Forest Vegetation of Easternmost Russia (Russian Far East)

The forest vegetation of the Russian Far East, an area of more than 3 million square kilometers in northeastern Asia, has been well studied by Russians but has remained unknown to most vegetation scientists outside Russia. The region is important because it represents natural vegetation processes and their environmental relationships over a huge territory, from polar deserts to cool-temperate forests, from the Pacific coast to the continental interior. These landscapes are among the best preserved forest ecosystems in the world. This chapter includes the first overview in English of eastern Siberian forest vegetation in its basic types, with a focus on phytogeography, ecosystem structure and dynamics, and developmental trends. Special attention is paid to the zonal forest types, including mixed broadleaf-Pinus koraiensis forests, dark-conifer (evergreen) forests of Picea ajanensis, deciduous light-conifer forests of Larix dahurica, broad-leaved deciduous forests of Betula ermanii, and the unique dwarf forests of Pinus pumila and Alnus fruticosa.