This page features a list of biogeographic provinces that were developed by Miklos Udvardy in 1975,[1][2] later modified by other authors.[according to whom?] Biogeographic Province is a biotic subdivision of biogeographic realms subdivided into ecoregions, which are classified based on their biomes or habitat types and, on this page, correspond to the floristic kingdoms of botany.
The provinces represent the large areas of Earth's surface within which organisms have been evolving in relative isolation over long periods of time, separated from one another by geographic features, such as oceans, broad deserts, or high mountain ranges, that constitute barriers to migration.
Biomes are characterized by similar climax vegetation, though each realm may include a number of different biomes. A tropical moist broadleaf forest in Brazil, for example, may be similar to one in New Guinea in its vegetation type and structure, climate, soils, etc., but these forests are inhabited by plants with very different evolutionary histories.
Ecoregions of the Afrotropical realm, color-coded by biome. Dark green: tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. Light brown: tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests. Yellow: tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands. Light green: temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands. Light blue: flooded grasslands and savannas. Light purple: montane grasslands and shrublands. Brown: Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub. Beige: deserts and xeric shrublands. Magenta: mangroves
Tropical humid forests
Guinean Rainforest
Congo Rainforest
Malagasy Rainforest
Tropical dry or deciduous forests (incl. Monsoon forests) or woodlands
West African Woodland/Savanna
East African Woodland/Savanna
Congo Woodland/Savanna
Miombo Woodland/Savanna
South African Woodland/Savanna
Malagasy Woodland/Savanna
Malagasy Thorn Forest
Evergreen sclerophyllous forests, scrubs or woodlands
Cape Sclerophyll
Warm deserts and semideserts
Western Sahel
Eastern Sahel
Somalian
Namib
Kalahari
Karroo
Mixed mountain and highland systems with complex zonation
Wilderness National Park, an evergreen sclerophyllous woodland
Antarctic Realm
The Antarctic biogeographic realm (New Zealand is included in Udvardy's interpretation, which is known as Neozealandia)
Tundra communities and barren Antarctic desert
Subtropical and temperate rain forests or woodlands
Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, an Antarctic desert
Pureora Forest Park, a subtropical rainforest in North Island
Remutaka Forest Park, a temperate woodland in South Island
Antipodes Subantarctic Islands tundra, a tundra community
Australasian Realm
Ecoregions of the Australasian realm, color-coded by biome(Udvardy's model excludes the South Pacific islands, such as New Guinea and New Zealand). Dark green: tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. Light brown: tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests. Yellow: tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands. Green: temperate broadleaf and mixed forests. Light green: temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands. Light blue: flooded grasslands and savannas. Light purple: montane grasslands and shrublands. Brown: Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub. Beige: deserts and xeric shrublands. Magenta: mangroves.
Tropical humid forests
Queensland Coastal
Subtropical and temperate rain forests or woodlands
Tasmanian
Tropical dry or deciduous forests (incl. Monsoon forests) or woodlands
Northern Coastal
Evergreen sclerophyllous forests, scrubs or woodlands
Western Sclerophyll
Eastern Sclerophyll
Brigalow
Warm deserts and semideserts
Western Mulga
Central Desert
Southern Mulga/Saltbush
Tropical grasslands and savannas
Northern Savanna
Northern Grasslands
Temperate grasslands
Eastern Grasslands and Savannas
Daintree rainforest, a tropical humid forest
D'Aguilar National Park, a subtropical forest
Mount Field National Park, a temperate forest
Cumberland Plain Woodland, an evergreen sclerophyllous woodland-savannah
Mongolian-Manchurian grassland, a temperate grassland
Ben Nevis, a montane system
Region coding
The hierarchy of the scheme is (with early replaced terms in parentheses):[1]
biogeographic realm (= biogeographic regions and subregions), with 8 categories
biogeographic province (= biotic province), with 193 categories, each characterized by a major biome or biome-complex
biome, with 14 types: tropical humid forests (1); subtropical and temperate rain forests or woodlands (2); temperate needle-leaf forests or woodlands (3); tropical dry of deciduous forests (including monsoon forests) or woodlands (4); temperate broad-lead forests or woodlands and subpolar deciduous thickets (5); evergreen sclerophyllous forests, scrubs or woodlands (6); warm deserts and semideserts (7); cold-winter (continental) deserts and semideserts (8); tundra communities and barren arctic desert (9); tropical grassland and savannas (10); temperate grasslands (11); mixed mountain and highland systems with complex zonation (12); mixed island systems (13); lake systems (14).
So, for example, the Australian Central Desert province is in the Australasian realm (6), is the 9th biogeographic province in that realm, and its biome falls within "warm deserts and semideserts" (7), so it is coded 6.9.7.
The realms and provinces of the scheme are hence coded as follows:
↑ Jump up to: 1.01.1Udvardy, M. D. F. (1975). A classification of the biogeographical provinces of the world. IUCN Occasional Paper no. 18. Morges, Switzerland: IUCN.
↑Udvardy, Miklos D. F. (1975) World Biogeographical Provinces (Map). The CoEvolution Quarterly, Sausalito, California. link.
Bibliography
Dassman, Raymond (1976). "Biogeographical Provinces". CoEvolution Quarterly, Number 11, Fall 1976.