Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Some chaparral plant communities may grow so dense and tall that it becomes difficult for large animals and humans to penetrate, but may be teeming with smaller fauna in the understory. The seeds of many chaparral plant species are stimulated to germinate by some fire cue (heat or the chemicals from smoke or charred wood). [13]
The California coastal sage and chaparral (Spanish: Salvia y chaparral costero de California) is a Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregion, defined by the World Wildlife Fund, located in southwestern California (United States) and northwestern Baja California . It is part of the larger California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion.
This ecoregion has two predominant ecosystems, with three primary plant communities: the California coastal sage and chaparral, with coastal sage scrub along the coast, the California montane chaparral and woodlands, with chaparral and California oak woodlands as the mountains rise and recede from the coast and descend into the interior valleys.
Though adapted to infrequent fires, chaparral plant communities can be exterminated by frequent fires especially with climate change induced drought. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] Today, frequent accidental ignitions can convert chaparral from a native shrubland to nonnative annual grassland and drastically reduce species diversity, especially under global ...
One common factor among chaparral, however, is that a minimum of 10 years is needed between fires for the chaparral to mature and set enough seed in the soil to create a fire resilient environment. As human activity increases the frequency of fires, the chaparral's ability to renew itself decreases, leading to elimination and degradation.
The montane chaparral consists of a mosaic of sage scrub, chaparral, and montane species, depending on altitude. [9] The California interior chaparral and woodlands form a ring around the Central Valley, covering the hills around the Bay Area as well as the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. [10]
Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion — located in California and Baja California The main article for this category is California chaparral and woodlands . Contents
Hesperoyucca whipplei (syn. Yucca whipplei), the chaparral yucca, [2] our Lord's candle, [2] Spanish bayonet, [3] Quixote yucca [2] or foothill yucca, [4] is a species of flowering plant closely related to, and formerly usually included in, the genus Yucca. It is native to southwest communities of North America.