Chaparral

A chaparral is a geographical region characterized by mild, cool winters and hot, dry summers. Chaparral is sometimes called "scrubland" because the periods of drought and regular fires allow only a certain type of thorny scrub or thicket to thrive there.

A chaparral has what is called a Mediterranean climate because of its mild, moist winters and very dry summers. Besides the Mediterranean however, there are other parts of the world that have a similar climate, such as southwestern Australia, central Chile, the Cape region of South Africa, and southwestern California and northern Baja California, Mexico. The lands in these different areas usually have their own particular names ("mallee" in Australia, "mattoral" in Chile, and "fynbos" in South Africa), and the name chaparral most often refers only to a certain part of California and Mexico. The word chaparral comes from the Spanish word chapparo which originally described a thicket of evergreen shrubs.

PLANT LIFE IN A CHAPARRAL

It is the vegetation that grows in this particular climate that most characterizes a chaparral. Typically, a chaparral is composed mainly of woody evergreen shrubs that have adapted to summer drought and fire. There are few tall trees. The leaves of most of these shrubs are small and usually have a waxy, or leathery, covering. Their small size minimizes moisture loss, as does the waxy outer covering. Since the shrubs are evergreen and are not deciduous (they do not lose their leaves all at once), they are ready to absorb rainwater whenever it falls.

Dormancy (in which a plant slows down all its processes) is another way that these plants conserve water loss during a drought. Most chaparral plants have two sets of roots that make them ready to take in any available

water. One of these is a very long taproot that can obtain water deep underground. Another is a lateral root system that grows barely under the surface and can absorb water before it soaks down deeper into the soil.

Fire is another constant in a chaparral, and all of the shrubs that grow there have adapted in some way to surviving fire and sometimes even using fire to their benefit. Chaparral fires happen naturally every ten to forty years, and they are beneficial in the long run. They remove dead plants that built up over the years and release their ash and minerals into the soil to be reused. They also open up the ground, letting more light in and allowing new plants to grow. Most chaparral plants can sprout from their burned base following a fire, and some even need a fire to open their seed coats.

ANIMALS IN A CHAPARRAL

Just like the plants that live in a chaparral, the animals that make their home there have adapted to its extremes. Common chaparral animals in the United States are the mule deer and coyotes. Rodents, reptiles, and rabbits use shrubs to hide from the red-tailed hawk and barn owl. Rattlesnakes and deer mice are also usually abundant. Many of these animals have adapted to their environment since they are able to go without water for long periods, and most avoid activity in the intense midday heat.

Humans are a different story and they are now threatening the natural balance of chaparral. As the chaparral in California becomes an increasingly popular place to build a home, people are having a major effect. Fires that once were natural and needed in a chaparral are suppressed since they would threaten homes. Thus the chaparral becomes thicker and denser, so that when a fire does break out and cannot be contained immediately, the fire that results is ferociously hot and fast-moving, destroying not only homes but even plants that had been fire-adapted. These super-hot fires destroy both shrubs and seeds entirely. Since the seeds or shrubs cannot resprout as before, mud slides often result since there is no vegetation to hold the soil. As a result, these mudslides may cause harm to people, animals, and plants and result in further damage to the chaparral itself.

[See alsoBiome ]