0°

30°N

30°S

0°

60°S

60°N

30°N

30°S

60°S

60°N

0°90°W 90°E

0 5,000 10,0002,500Km

0 Forest cover density (%) 100Approximate Scale 1 : 40,000,000

Projection: World Robinson, center 0°, 0°

Global Connections: Forests of the World

Forest by Domain

Approximate Scale 1 : 110,000,000

TropicalSubtropicalTemperateBorealPolar

0 Forest cover density (%) 100

1Countries listed in descending order of forested land. Country-level forest statistics were compiled by FAO and reported in the Global Forest Resource Assessment 2010. For details on data sources and methods, see http://www.fao.org/forestry/fra/fra2010/en/.

0 3,000,000 6,000,000 9,000,000 12,000,000 15,000,000 18,000,000square kilometers

49%62 %

34 %33 %22 %

Percent of country’s land area in forest

68 %19 %

52 %29 %

23 %53%

33 %55 %47 %

53 %67 %52 %

12.7 %38 %

48 %11 %

63 %69 %69 %36 %

Forested land(sq km)

Percent ofworld’s forest

Russian FederationBrazil

CanadaUSA

ChinaDemocratic Republic of Congo

AustraliaIndonesia

SudanIndiaPeru

MexicoColombia

AngolaBolivia

ZambiaVenezuela

MozambiqueTanzania

MyanmarArgentina

Papua New GuineaSweden

JapanCentral African Republic

All othersTotal

20.0612.88

7.697.545.133.823.702.341.731.701.691.611.501.451.421.231.150.970.830.790.730.710.700.620.56

17.46100.00

809,090.00519,522.00310,134.00304,022.00206,861.00154,135.00149,300.00

94,432.0069,949.0068,434.0067,992.0064,802.0060,499.0058,480.0057,196.0049,468.0046,275.0039,022.0033,428.0031,773.0029,400.0028,726.0028,203.0024,979.0022,605.00

704,333.004,033,060.00

Forested Non-forested

Forest Cover by Country1

Russian FederationBrazil

CanadaUSA

ChinaDemocratic Republic of Congo

AustraliaIndonesia

SudanIndiaPeru

MexicoColombia

AngolaBoliviaZambia

VenezuelaMozambique

TanzaniaMyanmarArgentina

Papua New GuineaSweden

JapanCentral African Republic

Change in Forest Area

50,000-250,000

250,000-500,000

More than 500,000

More than 500,000

250,000-500,000

50,000-250,000

Less than 50,000

Net Loss Small Change (gain or loss) Net Gain

About the Poster: This poster is part of Global Connections: Forests of the World, a secondary environmental education module published by Project Learning Tree and World Forestry Center. The module helps educate students about their connections to the forests of the world as they learn about cultural, economic, environmental, and political aspects of the world’s forests. Educators can obtain a copy of Global Connections: Forests of the World by attending a professional development workshop. For more informa-tion about the module and Project Learning Tree, visit www.plt.org. For more information about the World Forestry Center, visit www.worldforestry.org. We would like to thank the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for permission to reprint the maps from The World’s Forests 2010 poster and from the FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment 2010. For more information about the data and the development of the maps, see http://www.fao.org/forestry/fra/fra2010/en/.

Net Change in Forest Area by Country, 2005-2010 (in ha/year)

Tropical dry forests and woodlands occur in

tropical regions with pronounced dry seasons.

Relatively open with a grassy understory, these

forests are most extensive in eastern and southern Africa, where they are

major habitats for wildlife. Tropical rainforests are

found in the Amazon basin of South America,

the Congo basin of Central Africa, and parts of Southeast Asia, where

it is hot and humid all year. They constitute the

world’s most diverse terrestrial ecosystem.

Subtropical deserts have high temperatures, little

rain, and long dry spells. They are found in Asia,

Australia, Africa and North and South America. Trees grow sparsely or in patches, and usually have

small leaves adapted to retain moisture.

Highlands around the world are cooler and

wetter (or drier) than the surrounding areas, and

thus often have different forest vegetation. These

mountain forests are essential for watershed

and soil conservation, as well as habitat diversity.

Temperate oceanic forests are associated with

humid climates, and are the natural vegetation of eastern North America, Western Europe, Asia, and parts of Patagonia.

They include deciduous species such as oak, birch,

maple, and ash trees.

Temperate Mountain ForestCanada

Subtropical DesertCosta Rica

Tropical RainforestBrazil

Temperate Oceanic ForestGermany

Tropical Dry Forest Zambia

Boreal coniferous forests are found at high latitudes where the climate is cold, mainly in the northern regions of North America, northern Europe, and Siberia. These evergreen forests are the world’s major source of commercial softwood.

Boreal Coniferous ForestRussia

Tropical shrublands occur in dry tropical regions

with too little rain to support tall trees, most

extensively in Africa and Australia. They are made

up of shrubs or small trees, with grasses and

other short plants growing between them.

Tropical Shrubland Botswana

Subtropical dry forests are the natural vegetation

of the Mediterranean climate type (with mild,

moist winters and dry summers), found in

various regions around the world. The typical

tree species have small, leathery, evergreen leaves.

Subtropical Dry ForestAustralia

Polar regions receive little warmth from the sun, and are covered by a treeless tundra, glaciers, or a semi-permanent layer of ice. They occur in Antarctica and in the northernmost areas of Eurasia and North America.

PolarAntarctica