Khangai Mountains, Mongolia Photograph by Hessberg and W. Schulze: www.geocities.com/Yosemite/6988/   Central Asia: West central Mongolia Temperate Coniferous Forests   1,100 square miles (2,900 square kilometers) -- about the size of Rhode Island Critical/Endangered

· Isolated Taiga
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Isolated Taiga

Far from the vast expanse of taiga found in Russia and northern Mongolia lies a small, isolated patch of similar forests on the northern slopes of the Khangai Mountains.

Special Features

This ecoregion is characterized by an isolated forest that grows on the cool, shady northern slopes of the Khangai Mountains. Although this forest lies distant from the Siberian taiga of Russia, it shares many characteristic species, including birds such as the Siberian jay and even salamanders such as the Siberian salamander. Siberian pines dominate at higher elevations; however, they are interspersed with the other dominant tree species in the region such as the Siberian larch, which cover 70 percent of the forest at lower elevations.

	Almost all owls have very soft plumage. Their feathers also have a light, comb-like fringe that deadens the sound of air passing over them. These two features make an owl’s flight nearly silent, allowing the hunter to swoop down on unsuspecting prey while preserving its own ability to hear.

Wild Side

Wild boars rummage through the underbrush here, rooting for fungi and small plants to eat. Brown bears amble through the forest eating juicy berries. Overhead, a great gray owl keeps its keen ears open for the sounds of the mouse-like ruddy vole scampering along the forest floor. Many other predator and prey species live in these taiga forests including lynx, sables, wolves, moose, forest lemmings, chipmunks, musk and roe deer, boreal owls, Eurasian pygmy owls, three-toed woodpeckers, and pine grosbeaks.

Cause for Concern

Timber developments continue to threaten this ecoregion because of growing needs for building materials and fuel. Mining in the ecoregion is also a major threat to biodiversity here.

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