Soil

Forests where a majority of the trees lose their foliage at the end of the typical growing
season are called deciduous forests. These forests are found in many areas worldwide and
have distinctive ecosystems, understory growth, and soil dynamics.[10]
Two distinctive types of deciduous forest are found growing around the world.
Temperate deciduous forest biomes are plant communities distributed in North and
South America, Asia and Europe. They have formed under climatic conditions which
have great seasonable temperature variability with growth occurring during warm
summers and leaf drop in fall and dormancy during cold winters. These seasonally
distinctive communities have diverse life forms that are impacted greatly by the
seasonality of their climate, mainly temperature and precipitation rates. These varying
and regionally different ecological conditions produce distinctive forest plant
communities in different regions.
Tropical and subtropical deciduous forest biomes have developed in response not to
seasonal temperature variations but to seasonal rainfall patterns. During prolonged dry
periods the foliage is dropped to conserve water and prevent death from drought. Leaf
drop is not seasonally dependent as it is in temperate climates, and can occur any time of
year and varies by region of the world. Even within a small local area there can be
variations in the timing and duration of leaf drop; different sides of the same mountain
and areas that have high water tables or areas along streams and rivers can produce a
patchwork of leafy and leafless trees.[11]
Deforestation for the use of clay in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. The hill depicted
Tropical and subtropical grasslands
These grasslands are classified with tropical and subtropical savannas and shrublands as
the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Notable tropical
and subtropical grasslands include the Llanos grasslands of northern South America.

[edit] Temperate grasslands

Mid-latitude grasslands, including the Prairie and Pacific Grasslands of North America,
the Pampas of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, calcareous downland, and the steppes of
Europe. They are classified with temperate savannas and shrublands as the temperate
grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Temperate grasslands are the home to many
large herbivores, such as bison, gazelles, zebras, rhinoceroses, and wild horses.
Carnivores like lions, wolves and cheetahs and leopards are also found in temperate
grasslands. Other animals of this region include: deer, prairie dogs, mice, jack rabbits,
skunks, coyotes, snakes, fox, owls, badgers, blackbirds (both Old and New World
varieties), grasshoppers, meadowlarks, sparrows, quails, hawks and hyenas.

[edit] Flooded grasslands

Grasslands that are flooded seasonally or year-round, like the Everglades of Florida or the
Pantanal of Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay.They are classified with flooded savannas as the
flooded grasslands and savannas biome and occur mostly in the tropics and subtropics.

[edit] Montane grasslands

High-altitude grasslands located on high mountain ranges around the world, like the
Páramo of the Andes Mountains. They are part of the montane grasslands and shrublands
biome and also constitute tundra.

[edit] Tundra grasslands

Similar to montane grasslands, polar arctic tundra can have grasses, but high soil
moisture means that few tundras are grass-dominated today. However, during the
Pleistocene ice ages, a polar grassland known as steppe-tundra occupied large areas of the
Northern hemisphere. These are in the tundra biome.
is Morro da Covanca, in Jacarepaguá
Undisturbed forests have a very low rate of soil loss, approximately 2 metric tons per
square kilometer (6 short tons per square feet).[citation needed] Deforestation generally
increases rates of soil erosion, by increasing the amount of runoff and reducing the
protection of the soil from tree litter. This can be an advantage in excessively leached
tropical rain forest soils. Forestry operations themselves also increase erosion through the
development of roads and the use of mechanized equipment.
China's Loess Plateau was cleared of forest millennia ago. Since then it has been eroding,
creating dramatic incised valleys, and providing the sediment that gives the Yellow River
its yellow color and that causes the flooding of the river in the lower reaches (hence the
river's nickname 'China's sorrow').
Removal of trees does not always increase erosion rates. In certain regions of southwest
US, shrubs and trees have been encroaching on grassland. The trees themselves enhance
the loss of grass between tree canopies. The bare intercanopy areas become highly
erodible. The US Forest Service, in Bandelier National Monument for example, is
studying how to restore the former ecosystem, and reduce erosion, by removing the trees.
Tree roots bind soil together, and if the soil is sufficiently shallow they act to keep the
soil in place by also binding with underlying bedrock. Tree removal on steep slopes with
shallow soil thus increases the risk of landslides, which can threaten people living nearby.
However most deforestation only affects the trunks of trees, allowing for the roots to stay
rooted, negating the landslide.