Editing Valdivian temperate forests (section)

==Flora==
[[Image:Nimbosilva de Fray Jorge.jpg|thumbnail|Valdivian [[cloud forest]] [[Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park|Bosque de Fray Jorge]] in semi-arid [[Norte Chico, Chile|Norte Chico]].]]
The Valdivian temperate rain forests are [[temperate broadleaf and mixed forests]]. The Valdivian and Magellanic temperate rainforests are the only [[temperate rain forest]]s in [[South America]] and one of a small number of temperate rain forests in the world. Together they are the second largest in the world, after the [[Pacific temperate rain forests]] of [[North America]] (which stretches from Alaska to northern California). The Valdivian forests are a refuge for the [[Antarctic flora]], and share many plant families with the temperate rainforests of [[New Zealand]], [[Tasmania]], and [[Australia]]. Fully half the species of woody plants are [[endemic (ecology)|endemic]] to this ecoregion.

''[[Chusquea quila]]'' is a [[bamboo]] that grows in humid areas below 500 m, where ''[[Chusquea culeou]]'' becomes more dominant above. ''Chusquea quila'' can form pure stands called ''quilantales''. Very few plants can grow under this species. Other notable species are the ''[[nalca]]'' or Chilean rhubarb (''Gunnera tinctoria'') and the ferns ''[[Lophosoria quadripinnata]]'' and ''[[Parablechnum cordatum]]''. Chile's national flower, the ''[[copihue]]'' (''Lapageria rosea'') is a [[pioneer species]] that grows in disturbed areas of the Valdivian rain forest.

The maximum plant species richness is found at latitudes 40 to 43° S.<ref name=arroyoetal95/>

===Forest ecosystems===
[[File:Alerce chileno.JPG|thumb|left|''[[Fitzroya cupressoides|Alerce]]'']]
There are four main types of forest ecosystems in the Valdivian ecoregion. 

'''Deciduous forests'''. At the northern end of the ecoregion are deciduous forests, dominated by deciduous species of [[southern beech]], including ''rauli'' (''[[Nothofagus alpina]]'') and ''roble'' (''[[Nothofagus obliqua|N. obliqua]]''). This is a transitional zone to the Mediterranean-climate region to the north. It grows from 35 to 36º S latitude along [[Chilean Coast Range]], where it is known as [[Maulino forest]]. ''[[Nothofagus glauca]]'' and ''[[Nothofagus alessandrii|N. Alessandrii]]'' are predominant trees in Maulino forest.<ref name = Moreira>Moreira-Munoz, Andres (2011). ''Plant Geography of Chile''. Springer Dordrecht, January 2011. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8748-5</ref> Deciduous ''Nothofagus'' forests also grow along the [[Andes]] of central Chile as far north as 33º S latitude, from approximately 1,200 meters elevation up to the [[tree line]] at 2,400 meters elevation.<ref name = "wwf">{{WWF ecoregion|id=nt0404|name=Valdivian temperate forests|Retrieved 22 April 2023}}</ref> A [[krummholz]] of ''[[Nothofagus antarctica]]'' and ''[[Nothofagus pumilio|N. pumilio]]'' grows near the tree line. The southern limit of these forests is 38º S latitude. Tall coniferous [[Araucaria araucana|pehuén]] monkey-puzzle trees (''Araucaria araucana'') grow at the southern edge of the deciduous forests, from the coast at [[Nahuelbuta National Park]] to the Andes.<ref name = Moreira/>

'''Valdivian laurel-leaved forests'''. Valdivian [[laurel forest|laurel-leaved forests]], characterized by a variety of broadleaf evergreen trees, including ''[[Laureliopsis|Laureliopsis philippiana]]'', ''[[Aextoxicon|Aextoxicon punctatum]]'', ''[[Eucryphia cordifolia]]'', ''[[Caldcluvia paniculata]]'', and ''[[Weinmannia trichosperma]]'', with an understory of ''[[Myrceugenia planipes]]'', the ''[[Luma apiculata|arrayán]]'' (''Luma apiculata'') and other plants. Old-growth Valdivian evergreen forest (siempreverde) tend to form stratified [[Canopy (biology)|canopy]] made up of two or three layers.<ref name=Bosque2020-3>{{Cite journal|title=Patrones de distribución de alturas de bosques antiguos siempreverde del centro-sur de Chile|journal=[[Bosque (journal)|Bosque]]|url=https://scielo.conicyt.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-92002019000300355&lng=es&nrm=iso&tlng=es|last=Oyarzún|first=Alejandro|volume=40|last2=Donoso|first2=Pablo J.|last3=Gutiérrez|first3=Álvaro|trans-title=Tree height distributions in the canopy of old-growth temperate rainforests of south-central Chile|language=Spanish|publisher=[[Austral University of Chile]]|issue=3|doi=10.4067/S0717-92002019000300355  |year=2019|doi-access=free}}</ref>

'''Patagonian Andean forests'''. The third forest type is the [[Patagonian Andean forest]]s, which are distributed at higher elevations along the Andes mountain front, and are dominated by evergreen [[conifer]]s, including ''pehuén'' (''Araucaria araucana'') and ''[[Fitzroya|alerce]]'' (''Fitzroya cupressoides''). The ''alerce'' looks like a [[giant sequoia]], and is a rival in longevity to the [[bristlecone pine]], some with growth rings recording 3,625 years of local weather cycles. Closer to the treeline, the conifers give way to Andean scrublands of deciduous ''[[Nothofagus antarctica]]''.

'''Northern Patagonian forests'''. The fourth and last type is the Northern Patagonian forests, which dominate the southern half of the ecoregion, with evergreen species such as the broadleaf ''[[Nothofagus dombeyi]]'', ''[[Nothofagus betuloides]]'' and ''[[Drimys winteri]]'' and the coniferous [[Podocarpaceae|podocarps]], including ''[[Podocarpus nubigenus]]''.

Distribution of plants follow [[Rapoport's rule]] with plant species distribution increasing at higher latitudes and decreasing at those closer to the equator, incidents of endemism becoming more frequent as one moves equatorward.<ref name=arroyoetal95/>

Lowland [[soil]]s near the coast contain more available nutrients than more inland soils.<ref name=perez95>{{cite book |last=Pérez|first=Cecilia|date=1995|editor-last=Armesto|editor-first=Juan J. |editor-last2=Villagrán|editor-first2=Carolina|editor-last3=Arroyo|editor-first3=Mary Kalin|editor-link2=Carolina Villagrán |chapter=Los procesos de descomposición de la materia orgánica de bosques templados costeros: Interacción entre suelo, clima y vegetación|title=Ecología de los bosques nativos de Chile|location=Santiago de Chile |publisher=[[Editorial Universitaria]] |pages=301–315 |isbn=9561112841 |language=es|trans-chapter=Litter decomposition processes in coastal temperate forest: Interactions between plants, soils and vegetation}}</ref>

===Origin and evolution===
The flora of the forests has inherited and developed its characteristics due to a variety of causes. Its Neotropical affinities reflect its current geographic connection to the remaining South America.<ref name=arroyoetal95/> Its "Gondwanan" species are a legacy of the ancient [[supercontinent]] of [[Gondwana]], a landmass formerly composed of South America, Africa, India, Antarctica and Australia. The high degree of [[endemic]] species and [[monospecific]] genera is thought to be linked to the geographic isolation came into being as result of the [[Andean orogeny|uplift of the Andes]].<ref name=arroyoetal95>{{cite book |last=Arroyo|first=Mary Kalin|author-link=Mary Kalin Arroyo |last2=Cavieres |first2=Lohengrin |last3=Peñaloza|first3=Alejandro|last4=Riveros |first4=Magal |last5=Faggi|first5=Ana María|date=1995|editor-last=Armesto|editor-first=Juan J. |editor-last2=Villagrán|editor-first2=Carolina|editor-last3=Arroyo|editor-first3=Mary Kalin|editor-link2=Carolina Villagrán |title=Ecología de los bosques nativos de Chile|chapter=Relaciones fitogeográficas y patrones regionales de riqueza de especies en la flora del bosque lluvioso templado de Sudamérica|location=Santiago de Chile |publisher=[[Editorial Universitaria]] |pages=71–99 |isbn=9561112841 |language=es|trans-chapter=Floristic structure and human impact on the Maulino forest of Chile}}</ref> There are a few "[[Biantitropical distribution|boreal]]" components in the Valdivian temperate rain forest which arrived by long-distance transport.<ref name=arroyoetal95/> Yet another component are the species from nearby South American ecosystems that adapted to the temperate rainforest.<ref name=arroyoetal95/> 

During the [[Llanquihue glaciation]] much of the area west of [[Llanquihue Lake]] remained ice-free during the [[Last Glacial Maximum]] and had sparsely distributed vegetation dominated by ''[[Nothofagus]]'' species. Valdivian temperate rain forest proper was reduced to scattered remnants in to the west of the Andes.<ref>{{cite web |author-last=Adams |author-first=Jonathan |title=South America during the last 150,000 years |url=http://www.esd.ornl.gov/projects/qen/nercSOUTHAMERICA.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100130085619/http://www.esd.ornl.gov/projects/qen/nercSOUTHAMERICA.html |archive-date=2010-01-30 }}</ref> More specifically the [[Last Glacial Maximum refugia|refugia]] of the Valdivian temperate rain forest between latitudes 41 and 37° S were; the coastal region, the lower slopes of the Chilean Coast Range and the westernmost [[Chilean Central Valley]] all of which remained free of disturbance by the glacial, [[glacifluvial]] and [[periglacial]] disturbance through the glaciation.<ref name=VillagranHinojosa2005>{{cite book |last=Villagrán |first=Carolina|last2=Hinojosa |first2=Luis Felipe|author-link1=Carolina Villagrán |date=2005|language=es |title=Regionalización Biogeográfica en Iberoámeríca y tópicos afines |chapter=Esquema biogeográfico de Chile |editor-last=Llorente Bousquests|editor-first=Jorge|editor-last2=Morrone |editor-first2=Juan J. |location=Mexico |publisher=Ediciones de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Jiménez Editores }}</ref><ref name=VeitGarleff1995>{{cite book |last=Veit |first=Heinz |last2=Garleff |first2=Karsten |date=1995|editor-last=Armesto|editor-first=Juan J. |editor-last2=Villagrán|editor-first2=Carolina|editor-last3=Arroyo|editor-first3=Mary Kalin|editor-link2=Carolina Villagrán|editor-link3=Mary Kalin Arroyo |title=Ecología de los bosques nativos de Chile|chapter=Evolución del paisaje cuaternario y los suelos de Chile Central-Sur |location=Santiago de Chile |publisher=[[Editorial Universitaria]] |pages=29–49 |isbn=9561112841 }}</ref>