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92-773: The route connects the capitals of the three northern prefectures in the Kantō region : Maebashi , Utsunomiya , and Mito . The expressway begins at a junction with the Kan-etsu Expressway in Gunma Prefecture and heads east along the southern edge of the prefecture. The route ends abruptly in the city of Ōta , however the route will be extended to a junction with the Tōhoku Expressway in Tochigi Prefecture by 2011. The expressway then follows

184-507: A dense evergreen understory (Box and Fujiwara 1988). The lower shrub layer of the evergreen forests is often mixed with other evergreen species from the palm family ( Rhapidophyllum hystrix ), bush palmetto ( Sabal minor ), and saw palmetto ( Serenoa repens ), and several species in the Ilex family, including Ilex glabra , Dahoon holly , and Yaupon holly . In many areas, Cyrilla racemiflora , Lyonia fruticosa , wax myrtle Myrica

276-625: A few pockets remain. Laurel forests occupy the humid tropical highlands of the Malay Peninsula , Greater Sunda Islands , and Philippines above 1,000 m (3,300 ft) elevation. The flora of these forests is similar to that of the warm-temperate and subtropical laurel forests of East Asia, including oaks ( Quercus ) , tanoak ( Lithocarpus ) , chinquapin ( Castanopsis ) , Lauraceae, Theaceae , and Clethraceae . Epiphytes , including orchids, ferns, moss, lichen, and liverworts, are more abundant than in either temperate laurel forests or

368-464: A few species. Species diversity generally increases towards the tropics. In this sense, the laurel forest is a transitional type between temperate forests and tropical rainforests. Laurel forests are composed of vascular plants that evolved millions of years ago. Lauroid floras have included forests of Podocarpaceae and southern beech . This type of vegetation characterized parts of the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana and once covered much of

460-498: A mix of evergreen scrub typical of Mediterranean climates . Species of Notholithocarpus , Arbutus menziesii , and Umbellularia californica can be canopy species in several areas. The laurel forest is the most common Central American temperate evergreen cloud forest type. They are found in mountainous areas of southern Mexico and almost all Central American countries, normally more than 1,000 m (3,300 ft) above sea level. Tree species include evergreen oaks, members of

552-669: A single industrial complex with a concentration of light and heavy industry along Tokyo Bay . Other major cities in the area include Kawasaki (in Kanagawa Prefecture); Saitama (in Saitama Prefecture); and Chiba (in Chiba Prefecture). Smaller cities, farther away from the coast, house substantial light and automotive industries. The average population density reached 1,192 persons per square kilometer in 1991. The Kantō region largely corresponds to

644-526: A time when Japan was still reeling from the economic recession in reaction to the high-flying years during World War I . Operation Coronet , part of Operation Downfall , the proposed Allied invasion of Japan during World War II , was scheduled to land on the Kantō Plain . The name Kanto literally means "East of the Barrier". The name Kanto is nowadays generally considered to mean the region east (東) of

736-410: A type of cloud forest . Cloud forests are found on mountain slopes where the dense moisture from the sea or ocean is precipitated as warm moist air masses blowing off the ocean are forced upwards by the terrain, which cools the air mass to the dew point . The moisture in the air condenses as rain or fog, creating a habitat characterized by cool, moist conditions in the air and soil. The resulting climate

828-518: Is a geographical region of Honshu , the largest island of Japan . In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures : Gunma , Tochigi , Ibaraki , Saitama , Tokyo , Chiba , and Kanagawa . Slightly more than 45 percent of the land area within its boundaries is the Kantō Plain . The rest consists of the hills and mountains that form land borders with other regions of Japan . As

920-697: Is a key to dating climatic history. Laurel forests are common in subtropical eastern Asia, and form the climax vegetation in far southern Japan, Taiwan , southern China, the mountains of Indochina , and the eastern Himalayas . In southern China, laurel forest once extended throughout the Yangtze Valley and Sichuan Basin from the East China Sea to the Tibetan Plateau . The northernmost laurel forests in East Asia occur at 39° N. on

1012-473: Is also applied to climbing plants such as ivies , whose waxy leaves somewhat resemble those of the Lauraceae. Mature laurel forests typically have a dense tree canopy and low light levels at the forest floor. Some forests are characterized by an overstory of emergent trees. Laurel forests are typically multi-species, and diverse in both the number of species and the genera and families represented. In

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1104-517: Is due (in part) to the sandy soils and often periodic semi-arid nature of the climate. As one moves south into central Florida, as well as far southern Texas and the Gulf Coastal margin of the southern United States, the sclerophyll character slowly declines and more tree species from the tropics (specifically, the Caribbean and Mesoamerica ) increase as the temperate species decline. As such,

1196-963: Is habitat for many other important tree and large shrub species such as pindrow fir ( Abies pindrow ), East Himalayan fir ( Abies spectabilis ), Acer campbellii, Acer pectinatum, Himalayan birch ( Betula utilis ), Betula alnoides , boxwood ( Buxus rugulosa ), Himalayan flowering dogwood ( Cornus capitata ), hazel ( Corylus ferox ), Deutzia staminea, spindle ( Euonymus tingens ), Siberian ginseng ( Acanthopanax cissifolius ), Coriaria terminalis ash ( Fraxinus macrantha ), Dodecadenia grandiflora , Eurya cerasifolia , Hydrangea heteromala , Ilex dipyrena , privet ( Ligustrum spp.), Litsea elongata , common walnut ( Juglans regia ), Lichelia doltsopa , Myrsine capitallata , Neolitsea umbrosa , mock-orange ( Philadelphus tomentosus ), sweet olive ( Osmanthus fragrans ), Himalayan bird cherry ( Prunus cornuta ), and Viburnum continifolium . In ancient times, laurel forests ( shoyojurin ) were

