In mountainous areas, a mosaic of different ecosystems support many kinds of plant and animal species. Ruthless natural conditions abound at elevations, driving the development of treeless alpine flora, which this article examines. In contrast, the lower slopes usually have mountain forests hiding them. Further down, these mountain landscapes turn into other kinds of ecosystems including rain or temperate forests, savannas, shrublands, deserts, or tundras.
Europe's Alps and Pyrenees, Asia's Caucasus and Urals, and parts of New Guinea, New Zealand, and East Africa are among other significant mountainous areas.
Seen in the perspective of geologic time, mountain uplift and erosion happen rather fast, so high mountain ranges are in fact temporary characteristics of the topography of the planet. Many mountains are relatively isolated from other, similarly environmentally similar areas, with their peaks looking like newly formed islands of cool temperatures encompassed by wide tracts of warmer climates. These remote regions house a distinct group of plants and animals well suited to the cold. Still, at lower altitudes some mountains provide sanctuaries for older life forms driven away by changing conditions. Furthermore, mountainous locations sometimes have less human impact than their surroundings, so they can conserve species pushed out by human activities in other places.
Habitats able to support cold-adapted species were much more widespread during the glacial cycles of the past two million years, known as the Ice Ages in the Northern Hemisphere, than they are now. Across huge swaths beyond the great ice sheets that covered most of northern North America, Europe, and Asia, arctic species moved southward during this period. These species moved northward and high into mountainous areas as the environment started to improve. This historical sequence helps to clarify the remarkable parallels in the flora found in the high mountains including the European Alps And that of the Arctic to the north.
In the lowlands of the tropical regions, on the other hand, the extensive forests slowed the movement of cold-adapted species and thus isolation from other colder climates was more pronounced. Notwithstanding this obstacle, the colonization of tropical highlands is in progress. Thanks in part to their mobility, birds have made it possible for temperate species to reach equatorial peaks. New Guinea's mountains, for example, support pipits and thrushes with no close relatives in the adjacent tropical lowlands. These migratory birds could have additionally helped to carry the seeds of cold-tolerant plants that flourish in these highlands likewise lacking in neighboring tropical areas.
The different climates of mountain settings contrast sharply with those of the adjacent lowlands, causing changes in plants. Two major causes are altitude and relief results from these climatic variations. At higher elevations, typical atmospheric temperature decreases by around 0 degrees. 0 to 5. 6°C (0. 9 to one. 1 degree Fahrenheit) for each 100 meters (328 ft) of elevation. Furthermore, disrupting wind currents helps to force air to rise over the mountains and therefore impacts climate. This rising creates orographic precipitation increased rains on the leeward sides that causes the air to cool. On the other hand, as the air descends on the leeward side, it heats and loses moisture, therefore creating rain shadows and even drier conditions.
Though these rules hold true everywhere for mountain systems, particular climatic circumstances can differ greatly. Mountains in dry areas, such the Ahaggar Mountains in southern Algeria, receive little rain since constantly arid air impedes precipitation. Mountain climates are also formed by latitude. Traditional seasons in equatorial mountain regions are lacking; yet high altitudes can cause cold temperatures. Frost can happen every night of the year above 3,500 meters, but under the almost straight sun daytime temperatures can rise considerably, therefore generating a particular microclimate where it seems like "winter every evening and spring every day. For instance, at 4,760 meters in Peru, average yearly temperatures range from around −2 °C (28 °F) and approximately 5 to 8 °C (41 to 46 °F.
By contrast, mountains in moderate latitudes have clearly defined yearly cycles. Temperatures appropriate for plant development are above the tree line only for roughly 100 days in summer, and this period could be almost frost-free even at night. Still, the frigid temperatures day and night usually stay below zero throughout the long winter weeks. Unlike in tropical mountain areas, snow accumulation and related events including avalanches are important environmental variables in temperate latitudes.
Moreover of great importance in mountainous areas are microclimate differences; variances in solar radiation and rainfall cause different aspects of steep slopes to show different conditions. Mountain slopes in temperate regions oriented toward the Equator That is south-facing in the Northern Hemisphere and north-facing in the Southern Hemisphere Tend to be much warmer than their opposite ones. For example, the length of snow cover into spring might determine the timing of plant emergence, which in turn affects the suitability of the land for grazing; hence, this inequality might have a direct or indirect effect on the local flora. Even middle of the day, variations in topography and plant related to slope orientation are clearly visible in tropical zones. In New Guinea, for instance, east-facing slopes are warmer and drier, so some species can grow at greater elevations than west-facing slopes owing to the usual pattern of clear mornings and cloudier afternoons affecting solar energy dispersal.
Mostly because of the ice sheets that covered many of the world's highest peaks during the last glacial period, which ended around 10,000 years ago, mountain soils tend to be shallow at great elevations in part due to the erosion produced. Particularly nitrogen, these soils normally have little vital elements for plant growth. The quick wear of loose materials is common and worsened by elements like frost heaving, steep slopes, and, in moderate regions, heavy spring snow runoff. Soil is almost non-existent on hard peaks and crests. Still, the cool and damp conditions in many mountain areas let peat to build up, hence creating small regions of deep, wet, and acid soils. In regions with volcanism, tephra ash thrown during eruptions might even improve soil depth and fertility.Mountains in the northern temperate zonesNorth America, Europe, and northern Asiausually have coniferous forests prevailing on their lower slopes and alpine plants at greater altitudes. Dominant conifers in these hilly regions are pines (Pinus), firs (Abies), spruces (Picea), and the deciduous larches (Larix). Under the forest cover, particularly in damp areas, a wide range of small plants thrives; some areas also support broad-leaved deciduous trees.
In the northern part of Japan, for instance, mountains over 1,400 to 1,500 meters help a subarctic coniferous forest belt where the major tree genera are Abies, Picea, and Larix. Heathers, poppies, and the big carrot relatives among several other types of plants populate the forest, aside from these conifers. Moorland flora characterized by the moss Sphagnum prevails in certain places. Birch trees (Betula) are especially common at the upper boundaries of the forest, especially in areas with a fire history. Pinus, Picea, and Babies usually dominate tree line forests in North America's Pacific Northwest. Willows (Salix), usually found in wetter areas, thrive in avalanche tracks, whereas alders (Alnus) appear in disturbed areas and aspens (Populus s) are prevalent. From the heather family, lupines (Lupinus), pasque flowers (Anemone), and a great collection of daisies and low shrubs grow under the trees and in meadows near the tree level.
Southern temperate mountain regions' tree line forests, on the other hand, are usually identified by a single prominent tree species or few species, mostly broad-leaved rather than coniferous. In these forests, Eucalyptus trees dominate many Australian mountain ranges, a distribution that could be related to a long tradition of extensive burning that supports fire-tolerant species. By Nothofagus species, too often the tree line deflates in New Zealand, Argentina, and Chile.
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Rather surprisingly, the broad variety of alpine flora present in many locations, whether temperate or tropical, usually shows a similar diversity of some 200 different plant species. Many alpine areas tend to have similar plant types, though sometimes locally different species are present. Members of the heather, grass, and sedge families are among the many instances that include gentians (Gentiana), plantains (Plantago), buttercups (Ranunculus).
Always remember to go with a good guide or with someone who knows the mountain or place you are going to visit very well, it is one of the most essential rules of the mountain so that the trip is more exciting and safe for both you and those who accompany you.
the photos are of my authorship