The distinct climate of the Mediterranean Basin, a region of land that surrounds the Mediterranean Sea, gives rise to discrete class of plants known as the Mediterranean Natives, which have adapted to both the rainy winters and dry summers. Europe, which lies North of the Mediterranean region; Western Asia; and Northwestern Africa play an important role in making up the appropriate climate and habitat to house many of these Native species of plants.
The folded mountains among the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan Peninsulas divide the Mediterranean climate from the temperate climate regions of Western and Central Europe. The Mediterranean region extends into Western Asia to cover the southern and western regions of the peninsula of Turkey. Spreading …show more content…
As regions of Mediterranean climate generally experience hot, dry summers and cold, wet winters, plants within them must have evolved to suit these environments. Rich diversity can be seen in much of the Mediterranean flora, prompting scientists to believe that speciation events and evolutionary processes, ranging from colonization to isolation, must have occurred over time allowing these plants to thrive in this specific climate. There is evidence of ancient isolation occurring in the Miocene and early Pliocene, as the separation of African and Eurasian tectonic microplates (surrounding the Mediterranean basin) led to geographical isolation of many species, which were now on separate sides of the landmass. Further isolation occurred due to frequent glaciation episodes experienced by the European landscape. During this time, the Basin served as refuge for many organisms, which later recolonized the areas affected by glaciation. Human influence has also played a large role in changing spatial distributions of species and their natural functions and …show more content…
Multiple major plant communities make up the Mediterranean climate regions including forests, grasslands, woodlands, savannas, scrublands, and shrublands. Mediterranean Natives specific to each of these communities have evolved mechanisms to do well under given conditions. For example, because scrublands are mostly found near seacoast, natives found here have become better suited to wind and salt air environments and using seawater. On the other hand, shrublands have many evergreen shrubs and small trees. These plants have thicker and tougher leaves to help retain water during drier days. Because the small trees are economical, they are usually the first to recolonize woodlands and forests, which have been affected by events such as over logging or fires. Adaptations more common to most Mediterranean Natives (regardless of its major plant community) include ways to retain moisture during the hot dry summers and ways tolerate fires or even make them beneficial. Many of these plants are sclerophyll, which have hard leaves and short internodes as well as economical systems to use less water. Other plants have also adapted to fires, becoming dependent on them for reproduction, recycling of nutrients, or removal of dead/dying