The écozone is defined as being the part of the terrestrial Surface representative of a ecological Unité with large scales, characterized by abiotic factors (not alive) and biotic (alive) particuliers.
The system of the écozones was proposed by Miklos Udvardy in an objective of Conservation in 1975. It is now used internationally as system unified at ends of biogeographic identification and conservation.

Another name for écozone is biogeographic area .

8 écozones

These écozones is often qualified under-areas, terrestrial surface being divided into 8 écozones:

• Afrotropical 22.1 million km ² (orange)
• the Antarctic 0.3 million km ² (not represented on the chart)
• Australasian 7.7 million km ² (khaki)
• Indomalais 7.5 million km ² (red)
• Palearctic 54.1 million km ² (in green)
• Néarctique 22.9 million km ² (mauve)
• Néotropique 19.0 million km ² (brown)
• Océanien 1.0 million km ² (corresponding to the islands of the Pacific-South thus not represented on the chart)

They are usually used in Zoogéographie because adapted enough to include/understand the distribution of current fauna (and especially of the Mammifère S), but are less relevant in other biogeographic disciplines.

Analyzes of regional Biodiversité were carried out by the World Wildlife Fund, and led to the definition of the borders of the terrestrial écorégions and to the list of the Global 200.

Classification in écozone is also used within the framework of the World Heritage site S.

Regroupings

Faunal empires

The maximum regrouping of the écozones in faunal empires allows the distinction of large biogeographic surfaces corresponding to various glaciations and continental separations, there remains then 3 large faunal surfaces :

• the Arctogée or Mégagée, gathering as for it the Holarctique (Palearctic and Néarctique), the Afrotropical and the Indomalais
• the Néogée, made up of the Néotropique
• the Notogée, corresponding to the Australian écozone , Océanien (and the Antarctic?)

The classification of Wallace

The classification of Alfred Russel Wallace allowed the distinction of large écorégions separated by natural constraints more constraining than that from the faunal empires, consequently one distinguished 5 great complexes of écozones, divided they even into areas, plus the écozone the Antarctic, always subjected to controversies.

• the écozone Afrotropical E, also called Ethiopian , where one can observe two great under-areas: sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar which experienced an independent development

• the écozone the Antarctic are sometimes associated with the Australian complex of share its participation former to the Notogée (unintermitting).
• the Australian complex subdivided in two great areas:
• the Australasian écozone formed by Australia, the New Zealand, the New Guinea as well as other islands of the Southeast Asia included/understood in the south of the line of Wallace
• islands of the Peaceful regarded as a écozone with whole share: the Océanien
• the complex Holarctique, where one observes the regrouping of two écozones,
• the Paléarctique: composed of the Europe, the North Africa and the septentrional half of the Asia
• the Néarctique: corresponding to the North America
• the écozone Indomalais ienne which is sometimes named Eastern made up of the Indian Sous-continent and the Southeast Asia, these two areas being, just like the two African under-areas, located on two different tectonic plates thus experienced separate developments.
• the écozone néotropicale, made up of the South America, part of the Central America and the West-Indian arc

See too

• ecological Classification of the grounds
• (not to confuse with Écorégion)
• Plants by scientific name
• : Category: Flora
• natural Zone of ecological, faunistic and floristic interest ( ZNIEFF )
• Zoogéographie

References

Random links:

Season LNH 1921-1922 | Robert Ier de Bar | Tulipa orphanidea | Paved sector | Gustave Kleyer