Beech forest, Germany

The European beech (Fagus sylvatica) spans from southern Sweden in the north, with some isolated locations in southern Norway, to central Italy. The beech tree can reach a height of up to 49 m and a trunk diameter of 3 m, although 25-35 m height and 1.5 m trunk diameter is more common. Typical for many beech forests is that the large tree canopies block out the sunlight, resulting in few species able to survive on the forest floor, such as this beech forest in Odenwald, Germany.