The East European forest steppe ecoregion (WWF ID: PA0419) is a patchwork of broadleaf forest stands and grasslands (steppe) that stretches 2,100 km across Eastern Europe from the Ural Mountains in Ural, through Povolzhye, Central Russia to the middle of Ukraine.

There are isolated areas of similar character off the western end in eastern Romania, Moldova, and Bulgaria.

[6][7] Seasonal temperature extremities increase eastward across the ecoregion, due to the nature of continental climate towards the center of the continent.

Typical trees of the woodlands and forests include Quercus robur, Tilia cordata, Acer platanoides, Juniperus communis, Quercus petraea, Picea abies, Abies alba, Alnus glutinosa, Fagus sylvatica, Taxus baccata, Acer pseudoplatanus, Malus sylvestris, Viburnum lantana, Fraxinus excelsior, Aesculus hippocastanum, Rhamnus cathartica, Ulmus glabra, Ulmus minor, Populus alba, Pinus sylvestris, Betula pendula, Populus tremula, Populus nigra, Salix alba, Juglans regia, and Corylus avellana.

Because the terrain of the ecoregion is relatively flat or low hills, with no physical barriers between the biomes to the north and south, the plant communities tend to be shaped by local variations in water flow.

and salinity, the effects of blowing wind (which drives snow off the hills into depressions, affecting soil quality), and the historic activities of humans all combine to create the mosaic character of the region.