Future worlds
Habitats of the future
Northern Forest
Along latitudes about 30 to 60 degrees north, the prevailing winds are westerlies that bring huge amounts of rain to the northwest coast of the continent. This creates extensive, lush areas of temperate forest, something similar to the rainforest of northwest USA but much, much more extensive.
Constant rain from saturated onshore winds, frequent westerly storms and little sunshine causes rain to fall relentlessly on the north-western region of Pangaea ll.
The conditions are warm and humid with an atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide. These hothouse conditions, ideal for plant growth, have led to a vigorous forest, teeming with life.
The continuous torrential rain has made great rivers, lakes and swamps.
The tallest trees are conifers, growing to the same height as the redwoods that have dominated the region since the Triassic. Flowering plants are rare in the forest; only lichens - symbiotic associations between algae and fungi - grow everywhere. In the moisture of the forest, they have grown to tree size. The low level of the forest is a tangle of lichen trees. Their trailing feathery structures absorb moisture and photosynthesise. Their spores, bursting from sacs as animals brush by, are easily distributed.