1288-525: Is high, but can be limited by mild summer drought. The canopies are evergreen, dominated by species with glossy- or leathery-leaves, and with moderate tree diversity. Insects are the most important herbivores, but birds and bats are the predominant seed-dispersers and pollinators . Decomposers such as invertebrates, fungi, and microbes on the forest floor are critical to nutrient cycling . These conditions of temperature and moisture occur in four different geographical regions: Some laurel forests are

1380-453: Is out of the Kantō region in the orthodox definition). Keirin 's South Kantō ( 南関東 , Minami-Kantō ) consists of Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka prefectures. This division is not often but sometimes used. This division is sometimes used in economics and geography. The border can be modified if the topography is taken for prefectural boundaries. The Japanese national government defines

1472-578: Is present as an evergreen understory. Several species of Yucca and Opuntia are native as well to the drier sandy coastal scrub environment of the region, including Yucca aloifolia , Yucca filamentosa , Yucca gloriosa , and Opuntia stricta . During the Miocene , oak-laurel forests were found in Central and Southern California . Typical tree species included oaks ancestral to present-day California oaks, as well as an assemblage of trees from

1564-610: Is responsible for the Prefectural police departments of Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa, Niigata, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka. Tokyo is not part of Kantō or any NPA region, its police has a dedicated liaison office with the national agency of its own. The surface geology of the Kantō Plain is the Quaternary alluvium and diluvium. The low mountain vegetation at an altitude of about 500 to 900 m in and around

1656-573: Is still farmed. Rice is the principal crop, although the zone around Tokyo and Yokohama has been landscaped to grow garden produce for the metropolitan market. In between January 1918 and April 1920, Japan was afflicted by Spanish flu pandemic, which claimed more than 400,000 Japanese lives. A watershed moment of Japan's modern history took place in the late Taishō period: the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923 . The quake, which claimed more than 100,000 lives and ravaged Greater Tokyo area, occurred at

1748-984: Is the Boso hills. The area around Kasumigaura in Ibaraki Prefecture is the Joso plateau and Hitachi plateau. Gunma Prefecture and the Chichibu region of Saitama Prefecture are basins. Rivers such as the Arakawa and Edo rivers pour into Tokyo Bay, and the Kinugawa and Tone rivers flow into the Pacific Ocean in Inubōsaki. Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Boso Peninsula and the Miura Peninsula, facing

1840-573: Is the lowest among the highest peaks in each prefecture. The region experiences a humid subtropical climate with a summer to fall precipitation maximum ( Cfa/Cwa ). The heartland of feudal power during the Kamakura period . Kamakura is the political capital and it served as the seat of the Kamakura shogunate from 1185 to 1333, established by Minamoto no Yoritomo. It was the first military government in Japan's history. Kamakura flourished until

1932-843: Is the summit of Mt. Nikko-Shirane (Mt. Oku-Shirane) on the border between Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture and Katashina Village, Gunma Prefecture. It is the eighth highest point in Japan's prefectures. It is also the highest point north of Kanto (Kanto, Tohoku, Hokkaido). The highest points of the prefectures are Mt. Sanpo (2,483 m) in Saitama, Mt. Kumotori (2,017 m) in Tokyo, Mt. Hiru (1,673 m) in Kanagawa, Mt. Yamizo (1,022 m) in Ibaraki, and Mt. Atago (408 m) in Chiba. Atagoyama in Chiba Prefecture

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2024-1121: Is usually strong and vigorous and the forest regenerates easily; its decline is due to external forces. In the Himalayas, in Nepal, subtropical forest consists of species such as Schima wallichii , Castanopsis indica , and Castanopsis tribuloides in relatively humid areas. Some common forest types in this region include Castanopsis tribuloides mixed with Schima wallichi , Rhododendron spp., Lyonia ovalifolia , Eurya acuminata , and Quercus glauca ; Castanopsis -Laurales forest with Symplocas spp.; Alnus nepalensis forests; Schima wallichii - Castanopsis indica hygrophile forest; Schima-Pinus forest; Pinus roxburghii forests with Phyllanthus emblica . Semicarpus anacardium , Rhododendron arboreum and Lyoma ovalifolia ; Schima - Lagerstroemia parviflora forest, Quercus lamellosa forest with Quercus lanata and Quercus glauca ; Castanopsis forests with Castanopsis hystrix and Lauraceae. Laurel forests are also prevalent in

2116-425: Is wet and mild, with the annual oscillation of the temperature moderated by the proximity of the ocean. Laurel forests are characterized by evergreen and hardwood trees, reaching up to 40 m (130 ft) in height. Laurel forest, laurisilva, and laurissilva all refer to plant communities that resemble the bay laurel . Some species belong to the true laurel family, Lauraceae , but many have similar foliage to

