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North Atlantic moist mixed forests

The North Atlantic moist mixed forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion in Northwestern Europe. It consists of maritime forests and heathlands on the western and northern coasts of Ireland, Scotland, and neighboring islands. The ecoregion has undergone major habitat loss.

North Atlantic moist mixed forests
Loch Eriboll, in Northern Scotland
Map of North Atlantic moist mixed forests
Palearctic
Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests
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22,000 km2 (8,500 mi2)
Republic of IrelandUnited Kingdom (Northern Ireland and Scotland)Denmark (Faroe Islands)
Critical/endangered

The North Atlantic moist mixed forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion in Northwestern Europe. It consists of maritime forests and heathlands on the western and northern coasts of Ireland, Scotland, and neighboring islands. The ecoregion has undergone major habitat loss.

The North Atlantic moist mixed forests occur along the western and northern coasts of Ireland and Scotland, stretching from southwestern Ireland to the north coast of Scotland, and including the Hebrides, Shetland, Orkney, and Faroe islands.

Naturally occurring plant communities include:

Hemiboreal pine forests, predominantly of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) with deciduous broadleaf trees.
Atlantic dwarf shrub heaths, composed of low shrubs, grasses, herbs, and mosses. Dry heaths are characterized by ling (Calluna vulgaris), bell heather (Erica cinerea), cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix), and blaeberry (Vaccinium myrtillus). Wet heaths are characterized by the shrubs E. tetralix and bog-myrtle (Myrica gale), the sedge Scirpus cespitosus, and purple moor-grass (Molinia caerulea).
Ombrotrophic mires (quaking bogs) in north-central Scotland.
Red fox
Badger
Roe deer
Red deer
Barn owl

Western Scotland's and Ireland's forests have undergone significant habitat loss and damage through deforestation and hunting of its once abundant wildlife. Animals such as the grey wolf, wild boar, brown bear, European bison, Eurasian lynx, tarpan and golden eagle used to inhabit the forests; however, due to over-hunting and excessive timber extraction, the animals have lost their habitats. The North Atlantic moist mixed forests ecoregion is classified as critical/endangered by the World Wildlife Fund.

Protected areas in the ecoregion include:

Caithness and Sutherland Peatlands Special Protection Area (1453.13 km2), Scotland
Glenveagh National Park (334.46 km2), Republic of Ireland
Lewis Peatlands (589.84 km2), Scotland
Stack's to Mullaghareirk Mountains, West Limerick Hills and Mount Eagle Special Protection Area (556 km2), Republic of Ireland

The ecoregion is relatively young with regard to human settlement, due to glaciation during the most recent ice age, less than 10,000 years ago. Mesolithic peoples were certainly in evidence circa 9000 to 8000 years ago throughout the present day Irish portion of the ecoregion, as well as somewhat later in the western Scotland areas of the North Atlantic moist mixed forests. Neolithic farming ensued, as grain farming technologies developed, along with advancing forms of livestock tending, along with appearance of some of the early Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological monumental sites in the region including standing stones and stone circles.

Ancient woodland
Biodiversity
Biodiversity action plan
Bioregionalism
Community forests in England
Conservation biology
Forestry Commission
Geology of England
List of ecoregions
List of forests in the United Kingdom
National nature reserves in England
Protected areas of the United Kingdom
Trees of Britain and Ireland
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http://www.forestry.gov.uk/ Archived 2010-10-07 at the Wayback Machine UK forestry commission website
http://www.globalspecies.org/ecoregions/display/PA0429

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