Temperate forests are forests found in temperate regions such as eastern North America, western and central Europe, and northeast Asia. Temperate forests are found at latitudes between approximately 25° and 50° in both hemispheres. They have a temperate climate and a growing season that lasts 140 to 200 days a year. Precipitation in temperate forests tends to be evenly distributed throughout the year. The temperate forest canopy is primarily composed of broadleaf trees. In the polar regions, temperate forests give way.

Temperate forests first appeared about 65 million years ago, during the beginning of the Cenozoic era. At that time, global temperatures dropped and forests sprang up in more temperate regions above the equator. In these regions, the temperature was not only cooler, but also showed seasonal fluctuations. Plants evolved and adapted to climate change.

Today, in temperate forests that are closer to the tropics (where the climate has not changed as much), trees and other plant species more closely resemble vegetation from. Temperate evergreen forests can be found in these regions. In areas where climate change has been more intense, deciduous trees have evolved (they shed their leaves every year when the weather turns cold as an adaptation, allowing the trees to withstand seasonal temperature fluctuations in these regions).

Main characteristics of temperate forests

The following are the main characteristics of temperate forests:

• grow in temperate regions (at latitudes between about 25°-50° in both hemispheres);
• experiences distinct seasons, with a growing season that lasts 140 to 200 days;
• the forest canopy consists mainly of deciduous trees.

Classification of temperate forests

Temperate forests are divided into the following habitats:

• Temperate deciduous forests - grow in eastern North America, Central Europe and parts of Asia. They are characterized by temperature fluctuations from -30° to +30° C throughout the year. They receive about 750-1500 mm of precipitation per year. Broadleaf forest vegetation includes a variety of broadleaf tree species (eg oak, beech, maple, hickory, etc.) as well as various shrubs, perennial grasses, mosses and fungi. Temperate deciduous forests are found in mid-latitudes, between the polar regions and the tropics.
• Temperate evergreen forests - consist mainly of evergreen trees that renew their foliage throughout the year. Temperate evergreen forests are found in eastern North America and the Mediterranean basin. They also include subtropical broadleaf evergreen forests in the Southeastern United States, southern China, and eastern Brazil.

Some of the animals that inhabit temperate forests include:

• The Eastern Chipmunk (Tamias striatus) is a species of chipmunk that lives in the deciduous forests of eastern North America. Oriental chipmunks are small rodents with red-brown fur adorned with dark, light and brown stripes that run along the back of the animal.
• The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is a species of deer that inhabits deciduous forests in eastern North America. White-tailed deer have a brown coat and a tail that is white on the back.
• The American black bear (Ursus americanus) is one of three species of bears that live in North America, the other two and. Of these species, black bears are the smallest and timid.
• Robin (Erithacus rebecula) is a small bird from the flycatcher family (muscicapidae). The robin's habitat range is quite extensive and includes: Northwest Africa from Morocco to eastern Tunisia and the Mediterranean coast, as well as most of the Eurasian continent.

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In the daytime, gigantic nightjars sit motionless on tree trunks, their beak is healthy upwards, and due to their color from a distance they resemble tree branches. You can meet representatives of this family in the tropical parts of Central and South America, from Mexico to Brazil, as well as in the Antilles. Scientists divide the family into 7 species.

Gray gigantic nightjar, or gray forest nightjar (lat. Nyctibius griseus) is the most common bird of the Giant nightjar family.

The gray forest nightjar lives in the vastness from southern Mexico to Argentina and Paraguay, and is also found in some Antilles (except Cuba) and on the island of Trinidad.

Gray gigantic nightjar - large bird. The length of her body reaches 38 cm and weighs 230 g. Gray colors with black spots and stripes predominate in the plumage color. The tail is long, the legs are very short.

The gray nightjar starts nesting in different parts of its range at different periods, as follows: in April - in Suriname, in July - in Trinidad, and in Brazil the bird nests in November - December. The bird usually lays its only white egg with marks in a small depression on top of a broken tree trunk. The nest can be located very low above the ground, and sometimes at a height of up to 15 m.

Nightjars are monogamous birds. Reproduction begins at the end of the first year of life. Both parents participate in incubation.

Unlike other birds, the gray nightjar incubates the egg while in an upright position, covering its single egg with fluffy breast feathers. During the day, the male sits absolutely motionless with his eyes closed on the egg. His eyes are bright orange and would immediately give away his excellent disguise. He carefully examines the area after two different sizes incisions that run vertically to the eyelids. When it gets dark, the female incubates the egg, while her eyes remain open.

The duration of incubation is about a month. The chick hatches already sighted, covered with thick short white fluff and stays in the nest for almost two months. On average, at least 70 days pass from the beginning of incubation of the egg to the departure of the chick.

