The ecoregion extends along the Zagros Mountains, stretching from eastern Turkey and northern Iraq to southern Iran.

The predominant plant community in the mountains is forest or open woodland of deciduous broadleaf trees, with an understory of steppe shrubs and grasses.

Steppe extends up to 1400 meters elevation, and open woodlands of Quercus brantii, hawthorn (Crataegus), almond (Prunus amygdalus), nettle tree (Celtis spp.)

The wild ancestors of many important food plants, including wheat, barley, lentil, almond, walnut, pistachio, apricot, plum, pomegranate, and grape, grow throughout the mountains.

[4] Endemic plants of the mountain range include Allium iranicum, Astragalus crenophila, Bellevalia kurdistanica, Cousinia carduchorum, Cousinia odontolepis, Echinops rectangularis, Erysimum boissieri, Iris barnumiae, Ornithogalum iraqense, Scrophularia atroglandulosa, Scorzonera kurdistanica, Tragopogon rechingeri, and Tulipa kurdica.

[7] The Luristan newt (Neurergus kaiseri) is a vulnerable species endemic to the central Zagros mountains of Iran.