What Biome Dominant Plants Are Cone-Bearing Evergreen Trees?

Biome

• A biome is a major ecosystem with similar plants and fauna that spreads across a large area. On Earth, scientists have classified two major types of biomes. Aquatic biomes exist in bodies of water, while land biomes are mainly dry and composed of solid land. Currently, there are three kinds of aquatic biomes: freshwater, saltwater and wetlands. The nine main land biomes are tropical forest, savanna, desert, chaparral, temperate grassland, polar and high-mountain ice, temperate deciduous forest, coniferous forest and tundra.

Coniferous Plants

• Coniferous plants are trees and shrubs with cones. Cones serve as substitutes for flowers, which exist on plants at low and medium latitudes. Cones are the main means of reproduction of coniferous plants. They contain the seeds needed to grow new cone-bearing trees. Certain cone-bearing plants such as junipers may also have berry-like structures that store undeveloped seeds. Some examples of common coniferous plant groups include pine trees, redwoods, junipers and yellowwoods.

Taiga

• Coniferous trees dominate the taiga, also called the boreal forest. In fact, taigas are literally defined as forests of nearly continuous belts of coniferous trees. The taiga exists at high latitudes, specifically in northern parts of North America, Europe and Asia. The main types of coniferous plants that exist in the tiaga are members of the evergreen spruces, firs, pines and the tamarack genera. Common animals in the taiga are the lynx, members of the weasel family, hares, squirrels, voles, and lemmings.

Temperate Deciduous Forests

• To a lesser degrees, coniferous plants exist in the temperate deciduous forests. Temperate deciduous forests are land biomes primarily covered by deciduous, or flowering, plants. Essentially anything that loses all of its leaves or flowers during the winter months is considered deciduous. Pines, spruces, and firs are the most common coniferous trees found in temperate deciduous forests. This biome exists primarily in the Eastern United States, Japan, China, Europe and certain parts of Canada and Russia. Ground-burrowing and tree-dwelling animals such as birds, reptiles, insects, and mammals are the most common wildlife in temperate deciduous forests.