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Article: Vanishing forest: a northern forest is disappearing at a rapid pace--that spells trouble for billions of animals.(LIFE: BIOMES)
- Article from:
- Science World
- Article date:
- March 27, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Scholastic, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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A long the rim of Earth's northernmost land-masses sits an ancient forest. Its mix of pine, spruce, and other hardy trees encircles the globe like a giant green halo (see map, p. 19). This interconnected web of trees, mosses, birds, and other organisms is called the boreal forest. It is the world's largest intact forest ecosystem--It's even bigger than Earth's tropical rain forests.
But many regions in the boreal forest (see Nuts & Bolts, p. 20) are under assault. According to scientists, logging, mining, and oil and gas companies are yelling "timber," leveling trees more often than the forest can sustain. "In many areas of Canada, the rate of [tree] cutting is ...