2208-703: The African Great Lakes to South Africa , in the Highlands of Madagascar , and in the montane zone of the São Tomé, Príncipe, and Annobón forests . These scattered highland laurophyll forests of Africa are similar to one another in species composition (known as the Afromontane flora), and distinct from the flora of the surrounding lowlands. The main species of the Afromontane forests include

2300-983: The Aru Islands of eastern Indonesia, is linked to Australia by a shallow continental shelf, and shares many marsupial mammal and bird taxa with Australia. New Guinea also has many additional elements of the Antarctic flora, including southern beech ( Nothofagus ) and Eucalypts . New Guinea has the highest mountains in Malesia , and vegetation ranges from tropical lowland forest to tundra . The highlands of New Guinea and New Britain are home to montane laurel forests, from about 1,000 to 2,500 m (3,300–8,200 ft) elevation. These forests include species typical of both Northern Hemisphere laurel forests, including Lithocarpus , Ilex , and Lauraceae, and Southern Hemisphere laurel forests, including Southern Beech Nothofagus , Araucaria , Podocarps , and trees of

2392-574: The Caribbean , and South America as far south as Chile . In the Corynocarpus family, Corynocarpus laevigatus is sometimes called laurel of New Zealand, while Laurelia novae-zelandiae belongs to the same genus as Laurelia sempervirens . The tree niaouli grows in Australia, New Caledonia, and Papua. The New Guinea and Northern Australian ecoregions are also closely related. The eastern end of Malesia , including New Guinea and

2484-591: The Coordinating Committee for Earthquake Prediction . The Japanese House of Representatives ' divides it into the North Kantō ( 北関東 , Kita-Kantō ) electorate which consists of Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, and Saitama prefectures, Tokyo electorate, and the South Kantō ( 南関東 , Minami-Kantō ) electorate which consists of Chiba, Kanagawa, and Yamanashi prefectures (note that Yamanashi

2576-643: The Hakone Barrier (箱根関). An antonym of Kanto, "West of the Barrier" means the Kansai region , which lies western Honshu and was the center of feudal Japan. After the Great Kanto earthquake (1923), many people in Kanto started creating art with different varieties of colors. They made art of earthquake and small towns to symbolize the small towns destroyed in the quake. The most often used subdivision of

2668-1154: The Laurel family are less prominent, limited to Ocotea or Beilschmiedia due to exceptional biological and paleoecological interest and the enormous biodiversity mostly but with many endemic species, and the members of the beech family (Fagaceae) are absent. Trees can be up to 30 or 40 m (98 or 131 ft) tall and distinct strata of emergent trees, canopy trees, and shrub and herb layers are present. Tree species include: Real Yellowwood ( Podocarpus latifolius ), Outeniqua Yellowwood ( Podocarpus falcatus ), White Witchhazel ( Trichocladus ellipticus ), Rhus chirendensis , Curtisia dentata , Calodendrum capense , Apodytes dimidiata , Halleria lucida , Ilex mitis , Kiggelaria africana , Nuxia floribunda , Xymalos monospora , and Ocotea bullata . Shrubs and climbers are common and include: Common Spikethorn ( Maytenus heterophylla ), Cat-thorn ( Scutia myrtina ), Numnum ( Carissa bispinosa ), Secamone alpinii , Canthium ciliatum , Rhoicissus tridentata , Zanthoxylum capense , and Burchellia bubalina . In

2760-593: The Macaronesian islands, southern Japan , Madagascar , New Caledonia , Tasmania , and central Chile , but they are pantropical, and for example in Africa they are endemic to the Congo region , Cameroon , Sudan , Tanzania , and Uganda , in lowland forest and Afromontane areas. Since laurel forests are archaic populations that diversified as a result of isolation on islands and tropical mountains, their presence

2852-475: The National Capital Region ( 首都圏 , Shuto-ken ) as the Kantō region plus Yamanashi Prefecture. Japan's national public broadcaster NHK uses Kantō-kō-shin-etsu ( 関東甲信越 ) involving Yamanashi, Nagano, and Niigata prefectures for regional programming and administration. The Kantō region is the most highly developed, urbanized, and industrialized part of Japan. Tokyo and Yokohama form

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2944-501: The tropics . Some lauroid species that are found outside laurel forests are relicts of vegetation that covered much of the mainland of Australia , Europe, South America, Antarctica, Africa, and North America when their climate was warmer and more humid. Cloud forests are believed to have retreated and advanced during successive geological eras, and their species adapted to warm and wet conditions were replaced by more cold-tolerant or drought-tolerant sclerophyll plant communities. Many of

3036-646: The Atlantic islands (e.g. Ocotea ), or in other continents (e.g. Magnolia , Liquidambar ) and some adapted to the cooler and drier climate of Europe and persisted as relicts in places with high mean annual precipitation or in particular river basins, such as sweet bay ( Laurus nobilis ) and European holly ( Ilex aquifolium ) , which are fairly widespread around the Mediterranean basin. Descendants of these species can be found today in Europe, throughout

3128-577: The Atlantic laurisilva is more abundant in the Macaronesian archipelagos, where the weather has fluctuated little since the Tertiary , there are small representations and some species contribution to the oceanic and Mediterranean ecoregions of Europe, Asia minor and west and north of Africa, where microclimates in the coastal mountain ranges form inland "islands" favorable to the persistence of laurel forests. In some cases these were genuine islands in

