View source for Palearctic realm

{{short description|Biogeographic realm covering most of Eurasia}}
{{more footnotes needed|date=May 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}
[[Image:Ecozone Palearctic.svg|thumb|320px|The Palearctic realm (in red)]]

The '''Palearctic''' or '''Palaearctic''' is a [[biogeographic realm]] of the Earth, the largest of eight. Confined almost entirely to the [[Eastern Hemisphere]], it stretches across [[Europe]] and [[Asia]], north of the foothills of the [[Himalayas]], and [[North Africa]].

The realm consists of several [[Bioregion|bioregions]]: the [[Mediterranean Basin]]; [[North Africa]]; North [[Arabia]]; [[Western Asia|Western]], [[Central Asia|Central]] and [[East Asia]]. The Palaearctic realm also has numerous rivers and lakes, forming several freshwater ecoregions.

Both the eastern and westernmost extremes of the Paleartic span into the [[Western Hemisphere]], including [[Cape Dezhnyov]] in [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]] to the east and [[Iceland]] to the west. The term was first used in the 19th century, and is still in use as the basis for [[Zoogeography|zoogeographic]] classification.

==History==
In an 1858 paper for the ''Proceedings of the [[Linnean Society]]'', British zoologist [[Philip Sclater]] first identified six terrestrial zoogeographic realms of the world: Palaearctic, Aethiopian/[[Afrotropic]], [[Indian subcontinent|Indian]]/[[Indomalaya]]n, [[Australasian realm|Australasian]], [[Nearctic]], and [[Neotropical]]. The six indicated general groupings of fauna, based on shared biogeography and large-scale geographic barriers to migration.<ref>{{Cite journal | last=Sclater | first=Philip Lutley | author-link=Philip Sclater | date=1858 | title=On the general geographical distribution of the members of the class Aves | journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society | volume=2 | issue=7 | pages=130–145 | doi=10.1111/j.1096-3642.1858.tb02549.x | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2240015 }}</ref>

[[File:Wallace03.jpg|thumb|500px|Frontispiece to [[Alfred Russel Wallace]]'s book ''The Geographical Distribution of Animals'']]

[[Alfred Wallace]] adopted Sclater's scheme for his book ''The Geographical Distribution of Animals'', published in 1876. This is the same scheme that persists today, with relatively minor revisions, and the addition of two more realms: [[Oceanian realm|Oceania]] and the [[Antarctic realm|Antarctic]].

==Major ecological regions==

The Palearctic realm includes mostly [[subarctic climate|boreal/subarctic-climate]] and [[temperate climate|temperate-climate]] ecoregions, which stretch from western Europe to the [[Bering Sea]].

===Euro-Siberian region===

The boreal and temperate Euro-Siberian region is the Palearctic's largest [[biogeography|biogeographic]] region, which transitions from [[tundra]] in the northern reaches of [[Russia]] and [[Scandinavia]] to the vast [[taiga]], the boreal coniferous forests which run across the continent. South of the taiga is a belt of [[temperate broadleaf and mixed forests]] and [[temperate coniferous forest]]s. This vast Euro-Siberian region is characterized by many shared plant and animal species, and has many affinities with the temperate and boreal regions of the [[Nearctic realm]] of [[North America]]. Eurasia and North America were often connected by the [[Bering land bridge]], and have very similar [[mammal]] and bird fauna, with many Eurasian species having moved into North America, and fewer North American species having moved into Eurasia. Many zoologists consider the Palearctic and Nearctic to be a single [[Holarctic realm]]. The Palearctic and Nearctic also share many plant species, which botanists call the [[Arcto-Tertiary Geoflora]].

===Mediterranean Basin===
{{main|Mediterranean Basin}}
The lands bordering the [[Mediterranean Sea]] in southern Europe, north Africa, and western Asia are home to the [[Mediterranean Basin]] ecoregions, which together constitute the world's largest and most diverse [[mediterranean climate]] region of the world, with generally mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. The Mediterranean basin's mosaic of [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub]] are home to 13,000 [[endemic (ecology)|endemic]] species. The Mediterranean basin is also one of the world's most endangered biogeographic regions; only 4% of the region's original vegetation remains, and human activities, including [[overgrazing]], [[deforestation]], and conversion of lands for pasture, agriculture, and urbanization, have degraded much of the region. Formerly the region was mostly covered with forests and woodlands, but heavy human use has reduced much of the region to the [[sclerophyll]] shrublands known as [[chaparral]], [[matorral]], [[Maquis shrubland|maquis]], or [[garrigue]]. [[Conservation International]] has designated the Mediterranean basin as one of the world's [[biodiversity hotspot]]s.

