Mixed Conifer-Hardwood Forests

ECOSYSTEMS > INLAND OREGON > FORESTS

Historically, mixed conifer-hardwood forests covered over 12 million acres in both California and Oregon, extending from the west side of the Cascade Mountain Range all the way to the coast. Today, these forests are more prominent in southwestern Oregon and at lower elevations in the Coast Range Mountains. Generally they are found from sea level up to 6,000 feet (1,829 m) in elevation. In some cases, these forests will occur adjacent to coastal wetlands or dunes.

Unlike old growth forests, which are often dominated by a handful of tree species, mixed forests have a higher level of diversity. In Oregon, this may include trees like Douglas-fir, true fir, Ponderosa pine, Port Orford cedar, black oak and Pacific madrone.

The high number of plant species results in a layered environment with multiple habitats. Here, birds and small mammals such as squirrels will make their homes in the canopies of different types of trees. Fallen trees or standing dead timber, referred to as snags, create natural shelter for varying hares, raccoons and striped skunks while an understory of evergreen shrubs, ferns and forbs may shelter species as large as black-tailed deer and as small as microscopic organisms.

This diversity also makes mixed conifer-hardwood forests important to Oregon’s economy, particularly the lumber industry.