Forest gives way to alpine tundra at the highest elevations of the Rocky Mountains. |
A phenomenon related to alpine zonation
is that of relict communities- pockets of plant communities that
occur much further south than they occur at present. These communities may still
occupy land that they inhabited when global climate was
different than it is today. In colder microclimates, such as
those found in southern New England bogs, spruce-larch associations
typical of the far north still occur well south of their present
range. Locally endemic species are often found in
such locations, and their occurrence can be related to re-colonization events that followed the close of the last glacial era.
This video is compatable with the AP Environmental Science curriculum.