Setting
The Valdivian temperate rain forests comprise a relatively narrow coastal strip between the Pacific Ocean to the west, and the southern Andes Mountains to the east, from roughly 37° to 48° south latitude. North of 42°, the Chilean coastal range runs along the coast, and the north-south running Chilean Central Valley lies between the coastal range and the Andes. South of 42°, the coast range continues as a chain of offshore islands, including Chiloé Island and the Chonos Archipelago, while the "Central Valley" is submerged and continues as the Gulf of Corcovado. Much of the ecoregion was covered by the Patagonian Ice Sheet and other glaciers at the peak of the last ice age, which descended from the Andes mountains, and the numerous lakes of the Chilean lakes district in the central part of the ecoregion were originally glacial valleys, while the southern part of the region has many glacier-carved fjords.
To the north the Valdivian forests give way to the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub of the Chilean Matorral ecoregion. Some few Valdivian forests grows in northern Chile such as that one in Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park as remains of the last glacial maximum. To the south lies the Magellanic subpolar forests ecoregion. The temperate Valdivian, Matorral, and Magellanic ecoregions are isolated from the subtropical and tropical forests of northern South America by the Atacama desert north of the Matorral, the Andes mountains, and dry rain-shadow Argentine grasslands east of the Andes. As a result, the temperate forest regions have evolved in relative isolation, with a high degree of endemic species.
Read more about this topic: Valdivian Temperate Rain Forest
Famous quotes containing the word setting:
“it is finally as though that thing of monstrous interest
were happening in the sky
but the sun is setting and prevents you from seeing it”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“Love is at the root of all healthy discipline. The desire to be loved is a powerful motivation for children to behave in ways that give their parents pleasure rather than displeasure. it may even be our own long-ago fear of losing our parents’ love that now sometimes makes us uneasy about setting and maintaining limits. We’re afraid we’ll lose the love of our children when we don’t let them have their way.”
—Fred Rogers (20th century)
“Like plowing, housework makes the ground ready for the germination of family life. The kids will not invite a teacher home if beer cans litter the living room. The family isn’t likely to have breakfast together if somebody didn’t remember to buy eggs, milk, or muffins. Housework maintains an orderly setting in which family life can flourish.”
—Letty Cottin Pogrebin (20th century)