===Sahara and Arabian deserts===
[[Horse latitudes|A great belt of deserts]], including the [[Atlantic coastal desert]], [[Sahara]] Desert, and [[Arabian Desert]], separates the Palearctic and [[Afrotropic]] ecoregions. This scheme includes these desert ecoregions in the palearctic realm; other biogeographers identify the realm boundary as the transition zone between the desert ecoregions and the Mediterranean basin ecoregions to the north, which places the deserts in the Afrotropic, while others place the boundary through the middle of the desert.

===Western and Central Asia===
The [[Caucasus]] mountains, which run between the [[Black Sea]] and the [[Caspian Sea]], are a particularly rich mix of coniferous, broadleaf, and mixed forests, and include the [[temperate rain forest]]s of the [[Euxine-Colchic deciduous forests]] ecoregion.

[[Central Asia]] and the [[Iranian plateau]] are home to dry [[steppe]] [[grasslands]] and [[desert]] basins, with montane forests, woodlands, and grasslands in the region's high mountains and plateaux. In southern Asia the boundary of the Palearctic is largely altitudinal. The middle altitude foothills of the [[Himalaya]] between about {{Convert|2000–2500|m|abbr=on}} form the boundary between the Palearctic and [[Indomalaya]] ecoregions.

===East Asia===
[[China]], [[Korea]] and [[Japan]] are more humid and temperate than adjacent [[Siberia]] and Central Asia, and are home to rich temperate coniferous, broadleaf, and mixed forests, which are now mostly limited to mountainous areas, as the densely populated lowlands and river basins have been converted to intensive agricultural and urban use. East Asia was not much affected by glaciation in the [[ice age]]s, and retained 96 percent of [[Pliocene]]{{citation needed|date=August 2014}} tree genera, while Europe retained only 27 percent. In the subtropical region of southern China and southern edge of the Himalayas, the Palearctic temperate forests transition to the subtropical and tropical forests of [[Indomalaya]], creating a rich and diverse mix of plant and animal species. The [[mountains of southwest China]] are also designated as a [[biodiversity hotspot]]. In Southeastern Asia, high [[mountain range]]s form tongues of Palearctic flora and fauna in northern [[Indochina]] and southern [[China]]. Isolated small outposts ([[sky island]]s) occur as far south as central Myanmar (on [[Nat Ma Taung]], {{Convert|3050|m|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}}), northernmost [[Vietnam]] (on [[Fan Si Pan]], {{Convert|3140|m|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}}) and the high mountains of [[Taiwan]].

===Freshwater===
The realm contains several important [[freshwater ecoregion]]s as well, including the heavily developed [[rivers of Europe]], the [[rivers of Russia]], which flow into the [[Arctic]], [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]], [[Black Sea|Black]], and [[Caspian Sea|Caspian]] seas, [[Siberia]]'s [[Lake Baikal]], the oldest and deepest lake on the planet, and Japan's ancient [[Lake Biwa]].

==Flora and fauna==
One bird family, the [[accentor]]s (Prunellidae), is endemic to the Palearctic region. The [[Holarctic]] has four other endemic bird families: the divers or [[loon]]s (Gaviidae), [[grouse]] (Tetraoninae), [[auk]]s (Alcidae), and [[waxwing]]s (Bombycillidae).

There are no endemic [[mammal]] orders in the region, but several families are endemic: Calomyscidae ([[mouse-like hamster]]s), [[Prolagidae]], and Ailuridae ([[red panda]]s). Several mammal species originated in the Palearctic and spread to the Nearctic during [[Last glacial period|the Ice Age]], including the [[brown bear]] (''Ursus arctos'', known in North America as the grizzly), [[red deer]] (''Cervus elaphus'') in Europe and the closely related [[elk]] (''Cervus canadensis'') in far eastern Siberia, [[American bison]] (''Bison bison''), and [[reindeer]] (''Rangifer tarandus'', known in North America as the [[caribou]]).

===Megafaunal extinctions===
Several large Palearctic animals became extinct from the end of the [[Pleistocene]] into historic times, including [[Irish elk]] (''Megaloceros giganteus''), [[aurochs]] (''Bos primigenius''), [[woolly rhinoceros]] (''Coelodonta antiquitatis''), [[woolly mammoth]] (''Mammuthus primigenius''), [[North African elephant]] (''Loxodonta africana pharaoensis''), [[Elephants in ancient China|Chinese elephant]] (''Elephas maximus rubridens''), [[cave bear]] (''Ursus spelaeus''), [[Straight-tusked elephant|Straight tusked elephant]] (''Palaeoloxodon antiquus'') and [[History of lions in Europe|European lion]] (''Panthera leo europaea'').

