Editing Alps (section)

== Ecology ==
{{main|Alps conifer and mixed forests}}

=== Flora ===
{{main|Flora of the Alps}}

[[File:Gentiana clusii03.jpg|thumb|Stemless gentian (''[[Gentiana acaulis]]'')]]

Thirteen thousand species of plants have been identified in the Alpine regions.<ref name = "Chatré8"/> Alpine plants are grouped by habitat and soil type which can be [[limestone]] or non-calcareous. The habitats range from meadows, bogs, and woodland (deciduous and coniferous) areas to soil-less scree and [[moraine]]s, and rock faces and ridges.<ref name="Reynolds43ff">Reynolds, (2012), 43–45</ref> A natural vegetation limit with altitude is given by the presence of the chief [[deciduous]] trees—oak, beech, [[Ash tree|ash]] and [[sycamore maple]]. These do not reach the same elevation, nor are they often found growing together, but their upper limit corresponds accurately enough to the change from a temperate to a colder climate that is further proved by a change in the presence of wild herbaceous vegetation.{{sfn|Coolidge|Lake|Knox|1911|p=738}} This limit usually lies about {{cvt|1200|m}} above the sea on the north side of the Alps, but on the southern slopes it often rises to {{cvt|1500|m}}, sometimes even to {{cvt|1700|m}}.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 75</ref>
[[File:Leontopodium alpinum1.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Edelweiss (''[[Edelweiss|Leontopodium alpinum]]'')]]

Above the forestry, there is often a band of dwarf pine trees (''[[Pinus mugo]]''), which is in turn superseded by ''Alpenrosen'', dwarf shrubs, typically ''[[Rhododendron ferrugineum]]'' (on acid soils) or ''[[Rhododendron hirsutum]]'' (on alkaline soils).<ref>Beattie (2006), 17</ref> Although Alpenrose prefers acidic soil, the plants are found throughout the region.<ref name="Reynolds43ff" /> Above the [[tree line]] is the area defined as "alpine" where in the [[alpine meadow]] plants are found that have adapted well to harsh conditions of cold temperatures, aridity, and [[high-altitude adaptation|high altitudes]]. The alpine area fluctuates greatly because of regional fluctuations in tree lines.<ref>Körner (2003), 9</ref>

Alpine plants such as the [[Gentiana acaulis|Alpine gentian]] grow in abundance in areas such as the meadows above the [[Lauterbrunnental]]. Gentians are named after the [[Illyria]]n king [[Gentius]], and 40 species of the early-spring blooming flower grow in the Alps, in a range of {{cvt|1500|to|2,400|m}}.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 85</ref> Writing about the gentians in Switzerland [[D. H. Lawrence]] described them as "darkening the day-time, torch-like with the smoking blueness of Pluto's gloom."<ref>qtd in Beattie (2006), 17</ref> Gentians tend to "appear" repeatedly as the spring blooming takes place at progressively later dates, moving from the lower altitude to the higher altitude meadows where the snow melts much later than in the valleys. On the highest rocky ledges, the spring flowers bloom in the summer.<ref name="Reynolds43ff" />

[[File:Herbst am Watzmann.jpg|thumb|right|[[Berchtesgaden National Park]] in [[Bavaria]]]]
[[File:Naturasollieres.jpg|thumb|Preserved internal alpine forest and meadow, [[Vanoise National Park]]]]

At these higher altitudes, the plants tend to form isolated cushions. In the Alps, several species of flowering plants have been recorded above {{cvt|4000|m}}, including ''[[Ranunculus glacialis]]'', ''[[Androsace alpina]]'' and ''[[Saxifraga biflora]]''. ''[[Eritrichium nanum]]'', commonly known as the King of the Alps, is the most elusive of the alpine flowers, growing on rocky ridges at {{cvt|2600|to|3,750|m}}.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 87</ref> Perhaps the best known of the alpine plants is [[Edelweiss]] which grows in rocky areas and can be found at altitudes as low as {{cvt|1200|m}} and as high as {{cvt|3400|m}}.<ref name="Reynolds43ff" /> The plants that grow at the highest altitudes have adapted to conditions by specialization such as growing in rock screes that give protection from winds.<ref name = "Sharp14ff">Sharp (2002), 14</ref>

The extreme and stressful climatic conditions give way to the growth of plant species with [[secondary metabolites]] important for medicinal purposes. ''[[Origanum vulgare]]'', ''[[Prunella vulgaris]]'', ''[[Solanum nigrum]]'', and ''[[Urtica dioica]]'' are some of the more useful medicinal species found in the Alps.<ref>[[Chandra Prakash Kala|Kala, C.P.]] and Ratajc, P. 2012.[https://rd.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-012-0246-x "High altitude biodiversity of the Alps and the Himalayas: ethnobotany, plant distribution and conservation perspective".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014101137/https://rd.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-012-0246-x |date=October 14, 2017 }} ''Biodiversity and Conservation'', 21 (4): 1115–1126.</ref>
Human interference has nearly exterminated the trees in many areas, and, except for the beech forests of the Austrian Alps, forests of deciduous trees are rarely found after the extreme deforestation between the 17th and 19th centuries.<ref>Gerrard (1990), 225</ref> The vegetation has changed since the second half of the 20th century, as the high alpine meadows cease to be harvested for hay or used for grazing which eventually might result in a regrowth of the forest. In some areas, the modern practice of building ski runs by mechanical means has destroyed the underlying tundra from which the plant life cannot recover during the non-skiing months, whereas areas that still practice a natural ''piste'' type of ski slope building preserve the fragile underlayers.<ref name = "Sharp14ff"/>