3220-524: The Brazilian Highlands in southern Brazil and adjacent parts of Argentina and Paraguay, are semi-deciduous. The Valdivian temperate rain forests, or Laurisilva Valdiviana , occupy southern Chile and Argentina from the Pacific Ocean to the Andes between 38° and 45° latitude. Rainfall is abundant, from 1,500 to 5,000 mm (59–197 in) according to locality, distributed throughout

3312-499: The Kantō region contains Tokyo , the capital and largest city of Japan, the region is considered the center of Japan's politics and economy. According to the official census on October 1, 2010, by the Statistics Bureau of Japan , the population was 42,607,376, amounting to approximately one third of the total population of Japan. The Kantō regional governors' association ( 関東地方知事会 , Kantō chihō chijikai ) assembles

3404-471: The Lauraceae due to convergent evolution . As in any other rainforest, plants of the laurel forests must adapt to high rainfall and humidity. The trees have adapted in response to these ecological drivers by developing analogous structures , leaves that repel water. Laurophyll or lauroid leaves are characterized by a generous layer of wax , making them glossy in appearance, and a narrow, pointed oval shape with an apical mucro or " drip tip ", which permits

3496-578: The Laurel family, and species of Weinmannia , Drimys , and Magnolia . The cloud forest of Sierra de las Minas , Guatemala , is the largest in Central America. In some areas of southeastern Honduras there are cloud forests, the largest located near the border with Nicaragua . In Nicaragua the cloud forests are found in the border zone with Honduras, and most were cleared to grow coffee . There are still some temperate evergreen hills in

3588-549: The Laurel family, including Nectandra , Ocotea , Persea , and Umbellularia . Only one native species from the Laurel family (Lauraceae), Umbellularia californica , remains in California today. There are however, several areas in Mediterranean California, as well as isolated areas of southern Oregon that have evergreen forests. Several species of evergreen Quercus forests occur, as well as

3680-650: The Mediterranean and North Africa . Isolation gave rise to Laurus azorica in the Azores Islands, Laurus nobilis on the mainland, and Laurus novocanariensis in the Madeira and the Canary Islands. Laurel forests occur in small areas where their particular climatic requirements prevail, in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Inner laurel forest ecoregions, a related and distinct community of vascular plants , evolved millions of years ago on

3772-486: The Mediterranean, especially in the Iberian Peninsula and the southern Black Sea Basin . The most important is ivy , a climber or vine that is well represented in most of Europe, where it spread again after the glaciations. The portuguese laurel cherry ( Prunus lusitanica ) is the only tree that survives as a relict in some Iberian riversides, especially in the western part of the peninsula. In other cases,

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3864-589: The Myrtle family ( Myrtaceae ). New Guinea and Northern Australia are closely related. Around 40 million years ago, the Indo-Australian tectonic plate began to split apart from the ancient supercontinent Gondwana. As it collided with the Pacific Plate on its northward journey, the high mountain ranges of central New Guinea emerged around 5 million years ago. In the lee of this collision zone,

3956-595: The Pacific coast of Japan. Altitudinally, the forests range from sea-level up to 1000 metres in warm-temperate Japan, and up to 3000 metres elevation in the subtropical mountains of Asia. Some forests are dominated by Lauraceae , while in others evergreen laurophyll trees of the beech family ( Fagaceae ) are predominant, including ring-cupped oaks ( Quercus subgenus Cyclobalanopsis ), chinquapin ( Castanopsis ) and tanoak ( Lithocarpus ). Other characteristic plants include Schima and Camellia , which are members of

4048-549: The Pacific. Although some remnants of archaic flora, including species and genera extinct in the rest of the world, have persisted as endemic to such coastal mountain and shelter sites, their biodiversity was reduced. Isolation in these fragmented habitats, particularly on islands, has led to the development of vicariant species and genera. Thus, fossils dating from before the Pleistocene glaciations show that species of Laurus were formerly distributed more widely around

4140-773: The Serra de Monchique, Sintra , and the coastal mountains from Cadiz to Algeciras . In the Mediterranean region, remnant laurel forest is present on some islands of the Aegean Sea , on the Black Sea coast of Georgia and Turkey , and the Caspian Sea coast of Azerbaijan and Iran , including the Castanopsis and true laurus forests, associated with Prunus laurocerasus , and conifers such as Taxus baccata , Cedrus atlantica , and Abies pinsapo . In Europe

4232-884: The Sub-Andean Sierras. The forest relief is varied and in places where the Andes meet the Amazon, it includes steeply sloped areas. Characteristic of this region are deep ravines formed by the rivers, such as that of the Tarma River descending to the San Ramon Valley, or the Urubamba River as it passes through Machu Picchu . Many of the Yungas are degraded or are forests in recovery that have not yet reached their climax vegetation . The laurel forests of

4324-452: The Tertiary, and in some cases simply areas that remained ice-free. When the Strait of Gibraltar reclosed, the species repopulated toward the Iberian Peninsula to the north and were distributed along with other African species, but the seasonally drier and colder climate, prevented them reaching their previous extent. In Atlantic Europe, subtropical vegetation is interspersed with taxa from Europe and North Africa in bioclimatic enclaves such as

