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Shrubland
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<h2 id="botanical-structural-form">Botanical structural form</h2> <p>In <a href="/facts/Botany/PaIRoxnb">botany</a> and <a href="/facts/Ecology/YE8upuJU">ecology</a> a shrub is defined as a much-branched <a href="/facts/Woody_plant/xXCI9yys">woody plant</a> less than 8 m high, usually with many <a href="/facts/Plant_stem/QlQWSzV4">stems</a>. Tall shrubs are mostly 2–8 m high, small shrubs 1–2 m high and <a href="/facts/Subshrubs/NRV9LAHv">subshrubs</a> less than 1 m high.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> </p><p>There is a descriptive system widely adopted in <a href="/facts/Australia/qLHpbppq">Australia</a> to describe different types of vegetation is based on <a href="/facts/Canopy_(biology)/P1C0uxKl">structural characteristics</a> based on <a href="/facts/Plant_life-form/IjSdInAK">plant life-form</a>, as well as the height and foliage cover of the tallest stratum or <a href="/facts/Dominance_(ecology)/uqRC9f4s">dominant</a> <a href="/facts/Species/oDg6b96r">species</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> </p> <p>For shrubs that are 2–8 metres (6.6–26.2 ft) high, the following structural forms are categorized: </p> <ul><li>dense foliage cover (70–100%) — closed-shrubs</li> <li>mid-dense foliage cover (30–70%) — open-shrubs</li> <li>sparse foliage cover (10–30%) — tall shrubland</li> <li>very sparse foliage cover (<10%) — tall open shrubland</li></ul> <p>For shrubs less than 2 metres (6.6 ft) high, the following structural forms are categorized: </p> <ul><li>dense foliage cover (70–100%) — closed-<a href="/facts/Heath_(habitat)/Eu3P8zbP">heath</a> or closed low shrubland—(<i>North America</i>)</li> <li>mid-dense foliage cover (30–70%) — open-heath or mid-dense low shrubland—(<i>North America</i>)</li> <li>sparse foliage cover (10–30%) — low shrubland</li> <li>very sparse foliage cover (<10%) — low open shrubland</li></ul> <h2 id="biome-plant-group">Biome plant group</h2> <p>Similarly, shrubland is a category that is used to describe a type of <a href="/facts/Biome/cl4X36GB">biome</a> plant group. In this context, shrublands are dense thickets of evergreen <a href="/facts/Sclerophyll/JWcJI0ue">sclerophyll</a> shrubs and small trees,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> called: </p> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Chaparral/vszyaQlg">Chaparral</a> in <a href="/facts/California/zLW2vdQJ">California</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Matorral/JQK0XHqf">Matorral</a> in <a href="/facts/Chile/uEyTfEcx">Chile</a>, <a href="/facts/Mexico/IT5bwhdh">Mexico</a>, and <a href="/facts/Spain/bIyrB8EY">Spain</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Maquis_shrubland/QbKDRnA3">Maquis</a> in <a href="/facts/France/CxIeIKM3">France</a> and elsewhere around the <a href="/facts/Mediterranean/Vr2pzVbM">Mediterranean</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Macchia/QbKDRnA3">Macchia</a> in <a href="/facts/Italy/tUf0PDYF">Italy</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Fynbos/JrCbIbpU">Fynbos</a> in <a href="/facts/South_Africa/vvXQpLgq">South Africa</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Eastern_Suburbs_Banksia_Scrub/w8W4SeWa">Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub</a> in <a href="/facts/Sydney/8TegRcwB">Sydney</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Kwongan/tfuUPPSr">Kwongan</a> in Southwest <a href="/facts/Western_Australia/1ouCbwNh">Australia</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Juniperus_ashei/X6fEd0Wx">Cedar scrub</a> in <a href="/facts/Texas_Hill_Country/eLF3RBJe">Texas Hill Country</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Caatinga/SUWb0YhR">Caatinga</a> in northeastern Brazil</li></ul> <p>In some places, shrubland is the mature vegetation type. In other places, it is the result of degradation of former <a href="/facts/Forest/RnMtb31v">forest</a> or <a href="/facts/Woodland/BcnoNfmp">woodland</a> by <a href="/facts/Logging/YnjEaap7">logging</a> or <a href="/facts/Overgrazing/nkzowGh1">overgrazing</a>, or disturbance by major fires. </p><p>A number of <a href="/facts/World_Wildlife_Fund/u8NgdHjK">World Wildlife Fund</a> biomes are characterized as shrublands, including the following:<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> </p> Desert scrublands <p><i>Xeric</i> or <i>desert scrublands</i> occur in the world's <a href="/facts/Deserts_and_xeric_shrublands/EulbpSBN">deserts and xeric shrublands</a> ecoregions or in fast-draining sandy soils in more humid regions. These scrublands are characterized by plants with adaptations to the dry climate, which include small leaves to limit water loss, thorns to protect them from grazing animals, succulent leaves or stems, <a href="/facts/Storage_organs/FTXfMqAt">storage organs</a> to store water, and long taproots to reach groundwater.