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PerytonMango (talk | contribs) More summary on deforestation and made the section under definitions clearer and easier to read |
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Forests form distinctly different [[biome]]s at different latitudes and elevations, and with different precipitation and [[evapotranspiration]] rates. <ref>{{Cite book|last=Holdridge |first=L.R. |url=http://reddcr.go.cr/sites/default/files/centro-de-documentacion/holdridge_1966_-_life_zone_ecology.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005035018/http://reddcr.go.cr/sites/default/files/centro-de-documentacion/holdridge_1966_-_life_zone_ecology.pdf |archive-date=5 October 2016 |url-status=live |title=Life zone ecology |publisher=Tropical Science Center |location=San Jose, Costa Rica}}</ref> These biomes include [[boreal]] forests in subarctic climates, [[tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests|tropical moist forests]] and [[tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests|tropical dry forests]] around the [[tropics|Equator]], and [[temperate forest]]s at the [[middle latitudes]]. Forests form in areas of the Earth with high rainfall, while drier conditions produce a transition to [[savanna]]. However, in areas with intermediate rainfall levels, forest transitions to savanna rapidly when the percentage of land that is covered by trees drops below 40 to 45 percent.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Edwards |first1=Lin |title=Forest and savanna can switch quickly |url=https://phys.org/news/2011-10-forest-savanna-quickly.html |website=Phys.org}}</ref> Research conducted in the [[Amazon rainforest]] shows that trees can alter rainfall rates across a region, releasing water from their leaves in anticipation of seasonal rains to trigger the wet season early. Because of this, seasonal rainfall in the Amazon begins 2 to 3 months earlier than the climate would otherwise allow.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rasmussen |first1=Carol |title=New study shows the Amazon makes its own rainy season |url=https://climate.nasa.gov/news/2608/new-study-shows-the-amazon-makes-its-own-rainy-season/ |website=nasa.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Loomis |first1=Ilima |title=Trees in the Amazon make their own rain |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/trees-amazon-make-their-own-rain}}</ref> [[Deforestation]] in the Amazon and anthropogenic [[climate change]] hold the potential to interfere with this process, causing the forest to pass a threshold where it transitions into savanna.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kimbrough |first1=Liz |title=More droughts are coming, and the Amazon can't keep up: Study |url=https://news.mongabay.com/2022/09/more-droughts-are-coming-and-the-amazon-isnt-ready-study/ |website=Mongabay}}</ref>
[[Deforestation]] threatens many forest ecosystems. Deforestation occurs when humans remove trees from a forested area by cutting or burning, either to harvest [[timber]] or to make way for farming. Most deforestation today occurs in tropical forests. The vast majority of this deforestation is because of the production of four commodities: [[wood]], [[beef]], [[soy]], and [[palm oil]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Derouin |first1=Sarah |title=Deforestation: facts, causes & effects |url=https://www.livescience.com/27692-deforestation.html |website=Live Science}}</ref> Over the past 2,000 years, the area of land covered by forest in [[Europe]] has been reduced from 80% to 34%. Large areas of forest have also been cleared in [[China]] and in the eastern [[United States]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Deforestation |url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/deforestation/ |publisher=National Geographic}}</ref>
Human society and forests can affect one another positively or negatively.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Global Societies and Forest Legacies Creating Today's Forest Landscapes |pages=30–59 |title=Forests and Society: Sustainability and Life Cycles of Forests in Human Landscapes |editor-last=Vogt |editor-first=Kristina A |year=2007 |publisher=CABI |isbn=978-1-84593-098-1}}</ref> Forests provide [[ecosystem services]] to humans and serve as tourist attractions. Forests can also affect people's health.<!--Specific statements supported by refs in "Relationship to human society" section--> Human activities, including unsustainable use of forest resources, can negatively affect forest ecosystems.<!--See same section for refs--><ref>{{Cite web|date=7 February 2019 |title=Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/deforestation |access-date=21 July 2021 |website=[[National Geographic]] Environment |language=en}}</ref>
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