Alberta Mountain forests


The Alberta Mountain forests are a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of Canada.

Setting

This ecoregion covers the grand Rocky Mountains of Alberta including the eastern outliers of the Continental Ranges. Located almost entirely in Alberta and taking in the Alberta-British Columbia border from Banff north to Jasper, Alberta and Kakwa Wildlands Park. This is an area of glaciers and high mountains covered with a forest of tall trees. The highest points are the mountains around the Columbia Icefield the largest ice field in the Rockies.
The mountain valleys have a mild climate with warm, dry summers and snowy winters but the high mountain sides have a harsher climate. Average summer temperatures are 12 °C going down to -7 °C in winter.

Flora

Trees include Trembling aspen ', Lodgepole Pine ', Engelmann spruce ', White spruce ' and subalpine fir .

Fauna

These mountains are home to good numbers of large mammals. All five species of North American deer inhabit this ecoregion including woodland caribou ', elk ', moose ', mule deer ', and white-tailed deer '. Bighorn sheep ', and mountain goat ' can also be found here. Predators in the mountains and forests include lynx ', grizzly bear ', black bear ', cougar ', and wolf '. Smaller wildlife such as snowshoe hare, and American pygmy shrew can be found here as well and the Banff Springs snail which is endemic to Banff National Park. Birds include Townsend's warbler, veery, and bald eagle.

Threats and preservation

80% of these forests are intact although some is being removed for urban development and tourism in the valley areas. Large areas of natural habitat remain in Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, Kakwa Wildlands, Willmore Wilderness Park, and Ghost River Wilderness Area.
This ecozone corresponds to the human region called Alberta's Rockies