4416-454: The Tokyo Metropolitan Area with the exception that it does not contain Yamanashi prefecture. The Tokyo Metropolitan Area has the largest city economy in the world and is one of the major global center of trade and commerce along with New York City, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Paris, Seoul, and London. Source The agglomeration of Tokyo is the world's largest economy, with the largest gross metropolitan product at purchasing power parity (PPP) in

4508-466: The Valdivian laurel forests, Beilschmiedia tawa is often the dominant canopy species of the laural genus Beilschmiedia in lowland laurel forests in the North Island and the northeast of the South Island , but will also often form the subcanopy in primary forests throughout the country in these areas, with podocarps . Genus Beilschmiedia are trees and shrubs widespread in tropical Asia , Africa , Australia , New Zealand , Central America ,

4600-424: The absence of strong environmental selective pressure, the number of species sharing the arboreal stratum is high, although not reaching the diversity of tropical forests; nearly 100 tree species have been described in the laurisilva rainforest of Misiones ( Argentina ), about 20 in the Canary Islands. This species diversity contrasts with other temperate forest types, which typically have a canopy dominated by one or

4692-493: The adjacent lowland tropical rain forests. Myrtaceae are common at lower elevations, and conifers and rhododendrons at higher elevations. These forests are distinct in species composition from the lowland tropical forests, which are dominated by Dipterocarps and other tropical species. Laurel forests are found in the islands of Macaronesia in the eastern Atlantic, in particular the Azores , Madeira Islands , and Canary Islands from 400 to 1200 metres elevation. Trees of

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4784-480: The barrier islands, a stunted Quercus geminata or mixed Q. geminata and Quercus virginiana forest dominates, with a dense evergreen understory of scrub palm Serenoa repens and a variety of vines, including Bignonia capreolata , as well as Smilax and Vitis species ' . Gordonia lasianthus , Ilex opaca and Osmanthus americanus also may occur as canopy co-dominant in coastal dune forests, with Cliftonia monophylla and Vaccinium arboreum as

4876-452: The best remaining examples of the Atlantic laurel forest, due to their intact nature. The paleobotanical record of the island of Madeira reveals that laurisilva forests have existed on this island for at least 1.8 million years. Around 50 million years ago, during the Paleocene , Europe took the form of a set of large islands spread through what was the Tethys Sea . The climate was wet and tropical with monsoon summer rains. Trees of

4968-459: The broadleaf canopy trees of genus Beilschmiedia , with Apodytes dimidiata , Ilex mitis , Nuxia congesta , N. floribunda , Kiggelaria africana , Prunus africana , Rapanea melanophloeos , Halleria lucida , Ocotea bullata , and Xymalos monospora , along with the emergent conifers Podocarpus latifolius and Afrocarpus falcatus . Species composition of the Subsaharan laurel forests differs from that of Eurasia. Trees of

5060-401: The center of modern development. Within the Greater Tokyo Area and especially the Tokyo- Yokohama metropolitan area, Kanto houses not only Japan's seat of government but also the nation's largest group of universities and cultural institutions, the greatest population and a large industrial zone. Although most of the Kanto plain is used for residential, commercial or industrial construction, it

5152-469: The coastal plain, a low-lying mosaic topography of white sand, silt, and limestone (mostly in Florida ), separate these laurel forests. Frequent fire is also thought to be responsible for the disjointed geography of laurel forests across the coastal plain of the southeastern United States. Despite being located in a humid climate zone, much of the broadleaf Laurel forests in the Southeast USA are semi- sclerophyll in character. The semi-sclerophyll character

5244-431: The conifer Brazilian Araucaria ( Araucaria angustifolia ) reaching up to 45 m (148 ft) in height. The subtropical Serra do Mar coastal forests along the southern coast of Brazil have a tree canopy of Lauraceae and Myrtaceae, with emergent trees of Leguminaceae, and a rich diversity of bromeliads and trees and shrubs of family Melastomaceae . The inland Alto Paraná Atlantic forests , which occupy portions of

5336-434: The deciduous broad-leaved forest from an altitude of about 1100 m higher than the lower limit of the deciduous broad-leaved forest. Mountains are spread out such as the Taishaku Mountains, Mt. Takahara, Mt. Nasu, Mt. Yamizo, and Mt. The Kantō Plain, which is the largest plain in Japan. Just north of the Enna Hills is Japan's largest alluvial fan Nasuno at the foot of Mt. The Kujukuri Plain. The southern part of Chiba Prefecture

5428-459: The fall of the Kamakura Shogunate , and its political functions returned to Kyoto in 1392. In 1591, Tokugawa Ieyasu gave up control of his five provinces ( Mikawa , Tōtōmi , Suruga , Shinano , and Kai ) and moved all his soldiers and vassals to his new eight provinces in the Kantō region . The proclamation of this decision happened on the same day Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the de facto ruler of Japan at that time, entered Odawara castle following

5520-645: The forest edges. According to the recent study by Box and Fujiwara (Evergreen Broadleaved Forests of the Southeastern United States: Preliminary Description), laurel forests occur in patches in the southeastern United States from southeast Virginia southward to Florida , and west to Texas , mostly along the coast and coastal plain of the Gulf and south Atlantic coast. In the southeastern United States, evergreen Hammock (ecology) (i.e. topographically induced forest islands) contain many laurel forests. These laurel forests occur mostly in moist depression and floodplains, and are found in moist environments. In many portions of