==Palearctic terrestrial ecoregions==
[[File:Eastern palearctic biomes.svg|thumb|600px|center|The outlined ecoregions of the eastern Palearctic realm, each of a colored biome.]]
[[File:Western palearctic biomes.svg|thumb|600px|center|The outlined ecoregions of the western Palearctic realm, each of a colored biome. Note that this realm, as a whole, has 10 of [[Biome#Olson_&_Dinerstein_(1998)_biomes_for_WWF_/_Global_200|14 biomes]], or major habitat types, as defined by Olson & Dinerstein, et al. (2001).<ref name="Olson2001">Olson, D. M., Dinerstein, E., Wikramanayake, E. D., Burgess, N. D., Powell, G. V. N., Underwood, E. C., D'Amico, J. A., Itoua, I., Strand, H. E., Morrison, J. C., Loucks, C. J., Allnutt, T. F., Ricketts, T. H., Kura, Y., Lamoreux, J. F., Wettengel, W. W., Hedao, P., Kassem, K. R. (2001). Terrestrial ecoregions of the world: a new map of life on Earth. ''Bioscience'' 51(11):933–938, [http://wolfweb.unr.edu/~ldyer/classes/396/olsonetal.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120917072415/http://wolfweb.unr.edu/~ldyer/classes/396/olsonetal.pdf|date=2012-09-17}}.</ref>
{{Legend|#447821|01. [[Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests]]}}
{{Legend|#D4AA00|02. [[Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests]]}}
{{Legend|#66FF00|03. [[Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests]]}}
{{Legend|#71C837|04. [[Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests]]}}
{{Legend|#005500|05. [[Temperate coniferous forests]]}}
{{Legend|#2CA05A|06. [[Taiga|Taiga and Boreal forest]]}}
{{Legend|#FFDD55|07. [[Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#CDDE87|08. [[Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#80B3FF|09. [[Flooded grasslands and savannas]]}}
{{Legend|#C6AFE9|10. [[Montane grasslands and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#87DECD|11. [[Tundra]]}}
{{Legend|#C87137|12. [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub]]}}
{{Legend|#FFF6D5|13. [[Deserts and xeric shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#D400AA|14. [[Mangrove forest|Mangroves]]}}
{{Legend|#ECECEC|Rock and Ice, or Abiotic Land Zones}}]]

