remaining in the world. One of the largest remaining areas of old-growth forest in the northeastern United States, Five Ponds Wilderness, is found in this ecoregion. Old-growth forests are critically important wildlife habitat, with multiple layers of trees of different sizes providing habitat for countless birds, mammals, and insects.

Special Features

Warm summers and cold, snowy winters characterize the Eastern Forest -- Boreal Transition ecoregion. This ecoregion still supports many large mammals such as moose and black bears. Lynx and wolves feed on many animals including snowshoe hares, white-tailed deer, and chipmunks.

	It takes several hundred years for a forest to develop the complex structure and biodiversity of an old-growth forest. Some species of lichens, fungi, and invertebrates occur only in forests more than 100 years old.

Wild Side

Over tens of thousands of years, the old-growth red and white pine forests of this ecoregion have come to host a stunningly complex array of life. Multiple layers of trees of various sizes and ages provide habitat for numerous birds, mammals, and other species. In addition to these ancient forests, the characteristic mixed forests include white spruce, balsam fir, quaking aspen, paper birch and yellow birch, and pines on drier sites in the northwest. Throughout the region, timber wolves and coyotes stalk their prey, while moose and white-tailed deer browse on the lush vegetation. Cardinals search for wild berry seeds, and chipmunks scurry through the leaf litter looking for nuts. Hooded mergansers, pileated woodpeckers, mourning doves, and wood thrush share this ecoregion.

Cause for Concern

The vast majority of this ecoregion has been broken up and damaged by human activities. Forests have been cut for timber, roads, farms, and summer homes and ski facilities. Scientists estimate that only 10 percent of this ecoregion remains as intact habitat. The timber industry today continues to be very active in the ecoregion, particularly in the Canadian portion. Mining is another growing threat, and tourism is beginning to create significant impacts in some areas.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.