Like all other types of gigantic nightjars, the gray nightjar leads a solitary nocturnal lifestyle. It is not easy to spot in the daytime, when it sits motionless, resembling a tree knot, aided by its camouflage plumage. When the bird is calm, its head is extended and the closed beak is directed forward; but if she is alarmed or notices an enemy somewhere, then her whole body immediately becomes tense and moves forward a little, the beak opens slightly and stretches straight up. The gray nightjar is so sure of its invisibility that you can come close to it and even touch it.

The gray nightjar feeds mainly on insects, which it catches at night in the manner of flycatchers, i.e. sits quietly for some time on a protruding branch, then takes off for prey and again returns to its observation post. The basis of its diet is made up of beetles, butterflies, hymenoptera, orthoptera and other invertebrates. The gray nightjar is especially active on moonlit nights, when moonlight helps to hunt. The gigantic gray nightjar from time to time during the night makes calls “puu-uu” - deep, clear, sad-sounding sounds, decreasing in both pitch and loudness.

Generally nightjars large group birds, widespread mainly in tropical and subtropical regions of the globe and leading a nocturnal lifestyle. The sizes are relatively small, most species have a mass of about 100 g, and only the largest representatives of the order - guajaro - reach the size of a rook and weigh up to 400 g.

Males and females are colored the same, and the color of nightjars is relatively uniform and in many ways resembles the color of the tree bark of various trees. One of the most characteristic features- a short and very wide beak with bristle-like vibrissae at the corners of the cut of the mouth - an adaptation for the extraction of insects at night on the fly. The large size of very sensitive eyes and soft, loose plumage, like those of owls, are also associated with a nocturnal lifestyle. All nightjars are excellent flyers. Their wings are long and pointed, with 10, rarely with 11 flight feathers. The tail is also long, with 6 pairs of tail feathers. In flight, nightjars somewhat resemble hawks and partly swallows.

The paws are short, and on the ground these birds move mostly slowly, clumsily jumping. Some nightjars (owl and gigantic nightjars) have powder coats in the upper tail area that produce powder down. Some species that live in deep caves are capable of echolocation.

In a number of species inhabiting temperate regions, the ability to fall into a stupor with a decrease in body temperature and even hibernation has been found. The distribution of most nightjars is limited to the tropics and subtropics, but certain types in the northern hemisphere they penetrate quite far to the north. Representatives of the detachment are distributed on all continents, with the exception of Antarctica. There are none in New Zealand, but recently a fossil owl nightjar was discovered there, which was very large sizes who lived there in the Miocene time.

Scientific classification:
Domain: Eukaryotes
Kingdom: Animals
Type of: Chordates
Class: Birds
Detachment: Nightjars
Family: Giant nightjars (Nyctibiidae Bonaparte, 1853)
Genus: Giant nightjars
View: Gray giant nightjar (lat. Nyctibius griseus (Gmelin, 1789))

At nightfall, when owls and bats fly out in search of food, a rare and almost unknown animal also begins to hunt.

This is a gray gigantic nightjar (great potto), an unusual bird that is difficult to see. One of the reasons for its unique camouflage is its gray and brown colors, almost identical to tree trunks. The nightjar sleeps in a position that looks very uncomfortable.

The bird's camouflage is so perfect that it simply blends into the tree, resembling a real broken branch.

Nature has perfected this bird to such a high degree that its eyelids have curtain-like structures that form small openings when closed. This allows the gigantic nightjar to see everything around him even during sleep.

At night, the bird presents its majesty with a 1-meter wingspan in quiet flight

This nocturnal predator is often mistaken for an owl. The bird's beak is huge for its size and extends beyond the level of the eyes, which makes it possible to catch insects well in flight. The nightjar also feeds on small birds and bats.

The bird belongs to the Nyctibiidae family. Three species of this family are found in Brazil: the great potto ( Nyctibius grandis) , ordinary potto ( Nyctibius griseus) and long-tailed potto ( Nyctibius aethereus) . In addition, the gray giant nightjar can be found in Argentina and Paraguay, southern Mexico and the Antilles.

Only a few people have seen this bird in wild nature because of her amazing camouflage. Most likely, that is why there are many legends about this unusual bird. According to one legend, the sounds that the nightjar makes are messages from the realm of the dead, bringing good luck to friends or bad luck to enemies.

According to another legend, an Indian woman suffered from unrequited love. Her pain was so strong that the girl turned into a gigantic nightjar. Allegedly, after the transformation, the unfortunate woman is doomed to live on a tree, drift through the night forest in the light of the moon and sing about her sad love.

Another legend says that the bird is an orphan boy who misses his parents and cries every night because of their loss. Some legends say that the feathers of the nightjar are talismans of love.

There are many legends, as a result of which one gets the impression that the gigantic nightjar is a magical bird.

She can both sing rather restrainedly and scream loudly at night, and the cry resembles the call of danger.