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> </p> Mediterranean scrublands <p><i>Mediterranean scrublands</i> occur naturally in the <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_forests,_woodlands,_and_scrub/CKWbzGqF">Mediterranean scrub</a> <a href="/facts/Biome/cl4X36GB">biome</a>, located in the five <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_climate/gGsJAKE5">Mediterranean climate</a> regions of the world. Scrublands are most common near the seacoast and have often adapted to the wind and salt air of the ocean. Low, soft-leaved scrublands around the <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_Basin/azjFD5mW">Mediterranean Basin</a> are known as <i><a href="/facts/Garrigue/3uVkzc46">garrigue</a></i> in <a href="/facts/France/CxIeIKM3">France</a>, <i>phrygana</i> in <a href="/facts/Greece/lqHw8bTB">Greece</a>, <i>tomillares</i> in <a href="/facts/Spain/bIyrB8EY">Spain</a>, and <i>batha</i> in <a href="/facts/Israel/dEe3IcaY">Israel</a>. <a href="/facts/Northern_coastal_scrub/gNnomMfd">Northern coastal scrub</a> and <a href="/facts/Coastal_sage_scrub/dGrbdjNm">coastal sage scrub</a> occur along the <a href="/facts/California/zLW2vdQJ">California</a> coast, <a href="/facts/Strandveld/NEIzrCaq">strandveld</a> in the <a href="/facts/Western_Cape/oGNVWQn5">Western Cape</a> of <a href="/facts/South_Africa/vvXQpLgq">South Africa</a>, coastal matorral in <a href="/facts/Chilean_Matorral/a40KeyrF">central Chile</a>, and sand-heath and <a href="/facts/Kwongan/tfuUPPSr">kwongan</a> in <a href="/facts/Southwest_Australia/YTpmAk1C">Southwest Australia</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> </p> Interior scrublands <p><i>Interior scrublands</i> occur naturally in semi-arid areas with nutrient-poor soils, such as on the matas of <a href="/facts/Portugal/lYzwDQ63">Portugal</a>, which are underlain by <a href="/facts/Cambrian/jIfzKtod">Cambrian</a> and <a href="/facts/Silurian/1qx4epPg">Silurian</a> <a href="/facts/Schists/jHBjtEQw">schists</a>. <a href="/facts/Florida_scrub/zJSxFsKn">Florida scrub</a> is another example of interior scrublands. </p> Dwarf shrubs <p>Some vegetation types are formed of <i><a href="/facts/Chamaephyte/NRV9LAHv">dwarf-shrubs</a></i>, low-growing or creeping shrubs. They include the <a href="/facts/Maquis_shrubland/QbKDRnA3">maquis</a> and the <a href="/facts/Garrigue/3uVkzc46">garrigues</a> of Mediterranean climates and the acid-loving dwarf shrubs of <a href="/facts/Heathland/Eu3P8zbP">heathland</a> and <a href="/facts/Moorland/S7kzNyQM">moorland</a>. </p> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Fynbos/JrCbIbpU">Fynbos</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Maquis_shrubland/QbKDRnA3">Maquis</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Prostrate_shrub/7WgVw2Jm">Prostrate shrub</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Semi-desert/XnSYao1E">Semi-desert</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Shrub-steppe/UsQPWBJK">Shrub-steppe</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Shrub_swamp/dB1GCe6y">Shrub swamp</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Moorland/S7kzNyQM">Moorland</a></li></ul> <h2 id="notes-and-references">Notes and references</h2> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li> Media related to Shrublands at Wikimedia Commons</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (2003). <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Mares, Michael S., ed. (1999). "Fire". Encyclopedia of deserts. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 215. ISBN 978-0-8061-3146-7. <a href="978-0-8061-3146-7" target="_blank">978-0-8061-3146-7</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Flora of New South Wales, Vol.4 ed. Gwen J. Harden, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney ISBN 0-86840-188-9 <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Costermans, L. F. (1993) Native trees and shrubs of South-Eastern Australia. rev. ed. ISBN 0-947116-76-1 <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Woodward, Susan. "Mediterranean Shrublands". Geography 235. Radford University. Retrieved 7 October 2010. <a href="http://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=98" target="_blank">http://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=98</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"Deserts and Xeric Shrublands". World Wildlife Fund. Archived from the original on 2 January 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2010. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110102145352/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/selecting_terrestrial_ecoregions/habitat13.cfm" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20110102145352/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/selecting_terrestrial_ecoregions/habitat13.cfm</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands and Scrub". World Wildlife Fund. Archived from the original on 11 January 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2010. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170111005657/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/mediterranean_forests_scrub.cfm" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20170111005657/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/mediterranean_forests_scrub.cfm</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"Deserts and Xeric Shrublands". World Wildlife Fund. Archived from the original on 2 January 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2010. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110102145352/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/selecting_terrestrial_ecoregions/habitat13.cfm" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20110102145352/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/selecting_terrestrial_ecoregions/habitat13.cfm</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>"Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands and Scrub". World Wildlife Fund. Archived from the original on 11 January 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2010. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170111005657/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/mediterranean_forests_scrub.cfm" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20170111005657/http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/mediterranean_forests_scrub.cfm</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>