Killarney National Park, Ireland Photograph by Gerard Kingma   Palaearctic Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests   80,700 square miles (209,100 square kilometers) -- about the size of Kansas Critical/Endangered

· Green Isles
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
More Photos

Green Isles

Bring your raincoat when you visit this ecoregion--rain falls any time of the year, and the air is always damp. This ecoregion extends as far north as Newfoundland, but the Gulf Stream current brings a surprising amount of warmth and moisture, making it one of the greenest on the planet. It encompasses a majority of the landscape in Ireland and Britain.

Special Features

The steady levels of moisture and warmth of this ecoregion provide ideal growing conditions for broadleaf forests. English oaks dominate these forests, but downy birch and weeping birch also thrive here. In the shade of English holly, European mountain ash and honeysuckle grow alongside ferns such as Dryopteris and Thelypteris. In areas where the soils do not drain well, peat bogs have developed. There is little temperature fluctuation here because of the moderating effect of the surrounding seas. Frosts only occur during a few weeks of the year. This climate supports Mediterranean, alpine, and arctic-alpine plant communities.

	Plants and animals that die in peat bogs may be preserved for thousand of years. Peat, which is comprised of compacted layers of dead plant matter, creates an acidic and oxygen-free environment that preserves remains almost as if they were in a museum.

Wild Side

This ecoregion provides habitat for an array of birds and other animals. The sea and other bodies of water are home to loons, dippers, great-crested grebes, manx shearwaters, whooper swans, brant geese, sandwich terns, razorbills, and puffins. Mountains, moorland, forests, and cliffs are home to hen harriers, merlins, peregrine falcons, red grouse, long-eared owls, grasshopper and wood warblers, ravens, and choughs. Britain and Ireland have two-thirds of the world's gray seals, half of Europe's otters, and important populations of badgers, horseshoe bats, and wildcats. These species are nearly extinct in much of Europe, so conserving them here is essential. Mammals are vital for the survival of several other species. For example, barn owls feed almost entirely on small mammals and can only survive where prey is abundant. Other mammals here include hedgehogs, red squirrels, mountain (arctic) hares, polecats, pine martens, red foxes, and roe and red deer. Both deer species are native to Britain, but were introduced to Ireland.

Cause for Concern

The climatic conditions of this ecoregion are ideal for agriculture. As a result, much of the ecoregion has been converted to fields and livestock pasture. Except for protected areas, few natural forests remain. Furthermore, introduced species have invaded the ecoregion and have begun to replace many native ones. As a result of these exotics and the loss of habitat, a number of the ecoregion’s plants are endangered. Peat bogs face heightened threats as mining for peat for fuel and soil conditioner continues to increase in this ecoregion.

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