5612-440: The genera Apollonias ( Lauraceae ), Ocotea ( Lauraceae ), Persea ( Lauraceae ), Clethra ( Clethraceae ), Dracaena ( Asparagaceae ), Picconia ( Oleaceae ) and Heberdenia ( Primulaceae ) are characteristic. The Garajonay National Park , on the island of La Gomera and the Laurisilva in the Madeira Island were designated World Heritage sites by UNESCO in 1986 and 1999, respectively. They are considered

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5704-424: The late Cretaceous – early Tertiary Gondwanan species of flora became extinct, but some survived as relict species in the milder, moister climate of coastal areas and on islands. Thus Tasmania and New Caledonia share related species extinct on the Australian mainland, and the same case occurs on the Macaronesia islands of the Atlantic and on the Taiwan , Hainan , Jeju , Shikoku , Kyūshū , and Ryūkyū Islands of

5796-433: The laurel and Fagaceae family ( oaks with lauroid-shape leaves and Castanopsis ) were common along several species of ferns. Around the Eocene , the planet began cooling, ultimately leading to the Pleistocene glaciations. This progressively deteriorated the Paleotropical flora of Europe, which went extinct in the late Pliocene . Some of these species went globally extinct (e.g. laurophyll Quercus ), others survived in

5888-456: The laurel family ( Lauraceae ) may or may not be present, depending on the location. Laurel and laurophyll forests have a patchy distribution in warm temperate regions , often occupying topographic refugia where the moisture from the ocean condenses so that it falls as rain or fog and soils have high moisture levels. They have a mild climate , seldom exposed to fires or frosts and are found in relatively acidic soils. Primary productivity

5980-430: The laurel forest has been badly damaged by timber harvesting, by fire (both accidental and deliberate to open fields for crops), by the introduction of exotic animal and plant species that have displaced the original cover, and by replacement with arable fields, exotic timber plantations, cattle pastures, and golf courses and tourist facilities. Most of the biota is in serious danger of extinction. The laurel forest flora

6072-869: The leaves to shed water despite the humidity, allowing respiration. The scientific names laurina , laurifolia , laurophylla , lauriformis , and lauroides are often used to name species of other plant families that resemble the Lauraceae. The term Lucidophyll , referring to the shiny surface of the leaves, was proposed in 1969 by Tatuo Kira. The scientific names Daphnidium , Daphniphyllum , Daphnopsis , Daphnandra , Daphne from Greek: Δάφνη, meaning "laurel", laurus , Laureliopsis , laureola , laurelin , laurifolia , laurifolius , lauriformis , laurina , Prunus laurocerasus (cherry laurel), Prunus lusitanica (Portugal laurel), Corynocarpus laevigatus (New Zealand Laurel), and Corynocarpus rupestris designate species of other plant families whose leaves resemble Lauraceae. The term "lauroid"

6164-494: The montane rain forests of the Western Ghats in southern India . Laurel forest occurs in the montane rain forest of Sri Lanka . The Afromontane laurel forests describe the plant and animal species common to the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula . The afromontane regions of Africa are discontinuous, separated from each other by lowlands, resembling a series of islands in distribution. Patches of forest with Afromontane floristic affinities occur all along

6256-421: The mountain chains. Afromontane communities occur above 1,500–2,000 m (4,900–6,600 ft) elevation near the equator, and as low as 300 m (980 ft) elevation in the Knysna-Amatole montane forests of South Africa . Afromontane forests are cool and humid. Rainfall is generally greater than 700 mm/a (28 in/year), and can exceed 2,000 mm (79 in) in some regions, occurring throughout

6348-426: The newly subdued population of the area, while also to guard the eastern domains from the influence or threat from the Satomi clan which was not yet submit to the rule of Toyotomi at that time. The governors of Kantō region under Ieyasu rule: Meanwhile, Ieyasu himself establish his personal new seat of power on Edo town, which at that time was an underdeveloped town in Kantō. In the Edo period , Kanto became

6440-568: The north. The only cloud forest in the Pacific coastal zone of Central America is on the Mombacho volcano in Nicaragua. In Costa Rica there are laurisilvas in the "Cordillera de Tilarán " and Volcán Arenal , called Monteverde , also in the Cordillera de Talamanca . The Yungas are typically evergreen forests or jungles, and multi-species, which often contain many species of the laurel forest. They occur discontinuously from Venezuela to northwestern Argentina including in Brazil , Bolivia , Chile , Colombia , Ecuador , and Peru , usually in

6532-552: The plain is an evergreen broad-leaved forest zone. The distribution height range of laurel forests is 900 m in Hakone, about 800 m in Tanzawa and Takao, about 700 m in Okutama, Oku Musashi and Oku Chichibu, about 600 m in Nishijoshu, Akagiyama, Ashio Mountains and Tsukuba Mountains and about 500 m in Kitage and Nasu Mountains . Over the evergreen broad-leaved forest are deciduous broad-leaved forests such as beech, birch, and Quercus crispula . In addition, coniferous forests such as Abies veitchii and Betula ermanii spread above

