North Cascades - Ecology

Ecology

The North Cascades has a diversity of plant species. It contains more than 1630 vascular plant species There are eight distinct life zones that support thousands of plants separately and in their own way. Traveling west to east through the range, one would intersect a number of distinct ecoregions, first getting higher and colder, then getting warmer, yet drier. Each of these component ecoregions can be described by either a tree indicator species, or by a lack of trees: Western Hemlock, Silver Fir, Subalpine Mountain Hemlock, Alpine tundra, Subalpine Fir, and Grand Fir/Douglas-fir.

The range also has a rich diversity of animals, including bald eagles, wolves, grizzly bears, mountain lions and black bears. The range is home to at least 75 species of mammals and 200 species of birds that either pass through or use the North Cascades for a breeding area. There are also 11 species of fish on the west side of the Cascades. Examples of amphibian species occurring in the North Cascades include the western toad (Bufo boreas) and the rough-skinned newt (Taricha granulosa).

The biodiversity of the area is threatened by global climate change and invasive exotic plant species. These exotic plants thrive by utilizing manmade structures such as roads and trails. These invasive plants include the diffuse knapweed (Centaurea diffusa) and reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea).