BIOGEOCLIMATIC ZONES


In British Columbia, areas with similar climate, vegetation, and soil types are

often grouped together as biogeoclimatic zones.  There are 14 zones in total:

i) Alpine Tundra          ii) Spruce-Willow-Birch
iii) Boreal White and Black Spruce    iv) Sub-boreal Pine-Spruce
v) Sub-boreal Spruce   vi) Mountain Hemlock
vii) Engelmann Spruce - Subalpine Fir        viii) Montane Spruce
ix) Bunchgrass      x) Ponderosa Pine     xi) Interior Douglas Fir
xii)  Coastal Douglas Fir      xiii) Interior Cedar-Hemlock
xiv) Coastal Western Hemlock


These zones can be further divided into subzones used to describe slight variations between different areas of each zone (e.g. xh1 bunchgrass (drier) vs xw bunchgrass (wetter) ).


For more information on these biogeoclimatic zones, here are two sites which are particularly good:
Selkirk College: Selkirk.bc.ca/RR/bec/zones (site gives general overview of biogeoclimatic zones plus has a map)

BC Ministry of Forests Website On Biogeoclimatic Zones.        http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/becweb/index.html  (this site contains information on the history of biogeoclimatic zones, various features of the biogeoclimatic zones, and interactive map of biogeoclimatic zones)

Kamloops Forest Region:


The Ministry of Forests in British Columbia, for administrative purposes, has broken down various parts of the province into forest regions.  These regions are named based on geographic features (e.g. large cities) and are quite large in size.  There are six regions in total:

i) Kamloops Forest Region       ii) Prince Rupert Forest Region.
iii) Cariboo Forest Region        iv) Prince George Forest Region
v) Nelson Forest Region        vi)  Vancouver Forest Region


These regions contain many biogeoclimatic zones and subzones. The Kamloops Forest Region is very diverse in its geographical properties. 

This is a map of British Columbia (the area in red represents the Kamloops Forest District)


This is a map of the Kamloops Forest District created using ArcGIS and edited using Freehand.






The Kamloops Forest Region is a region of contrasts.  Some areas, such as the Alpine Tundra zones, are cold and very snowy.  Other areas, such as the Bunchgrass zones, have Canada’s hottest summer temperatures and some of the driest conditions in Canada. 

Alpine Tundra Zone:



Photo: from www.moorewallpaper.com

 

Bunchgrass Zone:



Photo: from www.goldcountry.bc.ca

Coastal Western Hemlock Zone:


Photo: from www.rodjules.com
 
Englemann Spruce - Subalpine Fir Zone:


Photo: from www.tarleton.edu

Interior Cedar-Hemlock Zone:

Photo: from www.mabellakevacations.com


Interior Douglas Fir Zone:



Photo: from www.offwell.free-online.co.uk/tree_gallery/douglas_fir/douglas_fir.html

Montane Spruce Zone:


Photo: from www.karenmissire.com/natural%20surroundings.html


Ponderosa Pine Zone:


Photo from: www.tarleton.edu

Subboreal Spruce Zone:



Photo from: sis.agr.ca/cansis/taxa/landscape/veget

Climatic Data Was Added to Each Subzone of the Zones found in the Kamloops Forest Region:
(Present Climate Data);

1)  Frost-Free Period
(Shortest)                                                    (Longest)
 AT (minimum 4 days)                                 CWH ds1 and ms1 (178 days)

2) Growing Degree Days
(Fewest)                                                     (Most)
AT (200)                                                     BG Xh2 (2269)

3) January Mean Daily Minimum Temperatures (in Kelvin)
(Lowest)                                                      (Highest)

AT (251 K)                                                   CWH ds1 and ms1 (268 K)

4)  July Mean Daily Maximum Temperatures (in Celsius)
(Lowest)                                                      (Highest)
AT (12)                                                         BG Xh2 and Xh1 (Both 30)

5) Average Annual Precipitation (in mm)
(Lowest)                                                      (Highest)
 BG Xh2 (242)                                              MH mm2 (4000)

Here is a map of the BG and PP zones in the Kamloops Forest Region, zones with the warm, dry climatic conditions desirable for apple
and grape-growing: *Brown Areas are Ponderosa Pine areas at present and Red Areas are Bunchgrass Zones at Present.


Here is a map of the AT zone in the Kamloops Forest Region, a zone in which climatic conditions are cold and wet (i.e. we wouldn`t
expect wine-grape and apple growing to be good here): *Blue areas are AT.




For more information on the zones and subzones found within the Kamloops Forest Region and the Kamloops Forest Region itself, here is a good resource:

Forest Science Handbook and Abstract Page on the Ministry of Forests Website (http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Lmh.htm)
(This website contains various documents (mostly in PDF format) about various forest regions and issues of interest to forest regions)

    Here is the link to the “Guide to Site Identification and Interpretation for the Kamloops Forest Region”:
(http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Docs/Lmh/Lmh23.htm)
This guidebook consists of climatic, soil, and vegetation information on every zone and subzone found within the region.



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