Deciduous and Temperate Evergreen Forest Essay Example for Free

Deciduous and Temperate Evergreen Forest Essay Tropical evergreen forest Tropical forests are characterized by the greatest diversity of species. They occur near the equator, within the area bounded by latitudes 23. 5 degrees N and 23. 5 degrees S. One of the major characteristics of tropical forests is their distinct seasonality: winter is absent, and only two seasons are present (rainy and dry). An  evergreen forest  is a  forest  consisting entirely or mainly of  evergreen  trees that retain green foliage all year round. Such forests reign the tropics primarily as  broadleaf  evergreens, and in  temperate  and  boreal  latitudes  primarily asconiferous  evergreens Tropical deciduous forest Deciduous  means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off, and is typically used in reference to  trees  or  shrubs  that lose theirleaves  seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as  petals  after flowering or  fruit  when ripe. In a more general sense, deciduous means the dropping of a part that is no longer needed, or falling away after its purpose is finished. In plants it is the result of natural processes. Deciduous has a similar meaning when referring to animal parts, such as deciduous  antlers  in  deer,[1]  ordeciduous teeth, also known as baby teeth, in some mammals (including human children). Temperate deciduous forests Temperate deciduous forests  or  temperate broad-leaf forests  are dominated by trees that lose their leaves each year. They are found in areas where warm moist summers alternate with mild winters. Mediterranean vegetation Mediterranean vegetation,  any scrubby, dense vegetation composed of broad-leaved evergreen shrubs, bushes, and small trees usually less than 2. 5 m (about 8 feet) tall and growing in regions lying between 30 ° and 40 ° north and south latitudes. These regions have a climate similar to that of the Mediterranean area, which is characterized by hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters. Around the Mediterranean Sea this vegetation is called macchie, maquis, or garigue; it is known as chaparral in southwestern North America, as Cape flora in southern Africa, and as mallee in southwestern Australia.