Atlin, Yukon Territory, Canada Photograph by J. Peepre   Northern North America: Western Canada Boreal Forests/Taiga   101,500 square miles (262,800 square kilometers) -- about the size of Colorado. Vulnerable

· Marvelous Mountains
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Marvelous Mountains

The spanish word for a mountain chain, "cordillera", in this ecoregion's name derives from the ranges of mountains found there: the Rocky Mountains, the Hyland Highland, the Boreal Mountains, the Yukon-Stikine Highlands, and the Pelly and northern Cassiar Mountains. The Liard Basin, a low-lying, rolling area, lies in contrast to the sharp mountain peaks. The plants growing on the mountains within this ecoregion differ according to elevation. At the highest alpine regions grow dwarf rhododendrons and laurels, dwarf birches, willows, and lichens. The middle, or subalpine, areas contain forests of fir, black spruce, and white spruce. The warmer low elevation boreal forests are composed of lodgepole pine, white and black spruce, paper birch, and aspen.

Special Features

Lodgepole pine and aspen depend on the natural fires of the ecoregion to regenerate their forests. Pikas, small mammals related to rabbits but with little round ears, are partial to high mountain habitats like this one. They live in groups among the rock outcrops.

Snowshoe hares are well adapted to this ecoregion and its snowy winter conditions. In the fall, their brown summer coat is replaced by a white winter one that helps conceal them in the snow from predators. Their large feet are also heavily furred, which not only helps protect them from the cold but also provides more surface area, which allows the hares to run across soft snow without sinking in -- giving them their "snowshoe" name.

Wild Side

The diverse mountain forests of this ecoregion support a wide range of wildlife. Moose, caribou, mountain goats, bison, Stone's and Dall's sheep, black bears, grizzly bears, weasels, red foxes, beavers, arctic ground squirrels, muskrats, wolves, and wolverines call it home. Overhead and on the ground, you might also find several species of birds, including ptarmigan, spruce grouse, snowy owls, waterfowl, cranes, and ruffed grouse. There are especially high concentrations of grizzly bears in some of the valleys.

Cause for Concern

Although about 85 percent of this ecoregion is intact, exploitation of the natural resources is increasing. Threats to habitat include open-pit mining, hydroelectric projects, logging, and construction of roadways. Mineral and oil exploration roads disrupt the movement of large carnivores and herbivores and are the main causes of habitat fragmentation. Hunting is also a threat to larger species.

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