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Ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecologically and geographically
defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than an
ecozone. All three of these are either less or greater than an ecosystem.
Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain
characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural communities and
species. The biodiversity of flora, fauna and ecosystems that characterise an
ecoregion tends to be distinct from that of other ecoregions. In theory,
biodiversity or conservation ecoregions are relatively large areas of land or
water where the probability of encountering different species and communities
at any given point remains relatively constant, within an acceptable range of A map of the Amazon rainforest
variation (largely undefined at this point). ecoregions. The yellow line
encloses the ecoregions per the
Three caveats are appropriate for all bio-geographic mapping approaches. World Wide Fund for Nature.
Firstly, no single bio-geographic framework is optimal for all taxa. Ecoregions
reflect the best compromise for as many taxa as possible. Secondly, ecoregion
boundaries rarely form abrupt edges; rather, ecotones and mosaic habitats
bound them. Thirdly, most ecoregions contain habitats that differ from their
assigned biome. Biogeographic provinces may originate due to various
barriers. Some physical (plate tectonics, topographic highs), some climatic
(latitudinal variation, seasonal range) and some ocean chemical related
(salinity, oxygen levels).

A map of North America's

bioregions
Contents
History
Definition and categorization
Importance
Terrestrial
Marine
Freshwater
See also
References
Bibliography
External links

History
The history of the term is somewhat vague, and it had been used in many contexts: forest classifications (Loucks, 1962),
biome classifications (Bailey, 1976, 2014), biogeographic classifications (WWF/Global 200 scheme of Olson & Dinerstein,
1998), etc.[1][2][3][4][5]
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The concept of ecoregion of Bailey gives more importance to ecological criteria, while the WWF concept gives more
importance to biogeography, that is, distribution of distinct biotas.[4]

Definition and categorization

An ecoregion is a "recurring pattern of ecosystems associated with
characteristic combinations of soil and landform that characterise that
region".[6] Omernik (2004) elaborates on this by defining ecoregions as: "areas
within which there is spatial coincidence in characteristics of geographical
phenomena associated with differences in the quality, health, and integrity of
ecosystems".[7] "Characteristics of geographical phenomena" may include
geology, physiography, vegetation, climate, hydrology, terrestrial and aquatic
fauna, and soils, and may or may not include the impacts of human activity
The Ötztal Alps, a mountain range
(e.g. land use patterns, vegetation changes). There is significant, but not
in the central Alps of Europe, are
absolute, spatial correlation among these characteristics, making the
part of the Central Eastern Alps, and
delineation of ecoregions an imperfect science. Another complication is that can both be termed as ecoregions.
environmental conditions across an ecoregion boundary may change very
gradually, e.g. the prairie-forest transition in the midwestern United States,
making it difficult to identify an exact dividing boundary. Such transition zones
are called ecotones.

Ecoregions can be categorized using an algorithmic approach or a holistic,

"weight-of-evidence" approach where the importance of various factors may
vary. An example of the algorithmic approach is Robert Bailey's work for the
U.S. Forest Service, which uses a hierarchical classification that first divides
land areas into very large regions based on climatic factors, and subdivides
these regions, based first on dominant potential vegetation, and then by
A conifer forest in the Swiss Alps
geomorphology and soil characteristics. The weight-of-evidence approach is (National Park).
exemplified by James Omernik's work for the United States Environmental
Protection Agency, subsequently adopted (with modification) for North
America by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation.

The intended purpose of ecoregion delineation may affect the method used. For example, the WWF ecoregions were
developed to aid in biodiversity conservation planning, and place a greater emphasis than the Omernik or Bailey systems
on floral and faunal differences between regions. The WWF classification defines an ecoregion as:

A large area of land or water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities that:

(a) Share a large majority of their species and ecological dynamics;

(b) Share similar environmental conditions, and;
(c) Interact ecologically in ways that are critical for their long-term persistence.

According to WWF, the boundaries of an ecoregion approximate the original extent of the natural communities prior to
any major recent disruptions or changes. WWF has identified 867 terrestrial ecoregions, and approximately 450
freshwater ecoregions across the Earth.

Importance
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The use of the term ecoregion is an outgrowth of a surge of interest in

ecosystems and their functioning. In particular, there is awareness of issues
relating to spatial scale in the study and management of landscapes. It is
widely recognized that interlinked ecosystems combine to form a whole that is
"greater than the sum of its parts". There are many attempts to respond to
ecosystems in an integrated way to achieve "multi-functional" landscapes, and
various interest groups from agricultural researchers to conservationists are Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World
using the "ecoregion" as a unit of analysis. (Olson et al. 2001, BioScience)

The "Global 200" is the list of ecoregions identified by WWF as priorities for
conservation.

Ecologically based movements like bioregionalism maintain that ecoregions, rather than arbitrarily defined political
boundaries, provide a better foundation for the formation and governance of human communities, and have proposed
ecoregions and watersheds as the basis for bioregional democracy initiatives.

Terrestrial
Terrestrial ecoregions are land ecoregions, as distinct from freshwater and marine
ecoregions. In this context, terrestrial is used to mean "of land" (soil and rock),
rather than the more general sense "of Earth" (which includes land and oceans).

WWF (World Wildlife Fund) ecologists currently divide the land surface of the
Earth into 8 major ecozones containing 867 smaller terrestrial ecoregions (see
list). The WWF effort is a synthesis of many previous efforts to define and classify WWF terrestrial ecoregions
ecoregions. Many consider this classification to be quite decisive, and some
propose these as stable borders for bioregional democracy initiatives.[8]

The eight terrestrial ecozones follow the major floral and faunal boundaries, identified by botanists and zoologists, that
separate the world's major plant and animal communities. Ecozone boundaries generally follow continental boundaries,
or major barriers to plant and animal distribution, like the Himalayas and the Sahara. The boundaries of ecoregions are
often not as decisive or well recognized, and are subject to greater disagreement.

Ecoregions are classified by biome type, which are the major global plant communities determined by rainfall and climate.
Forests, grasslands (including savanna and shrubland), and deserts (including xeric shrublands) are distinguished by
climate (tropical and subtropical vs. temperate and boreal climates) and, for forests, by whether the trees are
predominantly conifers (gymnosperms), or whether they are predominantly broadleaf (Angiosperms) and mixed
(broadleaf and conifer). Biome types like Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub; tundra; and mangroves host very
distinct ecological communities, and are recognized as distinct biome types as well.

Marine
Marine ecoregions are: "Areas of relatively homogeneous species composition, clearly distinct from adjacent systems….In
ecological terms, these are strongly cohesive units, sufficiently large to encompass ecological or life history processes for
most sedentary species."[9] They have been defined by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to
aid in conservation activities for marine ecosystems. Forty-three priority marine ecoregions were delineated as part of
WWF's Global 200 efforts.[10] The scheme used to designate and classify marine ecoregions is analogous to that used for

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