The Corsican montane broadleaf and mixed forests cover the high, steep mountain massifs of the island of Corsica in France, climbing to summits such as Monte Cinto (2,710 m) and Monte Rotondo (2,625 m). Vegetation shifts sharply with elevation: evergreen sclerophyll oak forests of holm oak and cork oak occupy the lower slopes, maritime pine mixes with downy oak, European hop-hornbeam, Italian alder, and sweet chestnut at middle elevations, while silver fir and European beech hold cool north-facing slopes and Corsican pine (Pinus laricio) dominates the sunnier southern aspects. The climate follows a strong altitudinal gradient, from warm, dry lower elevations to cold, humid heights. The flagship Corsican red deer has been reintroduced here, and the ecoregion harbors a notably rich endemic flora alongside endemics such as the Corsican nuthatch and Corsican fire salamander. For gardeners, native ornamental woody genera here include juniper, sycamore maple, and silver birch found in its subalpine shrublands.

At a glance

About the mediterranean forests, woodlands & scrub biome

Regions of hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters supporting drought-adapted shrublands — chaparral, maquis, fynbos — and open woodlands. Fire is a natural shaping force, and these climates hold extraordinary plant diversity and endemism.

Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion

Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.

Collections for this ecoregion

No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.

Related ecoregions