=== Fauna ===
The Alps are a habitat for 30,000 species of wildlife, ranging from the tiniest [[snow flea]]s to [[brown bear]]s, many of which have made adaptations to the harsh cold conditions and high altitudes to the point that some only survive in specific micro-climates either directly above or below the [[snow line]].<ref name = "Chatré8"/><ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 90, 96, 101</ref>

[[File:Jeune bouquetin de face.jpg|thumb|upright|Young alpine ibex. When fully grown the horns of this male will be about one metre wide.]]

The largest mammal to live in the highest altitudes are the [[alpine ibex]], which have been sighted as high as {{cvt|3000|m}}. The ibex live in caves and descend to eat the succulent alpine grasses.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 104</ref> Classified as [[antelopes]],<ref name="Reynolds43ff" /> [[chamois]] are smaller than ibex and found throughout the Alps, living above the tree line and are common in the entire alpine range.<ref>Rupicapra rupicapra [Linnaeus, 1758] [http://www.ultimateungulate.com/Artiodactyla/Rupicapra_rupicapra.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140406102837/http://www.ultimateungulate.com/artiodactyla/rupicapra_rupicapra.html|date=April 6, 2014}}</ref> Areas of the eastern Alps are still home to brown bears. In Switzerland the [[canton of Bern]] was named for the bears but the last bear is recorded as having been killed in 1792 above [[Kleine Scheidegg]] by three hunters from [[Grindelwald]].<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 101</ref>

Many rodents such as [[voles]] live underground. [[Marmots]] live almost exclusively above the tree line as high as {{cvt|2700|m}}. They hibernate in large groups to provide warmth,<ref name="Shoumatoff102ff">Shoumatoff (2001), 102–103</ref> and can be found in all areas of the Alps, in large colonies they build beneath the alpine pastures.<ref name="Reynolds43ff" /> [[Golden eagle]]s and [[bearded vulture]]s are the largest birds to be found in the Alps; they nest high on rocky ledges and can be found at altitudes of {{cvt|2400|m}}. The most common bird is the [[alpine chough]] which can be found scavenging at climber's huts or the [[Jungfraujoch]], a high-altitude tourist destination.<ref name="Shoumatoff97ff">Shoumatoff (2001), 97–98</ref>

[[File:Parnassius phoebus.jpg|thumb|left|The alpine [[Apollo butterfly]] has adapted to alpine conditions.]]

Reptiles such as [[Viperidae|adders]] and [[Viperidae|vipers]] live up to the snow line; because they cannot bear the cold temperatures they hibernate underground and soak up the warmth on rocky ledges.<ref name = "Shoumatoff95ff">Shoumatoff (2001), 96</ref> The high-altitude [[Alpine salamander]]s have adapted to living above the snow line by giving birth to fully developed young rather than laying eggs. [[Brown trout]] can be found in the streams up to the snow line.<ref name = "Shoumatoff95ff"/> Molluscs such as the [[Helicigona|wood snail]] live up the snow line. Popularly gathered as food, the [[snail]]s are now protected.<ref name="Shoumatoff88ff">Shoumatoff (2001), 88–89</ref>

Several species of [[moth]]s live in the Alps, some of which are believed to have evolved in the same habitat up to 120&nbsp;million years ago, long before the Alps were created. [[Lycaenidae|Blue butterflies]] can commonly be seen drinking from the snowmelt; some species of blues fly as high as {{cvt|1800|m}}.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 93</ref> The butterflies tend to be large, such as those from the swallowtail ''[[Parnassius]]'' family, with a habitat that ranges to {{cvt|1800|m}}. Twelve species of beetles have habitats up to the snow line; the most beautiful and formerly collected for its colours but now protected is ''[[Rosalia alpina]]''.<ref>Shoumatoff (2001), 91</ref> Spiders, such as the large [[wolf spider]], live above the snow line and can be seen as high as {{cvt|400|m}}. [[Scorpion]]s can be found in the Italian Alps.<ref name="Shoumatoff88ff" />

Some of the species of moths and insects show evidence of having been indigenous to the area from as long ago as the Alpine orogeny. In [[Lac d'Émosson|Émosson]] in Valais, Switzerland, dinosaur tracks were found in the 1970s, dating probably from the [[Triassic]] Period.<ref>Reynolds (2012), 75</ref>