Appalachian temperate rainforest

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The Appalachian temperate rainforest or Appalachian cloud forest is located in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States and is among the most biodiverse temperate regions in the world. Centered primarily around Southern Appalachian spruce–fir forests between southwestern Virginia and southwestern North Carolina, it has a cool, mild climate with highly variable temperature and precipitation patterns linked to elevation. The temperate rainforest as a whole has a mean annual temperature near 7 °C (45 °F) and annual precipitation exceeding 140 centimeters (55 in), though the highest peaks can reach more than 200 centimeters (79 in) and are frequently shrouded in fog. Due to variable microclimates across different elevations, the rainforest is able to support both southern and northern species, including some which were forced south during the Last Ice Age. Dominated by evergreen spruce and fir forests at higher elevations and deciduous cove forests at lower elevations, the ecosystem contains thousands of plant species, including epiphytes, orchids, and numerous mosses and ferns. It is also home to many animals and fungi, including endangered and endemic species, reaching the highest diversities of mushrooms, salamanders, land snails, and millipedes in the world. Humans have shaped the rainforest environment for the last 12,000 years through activities such as hunting and agriculture. These impacts grew following European colonization, which brought about significant changes, including the decline of native populations, land use alterations, and the introduction of non-native species. By the 1880s, industrialization left the forest devastated by mining, logging and the introduction of destructive invasive species, examples being chestnut blight and the balsam woolly adelgid. Conservation efforts, such as the establishment of national forests and parks, have helped preserve the ecosystem, though it continues to face ongoing threats such as wildfire and climate change.