6624-488: The population growth rate has slowed since early 1992. The Kantō region at the 2020 census had a population of 43.65 million people. Laurel forest Laurel forest , also called laurisilva or laurissilva , is a type of subtropical forest found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable, mild temperatures. The forest is characterized by broadleaf tree species with evergreen , glossy and elongated leaves, known as "laurophyll" or "lauroid". Plants from

6716-499: The predominant vegetation type in the Taiheiyo evergreen forests ecoregion of Japan, which encompasses the mild temperate climate region of southeastern Japan's Pacific coast. There were three main types of evergreen broadleaf forests, in which Castanopsis , Machilus , or Quercus predominated. Most of these forests were logged or cleared for cultivation and replanted with faster-growing conifers , like pine or hinoki , and only

6808-482: The prefectural governors of Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Nagano, and Shizuoka. The Kantō Regional Development Bureau ( 関東地方整備局 , Kantō chihō seibi-kyoku ) of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in the national government is responsible for eight prefectures generally (Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Yamanashi) and parts of

6900-531: The presence of Mediterranean laurel ( Laurus nobilis ) provides an indication of the previous existence of laurel forest. This species survives natively in Morocco , Algeria , Tunisia , Spain , Portugal , Italy , Greece , the Balkans, and the Mediterranean islands. The myrtle spread through North Africa. Tree heath (Erica arborea) grows in southern Europe, but without reaching the dimensions observed in

6992-507: The region are known as the Laurisilva Misionera , after Argentina's Misiones Province . The Araucaria moist forests occupy a portion of the highlands of southern Brazil, extending into northeastern Argentina. The forest canopy includes species of Lauraceae ( Ocotea pretiosa , O. catharinense and O. porosa ), Myrtaceae ( Campomanesia xanthocarpa ), and Leguminosae ( Parapiptadenia rigida ), with an emergent layer of

7084-541: The region is dividing it to "North Kantō" ( 北関東 , Kita-Kantō ) , consisting of Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Gunma prefectures, and "South Kantō" ( 南関東 , Minami-Kantō ) , consisting of Saitama (sometimes classified North), Chiba, Tokyo Metropolis (sometimes singulated), and Kanagawa prefectures. South Kantō is often regarded as synonymous with the Greater Tokyo Area . As part of Japan's attempts to predict earthquakes , an area roughly corresponding to South Kantō has been designated an 'Area of Intensified Observation' by

7176-716: The route continues towards a junction with the Jōban Expressway and runs along the southern edge of the Mito city area, where the expressway has its final terminus. At the terminus, the Higashi-Mito Road continues towards the Pacific Ocean coastline using the same roadway. The route runs parallel to National Route 50 for most of its length. Kant%C5%8D region The Kantō region ( 関東地方 , Kantō-chihō , IPA: [ka(ꜜ)ntoː tɕiꜜhoː] )

7268-498: The route of the Tōhoku Expressway northward for about 13 km, then diverges from this expressway following an easterly course once more. It runs through the southern areas of Utsunomiya and heads into eastern areas of Tochigi Prefecture, where the route terminates once again in the city of Mooka . The section connecting Tochigi and Ibaraki Prefectures was scheduled to be completed in 2009. From Sakuragawa in western Ibaraki,

7360-554: The southeastern laurel forests gives way to a mixed landscape of tropical savanna and tropical rainforest . There are several different broadleaved evergreen canopy trees in the laurel forests of the southeastern United States. In some areas, the evergreen forests are dominated by species of Live oak ( Quercus virginiana ), Laurel oak ( Quercus hemisphaerica ), southern magnolia ( Magnolia grandiflora ), red bay ( Persea borbonia ), cabbage palm ( Sabal palmetto ), and sweetbay magnolia ( Magnolia virginiana ). In several areas on

7452-491: The supercontinent of Gondwana , and species of this community are now found in several separate areas of the Southern Hemisphere , including southern South America , southernmost Africa , New Zealand , Australia and New Caledonia . Most Laurel forest species are evergreen, and occur in tropical, subtropical, and mild temperate regions and cloud forests of the northern and southern hemispheres, in particular

7544-499: The surrender of the Hōjō clan after the Siege of Odawara (1590) . The moment Ieyasu appointed to rule Kantō, he immediately assign his premier vassals such as Ii Naomasa , Honda Tadakatsu , Sakakibara Yasumasa , and Sakai Ietsugu, son of Sakai Tadatsugu, each to control large area of the former Hōjō clan territories in Kantō. Historian such as Kawamura saw this step was meant to bring order