{{Palearctic tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregions}}
{| class="wikitable" style="width:70%; margin: 0 auto;"
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:lightgreen;" | Palearctic [[temperate broadleaf and mixed forest]]s
|-
| [[Apennine deciduous montane forests]]
| [[Italy]]
|-
| [[Atlantic mixed forests]]
| [[Belgium]], [[Denmark]], [[France]], [[Germany]], [[Netherlands]]
|-
| [[Azores temperate mixed forests]]
| [[Portugal]]
|-
| [[Balkan mixed forests]]
| [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Bulgaria]], [[Greece]], [[Kosovo]], [[North Macedonia]], [[Romania]], [[Serbia]], [[Turkey]]
|-
| [[Baltic mixed forests]]
| [[Denmark]], [[Germany]], [[Poland]], [[Sweden]]
|-
| [[Cantabrian mixed forests]]
| [[France]], [[Portugal]], [[Spain]]
|-
| [[Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests]]
| [[Azerbaijan]], [[Iran]]
|-
| [[Caucasus mixed forests]]
| [[Armenia]], [[Azerbaijan]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Iran]], [[Russia]], [[Turkey]]
|-
| [[Celtic broadleaf forests]]
| [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]], [[United Kingdom]]
|-
| [[Central Anatolian deciduous forests]]
| [[Turkey]]
|-
| [[Central China loess plateau mixed forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Central European mixed forests]]
| [[Austria]], [[Belarus]], [[Czech Republic]], [[Germany]], [[Lithuania]], [[Moldova]], [[Poland]], [[Romania]], [[Russia]], [[Ukraine]]
|-
| [[Central Korean deciduous forests]]
| [[North Korea]], [[South Korea]]
|-
| [[Changbai Mountains mixed forests]]
| [[China]], [[North Korea]]
|-
| [[Changjiang Plain evergreen forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Crimean Submediterranean forest complex]]
| [[Russia]], [[Ukraine]]
|-
| [[Daba Mountains evergreen forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Dinaric Mountains mixed forests]]
| [[Albania]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Croatia]], [[Italy]], [[Kosovo]], [[Montenegro]], [[Serbia]], [[Slovenia]]
|-
| [[East European forest steppe]]
| [[Bulgaria]], [[Moldova]], [[Romania]], [[Russia]], [[Ukraine]]
|-
| [[Eastern Anatolian deciduous forests]]
| [[Turkey]]
|-
| [[English Lowlands beech forests]]
| [[United Kingdom]]
|-
| [[Euxine–Colchic deciduous forests]]
| [[Bulgaria]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Turkey]]
|-
| [[Hokkaido deciduous forests]]
| [[Japan]]
|-
| [[Huang He Plain mixed forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Madeira evergreen forests]]
| [[Portugal]]
|-
| [[Manchurian mixed forests]]
| [[China]], [[North Korea]], [[Russia]], [[South Korea]]
|-
| [[Nihonkai evergreen forests]]
| [[Japan]]
|-
| [[Nihonkai montane deciduous forests]]
| [[Japan]]
|-
| [[North Atlantic moist mixed forests]]
| [[Ireland]], [[United Kingdom]] ([[Northern Ireland]], [[Scotland]]), [[Denmark]] ([[Faroe Islands]])
|-
| [[Northeast China Plain deciduous forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Pannonian mixed forests]]
| [[Austria]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Croatia]], [[Czech Republic]], [[Hungary]], [[Romania]], [[Serbia]], [[Slovakia]], [[Slovenia]], [[Ukraine]]
|-
| [[Po Basin mixed forests]]
| [[Italy]] [[Switzerland]]
|-
| [[Pyrenees conifer and mixed forests]]
| [[Andorra]], [[France]], [[Spain]]
|-
| [[Qin Ling Mountains deciduous forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Rodope montane mixed forests]]
| [[Bulgaria]], [[Greece]], [[North Macedonia]], [[Serbia]]
|-
| [[Sarmatic mixed forests]]
| [[Belarus]], [[Denmark]], [[Estonia]], [[Finland]], [[Latvia]], [[Lithuania]], [[Norway]], [[Russia]], [[Sweden]]
|-
| [[Sichuan Basin evergreen broadleaf forests]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[South Sakhalin–Kurile mixed forests]]
| [[Russia]]
|-
| [[Southern Korea evergreen forests]]
| [[South Korea]]
|-
| [[Taiheiyo evergreen forests]]
| [[Japan]]
|-
| [[Taiheiyo montane deciduous forests]]
| [[Japan]]
|-
| [[Tarim Basin deciduous forests and steppe]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Ussuri broadleaf and mixed forests]]
| [[Russia]]
|-
| [[West Siberian broadleaf and mixed forests]]
| [[Russia]]
|-
| [[Western European broadleaf forests]]
| [[Austria]], [[Belgium]], [[Czech Republic]], [[France]], [[Germany]], [[Luxembourg]]. [[Netherlands]], [[Poland]], [[Switzerland]]
|-
| [[Zagros Mountains forest steppe]]
| [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Turkey]]
|}

