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Spruce-fir forest in the Canadian Rockies. The Rocky Mountains subalpine zone is the biotic zone immediately below tree line in the Rocky Mountains of North America.In northern New Mexico, the subalpine zone occupies elevations approximately from 9,000 to 12,000 feet (2,700 to 3,700 m); [1] while in northern Alberta, the subalpine zone extends from 1,350 to 2,300 metres (4,400 to 7,500 ft).
A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States. Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains.The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify.
The Cascades Subalpine/Alpine ecoregion is an area of high, glaciated, volcanic peaks rising above subalpine meadows, with cascading streams, glacial cirques, and tarns. Pleistocene glaciation reshaped the mountains above 6,500 feet (2,000 m), leaving moraines , glacial lakes, and U-shaped glacial canyons .
The ecosystems in this ecoregion are the subalpine fir forests, subalpine meadows, avalanche gullies, and freshwater wetlands, streams and lakes. [8] The subalpine fir forests in the North Cascades include Douglas fir, Engelmann spruce, subalpine larch, and whitebark pine. [8] The Engelmann spruce and the subalpine fir are commonly found together.
Because the Sierran subalpine is situated in such harsh conditions, i.e. nearly at the limit of tree growth, the ecosystem is particularly sensitive to changes in climate. The long-lived nature of subalpine species plus their relative isolation from civilization make subalpine ecosystems a particularly good study system to examine climate change.
Mount Elbert rises through multiple biotic zones, with alpine tundra at its peak.. The Rocky Mountains range in latitude between the Liard River in British Columbia (at 59° N) and the Rio Grande in New Mexico (at 35° N), and in height up to the highest peak, Mount Elbert at 14,440 feet (4,400 m), taking in great valleys such as the Rocky Mountain Trench and San Luis Valley.
The upper montane forest is replaced by the subalpine forest near 9,000 feet (2,700 m), where the climate is cooler with an even shorter growing season due to long, cold, and snowy winters. Accumulations of three to nine feet (1 to 2.5 m) of snow are typical. The most common tree in the subalpine forest is the whitebark pine. [10]
The riparian ecosystem runs through the montane, subalpine, and alpine tundra zones and creates a foundation for life, especially for species that thrive next to streams, rivers, and lakes. [76] The headwaters of the Colorado River , which provides water to many of the southwestern states , are located on the west side of the park.