Temperate Rainforest of Pacific Northwest (Coastal Temperate Rainforest) Expert: Alondria Buggs

General information Temperate Rainforest - forests that grow in extremely wet conditions; cool and rainy; engulfed in fog. Temperature: Mild year round temperatures. Influenced by nearby ocean climates. Average annual temperature is above 0 degrees Celcius; warmest temperature is around 20 degrees Celcius. Soil type: Extremely fertile. Dead matter decomposes which releases nutrients back into the soil. Precipitation: Abundant rainfall. At least 250cm(about 78 in.) per year; 350 cm.(about 138 in.) in warmer areas. Rain is more likely to fall than snow, but snow does fall at higher elevations.

Location Latitudes: Between 40 degrees North and 60 degrees North. Main Geographical Forestation: Along Northwest Coast of North America( Northern California to Southern Alaska), Southern Chile, New Zealand, Australia.

Climatogram

Plants Common Plants: Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, Mountain Hemlock, Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce, Lodgepole Pine Moss and lichens act as epiphytes. Epiphytes are common in tropical rainforests; the common denominator being the moist environment that puts minimal stress on the plants without roots to store water. Deciduous trees such as the Big Leaf Maple grow in the forest as well, but will only be found in the warmer parts of the forest. Feeding Relationships: Crossbills pry seeds from cones. Mule deer and Red Tree Voles feed on young coniferous needles. Porcupines and snowshoe hares eat on conifer bark. Deer mice and Townsends chipmunks feed on seeds and mushrooms on the forest floor.

Animals Wide range of slugs: Banana, Burrington Jumping Slug, Warty Jumping Slug, Dromedary Jumping Slug Blue Grouse, Clark’s Nutcracker, Bobcats, Crossbills, Black Bears Adaptations: Slugs secrete slim to help them crawl around and to protect their underside from sharp objects. Jumping slugs scrunch up their bodies and spring away from their predators. Symbiosis: Trees rely on animals to disperse seeds from fruits further into the forest. Animals get to eat the fruit. (mutualism) Stick insects camouflage into tree branches to escape predators. (commensalism) Butterflies have wings that look like leaves and uses camouflage to escape predators. (commensalism)

Species Spotlight Endangered: Spotted Owl. The main threat that the spotted owl is facing is industrial logging. By humans constantly cutting down trees, the spotted owls don’t have as many places to nest, which exposes them to their predators. There is currently nothing being done to protect the spotted owls. Invasive: Forget-Me-Nots: Originally planted as ornamental plants as a border around the forest. (before the land was bought). They grew beyond where they were originally planted. Forest rangers and volunteers have tried different control methods including: hand picking the overpopulated areas of Forget-Me-Nots, chemical control treatments, using rice straw as mulch in overpopulated areas, and using fire during the winter to kill them off.

Human Impact The largest impact made on the Temperate Rainforest of the Pacific Northwest by humans is simply the continuous cutting down of trees. We cut trees down faster than they grow. One tree should be planted for each tree cut down by the timber companies. Julia “Butterfly” Hill was against logging. She lived in a 180 foot tall, 1500 year old tree named Luna for 738 days to prevent the Pacific Lumber Company from cutting it down. She didn’t come down until the tree company agreed to preserve Luna and all trees with a 200 foot radius.

Cited Sources Julia Butterfly Hill. (2014, July 10). Retrieved October 8, 2014, from Pacific Temperate Rainforest. (2014, June 1). Retrieved October 8, 2014, from gion) gion) Ecotrust and Conservaton Internatoinal (1992). Coastal Temperate Rain Forest: Ecological Characteristics, Status, and Distribution Worldwide. [ONLINE] Available at: [Last Accessed 08October14]. Anne Woods (). Slugs in the Temperate Rainforest. [ONLINE] Available at: [Last Accessed 08October14]. Dan Saxton, (2011). State of the Parks. 1st ed. washington,D.C>: National Parks Conservation Association.