7636-1829: The tea family ( Theaceae ), as well as magnolias , bamboo , and rhododendrons . These subtropical forests lie between the temperate deciduous and conifer forests to the north and the subtropical/tropical monsoon forests of Indochina and India to the south. Associations of Lauraceous species are common in broadleaved forests; for example, Litsea spp., Persea odoratissima , Persea duthiei , etc., along with such others as Engelhardia spicata , tree rhododendron ( Rhododendron arboreum ), Lyonia ovalifolia , wild Himalayan pear ( Pyrus pashia ), sumac ( Rhus spp.), Himalayan maple ( Acer oblongum ), box myrtle ( Myrica esculenta ), Magnolia spp., and birch ( Betula spp.). Some other common trees and large shrub species of subtropical forests are Semecarpus anacardium , Crateva unilocularis , Trewia nudiflora , Premna interrupta , Vietnam elm ( Ulmus lancifolia ), Ulmus chumlia , Glochidion velutinum , beautyberry ( Callicarpa arborea ), Indian mahogany ( Toona ciliata ), fig tree ( Ficus spp.), Mahosama similicifolia , Trevesia palmata , brushholly ( Xylosma longifolium ), false nettle ( Boehmeria rugulosa ), Heptapleurum venulosum , Casearia graveilens , Actinodaphne reticulata , Sapium insigne , Nepalese alder ( Alnus nepalensis ), marlberry ( Ardisia thyrsiflora ), holly ( Ilex spp), Macaranga pustulata , Trichilia cannoroides , hackberry ( Celtis tetrandra ), Wenlendia puberula , Saurauia nepalensis , ring-cupped oak ( Quercus glauca ), Ziziphus incurva , Camellia kissi , Hymenodictyon flaccidum , Maytenus thomsonii , winged prickly ash ( Zanthoxylum armatum ), Eurya acuminata , matipo ( Myrsine semiserrata ), Sloanea tomentosa , Hydrangea aspera , Symplocos spp., and Cleyera spp. In

7728-720: The temperate evergreen forest of Macaronesia or North Africa. The broad-leaved Rhododendron ponticum baeticum and/or Rhamnus frangula baetica still persist in humid microclimates, such as stream valleys, in the provinces of Cádiz and Málaga in Spain , in the Portuguese Serra de Monchique , and the Rif Mountains of Morocco . The Parque Natural de Los Alcornocales has the biggest and best preserved relicts of Laurisilva in Western Europe . Although

7820-603: The temperate zone, the cloud forest between 2,000 and 3,000 m altitude supports broadleaved evergreen forest dominated by plants such as Quercus lamellosa and Q. semecarpifolia in pure or mixed stands. Lindera and Litsea species, Himalayan hemlock ( Tsuga dumosa ), and Rhododendron spp. are also present in the upper levels of this zone. Other important species are Magnolia campbellii , Michelia doltsopa , andromeda ( Pieris ovalifolia ), Daphniphyllum himalense , Acer campbellii , Acer pectinatum , and Sorbus cuspidata , but these species do not extend toward

7912-428: The undergrowth grasses, herbs and ferns may be locally common: Basketgrass ( Oplismenus hirtellus ), Bushman Grass ( Stipa dregeana var. elongata ), Pigs-ears ( Centella asiatica ), Cyperus albostriatus , Polypodium polypodioides , Polystichum tuctuosum , Streptocarpus rexii , and Plectranthus spp. Ferns, shrubs and small trees such as Cape Beech ( Rapanea melanophloeos ) are often abundant along

8004-508: The waterways in two others (Nagano and Shizuoka). The Kantō Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry ( 関東経済産業局 , Kantō keizai-sangyō-kyoku ) is responsible for eleven prefectures: Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Niigata, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka. In the police organization of Japan, the National Police Agency 's supervisory office for Kantō ( 関東管区警察局 , Kantō kanku keisatsu-kyoku )

8096-680: The west beyond central Nepal. Nepalese alder ( Alnus nepalensis ), a pioneer tree species, grows gregariously and forms pure patches of forests on newly exposed slopes, in gullies, beside rivers, and in other moist places. The common forest types of this zone include Rhododendron arboreum, Rhododendron barbatum , Lyonia spp., Pieris formosa ; Tsuga dumosa forest with such deciduous taxa as maple ( Acer ) and Magnolia ; deciduous mixed broadleaved forest of Acer campbellii, Acer pectinatum, Sorbus cuspidata , and Magnolia campbellii ; mixed broadleaved forest of Rhododendron arboreum, Acer campbellii, Symplocos ramosissima and Lauraceae. This zone

8188-519: The west side of Chiba Prefecture, a part of Tokyo and the east side of Kanagawa Prefecture, and borders the Pacific Ocean from Uraga Suido. The coastal area is an industrial area. The south side of Kanagawa Prefecture faces Sagami Bay and Sagami Nada. The southern coast of Ibaraki Prefecture faces Kashima Nada. The Sagami Trough, which was the epicenter of the two Kanto earthquakes, passes through Sagami Bay. Efforts are being made to take safety measures against earthquakes in various places. The highest point

8280-492: The world according to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers . Sources:, Conversion rates - Exchange rates - OECD Data The population of Kantō region is very similar to that of the Greater Tokyo Area except that it does not contain Yamanashi Prefecture and contains the rural populations throughout the region. Per Japanese census data, and the Kantō region's data, population has continuously grown but

8372-616: The year or during winter or summer, depending on the region. Temperatures can be extreme at some of the higher altitudes, where snowfalls may occasionally occur. In Subsaharan Africa , laurel forests are found in the Cameroon Highlands forests along the border of Nigeria and Cameroon , along the East African Highlands, a long chain of mountains extending from the Ethiopian Highlands around

8464-559: The year, but with some subhumid Mediterranean climate influence for 3–4 months in summer. The temperatures are sufficiently invariant and mild, with no month falling below 5 °C (41 °F), and the warmest month below 22 °C (72 °F). Laurel forest appears on mountains of the coastal strip of New South Wales in Australia , New Guinea , New Caledonia , Tasmania , and New Zealand . The laurel forests of Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand are home to species related to those in

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