{{Palearctic temperate coniferous forest ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic boreal forest/taiga ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic temperate grassland, savanna, and shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic flooded grassland and savanna ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic montane grassland and shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic tundra ecoregions}}
{{Palearctic mediterranean forest, woodland, and scrub ecoregions}}
{| class="wikitable" style="width:70%; margin: 0 auto;"
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:lightgreen;" | [[Palearctic]] [[deserts and xeric shrublands]]<ref>Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, et al. (2017). An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545 [https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/bix014]</ref>
|-
| [[Afghan Mountains semi-desert]]
| [[Afghanistan]]
|-
| [[Alashan Plateau semi-desert]]
| [[China]], [[Mongolia]]
|-
| [[Arabian Desert]]
| [[Egypt]], [[Israel]], [[Iraq]], [[Jordan]], [[Kuwait]], [[Palestine]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]]
|-
| [[Atlantic coastal desert]]
| [[Mauritania]], [[Western Sahara]]
|-
| [[Azerbaijan shrub desert and steppe]]
| [[Azerbaijan]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Iran]]
|-
| [[Badghyz and Karabil semi-desert]]
| [[Afghanistan]], [[Iran]], [[Tajikistan]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Uzbekistan]]
|-
| [[Baluchistan xeric woodlands]]
| [[Afghanistan]], [[Pakistan]]
|-
| [[Caspian lowland desert]]
| [[Iran]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[Russia]], [[Turkmenistan]]
|-
| [[Central Afghan Mountains xeric woodlands]]
| [[Afghanistan]]
|-
| [[Central Asian northern desert]]
| [[Kazakhstan]], [[Uzbekistan]]
|-
| [[Central Asian riparian woodlands]]
| [[Kazakhstan]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Uzbekistan]]
|-
| [[Central Asian southern desert]]
| [[Kazakhstan]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Uzbekistan]]
|-
| [[Central Persian desert basins]]
| [[Afghanistan]], [[Iran]]
|-
| [[Eastern Gobi desert steppe]]
| [[China]], [[Mongolia]]
|-
| [[Gobi Lakes Valley desert steppe]]
| [[Mongolia]]
|-
| [[Great Lakes Basin desert steppe]]
| [[Mongolia]], [[Russia]]
|-
| [[Dzungaria|Junggar Basin semi-desert]]
| [[China]], [[Mongolia]]
|-
| [[Kazakh semi-desert]]
| [[Kazakhstan]]
|-
| [[Kopet Dag semi-desert]]
| [[Iran]], [[Turkmenistan]]
|-
| [[Mesopotamian shrub desert]]
| [[Iraq]], [[Iran]], [[Israel]], [[Jordan]], [[Syria]]
|-
| [[North Saharan steppe and woodlands]]
| [[Algeria]], [[Egypt]], [[Libya]], [[Mauritania]], [[Morocco]], [[Tunisia]], [[Western Sahara]]
|-
| [[Paropamisus xeric woodlands]]
| [[Afghanistan]]
|-
| [[Persian Gulf desert and semi-desert]]
| [[Bahrain]], [[Kuwait]], [[Oman]], [[Qatar]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[United Arab Emirates]]
|-
| [[Qaidam Basin semi-desert]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Red Sea coastal desert]]
| [[Egypt]], [[Sudan]]
|-
| [[Red Sea Nubo–Sindian tropical desert and semi-desert]]
| [[Egypt]], [[Jordan]], [[Oman]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]]
|-
| [[Registan–North Pakistan sandy desert]]
| [[Afghanistan]], [[Iran]], [[Pakistan]]
|-
| [[Sahara desert (ecoregion)|Sahara desert]]
| [[Algeria]], [[Chad]], [[Egypt]], [[Libya]], [[Mali]], [[Niger]], [[Sudan]], [[Western Sahara]]
|-
| [[South Iran Nubo–Sindian desert and semi-desert]]
| [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Pakistan]]
|-
| [[South Saharan steppe and woodlands]]
| [[Algeria]], [[Chad]], [[Mali]], [[Mauritania]], [[Niger]], [[Sudan]]
|-
| [[Taklamakan Desert|Taklimakan desert]]
| [[China]]
|-
| [[Tibesti–Jebel Uweinat montane xeric woodlands]]
| [[Chad]], [[Egypt]], [[Libya]], [[Sudan]]
|-
| [[West Saharan montane xeric woodlands]]
| [[Algeria]], [[Mali]], [[Mauritania]], [[Niger]]
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==General references==
* Amorosi, T. "Contributions to the zooarchaeology of Iceland: some preliminary notes" in ''The Anthropology of Iceland'' (eds. E.P. Durrenberger & G. Pálsson). Iowa City: [[University of Iowa Press]], pp.&nbsp;203–227, 1989.
* Buckland, P.C., et al. "Holt in Eyjafjasveit, Iceland: a paleoecological study of the impact of Landnám" in ''[[Acta Archaeologica]]'' 61: pp.&nbsp;252–271. 1991.
* http://www.Merriam-Webster.com
* http://www.Canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca
* http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/ecozones/Palearctic_ecozone
* Edmund Burke III, "The Transformation of the middle Eastern Environment, 1500 B.C.E.–2000 C.E." in ''The Environment and World History'', ed. Edmund Burke III and Kenneth Pomeranz. Berkeley: University of California Press. 2009, 82–84.

==External links==
{{sister project links|auto=1}}
* [http://www.avionary.info Avionary] 1500 Bird species of the Western and Central Palaearctic in 46 languages
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060614215124/http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/ecoregions/maps/index.cfm Map of the ecozones]

{{Biomes}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Palearctic realm| ]]
[[Category:Biogeography]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of Asia|.]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of Europe|*]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of Africa|.]]
[[Category:Biogeographic realms]]
[[Category:Flora of temperate Asia|*]]
[[Category:Natural history of Asia]]
[[Category:Natural history of Europe]]
[[Category:Natural history of Africa]]
[[Category:Phytogeography]]