Ecology
The ecosystems of the Olympics vary depending on elevation: the lower elevations are quite different from the higher ones. The rain shadow effect also has a significant impact on the make up and character of the forest.
The low Olympics contains foothills and mountains and rises to an elevation of approximately 4,000 feet (1,200 m). Copious precipitation (up to 200 inches (5,000 mm) per year) supports a lush, epiphyte-rich rainforest of Western Hemlock, Western Red Cedar, and Douglas-fir. Much of the region is in the third rotation of logging. However, a portion of the region lies within the Olympic National Park and contains ancient forests.
The high Olympics contains steep, glaciated mountains that reach an elevation of almost 8,000 feet (2,400 m). It is characterized by rock outcrops, tarns, persistent snow pack, alpine glaciers, and high-gradient, glacial-fed streams. Its vegetation includes subalpine Mountain Hemlock and Pacific Silver Fir forests as well as alpine meadows. Subalpine fir occurs on the xeric soils of northeastern rainshadow areas.
Read more about this topic: Olympic Mountains
Famous quotes containing the word ecology:
“... the fundamental principles of ecology govern our lives wherever we live, and ... we must wake up to this fact or be lost.”
—Karin Sheldon (b. c. 1945)