Mediterranean woodlands and forests
The Mediterranean woodlands and forests is an ecoregion in the coastal plains, hills, and mountains bordering the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean in North Africa. It has a Mediterranean climate, and is in the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome.
Geography
The Mediterranean woodlands and forests occupy an area of in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, the Spanish plazas de soberanía, and Libya. The main portion of the ecoregion extends along the coastal plains and hills of the Maghreb, from near Agadir on the Atlantic coast of Morocco in the west to Sfax on the Gulf of Gabes in Tunisia. The ecoregion extends inland to cover the lower slopes of the Middle Atlas and High Atlas ranges of Morocco, with isolated enclaves along the Saharan Atlas range of Algeria.Two coastal enclaves lie further east along the Mediterranean Sea: one along the southeastern Tunisian shore of the Gulf of Gabes, including the island of Djerba; and the second in the Jebel Akhdar mountains along the shore of the Cyrenaica Peninsula in northeastern Libya.
The Mediterranean woodlands and forests are bounded on the south by the drier Mediterranean dry woodlands and steppe, which occupies the plateaus and mountain ranges bordering the Sahara; and on the north by the Alboran Sea which is the westernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea. The Mediterranean acacia-argania dry woodlands and succulent thickets, which occupy the coastal plain of southern Morocco, bounds the Mediterranean woodlands and forests on the southwest.
The Mediterranean forests and woodlands surrounds the Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests ecoregion, which exists as a series of enclaves in the coastal Rif Mountains and interior Middle Atlas and High Atlas Morocco, the coastal Tell Atlas and eastern Saharan Atlas of Algeria, and the Kroumerie and Mogod ranges of Tunisia. The Mediterranean High Atlas juniper steppe ecoregion occupies the highest elevations of the High Atlas.
Flora
The natural vegetation consists of forests, woodlands, and shrublands. The five chief plant communities are:Xeric pine forests and woodlands: The xeric pine forests are found mainly in the drier interior, near the transition to the Mediterranean dry woodlands and steppe, where rainfall averages 300 to 600 mm per year. The predominant tree is Aleppo pine. It is often found in mixed stands with evergreen holm oak, maritime pine and xeric junipers. The forests and woodlands have an understory of shrubs, including Cistus, Genista, and rosemary, which also form pockets of shrubland.Berber thuya forests and woodlands: These forests and woodlands are found in the milder lowlands of northern Morocco, western coastal Algeria, and pockets in the coastal mountains in northwestern Tunisia, typically on soils derived from limestone. They are characterized by Berber thuya, a conifer that can form coppice woodlands. The understory is chiefly of shrubs.Cork oak woodlands: are found in low and medium elevations with mild winters and relatively high rainfall, often on soils formed over siliceous rocks. Cork oak forests are found on the coastal plains between Casablanca and the Rif Mountains in northern Morocco, and several areas further inland around the Rif and Middle Atlas ranges. They also found on along the Tell Atlas of northern Algeria, and in the Kroumerie and Mogod mountain ranges of northwestern Tunisia.Cork oak is the predominant tree, accompanied by a rich mix of evergreen small trees and large shrubs, including bay laurel, strawberry tree, tree heath, green heath, holly, mock privet, Mediterranean dwarf palm ', laurustinus, hairy broom, Olea europaea, Balanites aegyptiaca, Cupressus sempervirens, Vachellia tortilis, Quercus coccifera, Quercus rotundifolia, Pistacia terebinthus, Pinus nigra, Pinus pinaster, Pinus pinea, Pinus halepensis, Ceratonia siliqua, Arbutus unedo, Aerva javanica, and common myrtle.Holm oak and kermes oak forests and woodlands: forests, woodlands, and shrublands of holm oak and kermes oak are the most widespread plant community, found from the coast to the mountains on a variety of climates and soils. Holm oak forests formerly found in lowland areas with deep and humid soils have mostly been displaced by agriculture.Wild olive and carob woodlands and maquis:' open woodlands of wild olive, and carob once covered lowland areas with deep, drier soils, but these areas have mostly been converted to agriculture. The remaining wild olive and carob woodlands have been transformed by fire, grazing, and firewood collection into maquis shrublands. Wild olives have also been displaced by cultivated varieties to produce olive oil, and carob is harvested for fodder.
Arbutus pavarii'' is endemic to the Jebel Akhdar in Cyrenaica.
Fauna
The Mediterranean woodlands and forests were once home to several large mammals. Most now have a limited range, and a few are extinct. The Barbary stag is limited to portions of its former range in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. Native carnivores include the striped hyena red fox, common jackal, caracal, common genet, and Egyptian mongoose. Smaller mammals include the North African hedgehog, North African elephant shrew, Barbary ground squirrel, and North African gerbil. The Egyptian wolf ', Barbary leopard ', and Barbary macaque ' are endangered, and their range is now limited to small areas. The Atlas bear ' and Barbary lion are extinct.The ecoregion has 120 native bird species. They include the raptors golden eagle, black-winged kite, short-toed snake eagle, booted eagle, and lesser kestrel. Subspecies of the great spotted woodpecker and grey shrike are endemic to the ecoregion and the adjacent Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests.