ANDEAN FOREST: CHARACTERISTICS, LOCATION, FLORA, FAUNA AND CLIMATE - ENVIRONMENT - 2025

The Andean forest, also called "montane forest of the northern Andes", is a forest that is located in the Andes Mountains, in the northern part of South America. The countries in which it is found are Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

This forest is characterized by being at an altitude that varies from 700 meters above sea level to 4,000 meters, with high humidity and fog. Due to its high altitude, temperatures are low, similar to that of intertropical montane forests.

Source: flickr.com

The Andean forest has several species of plants that grow only in this type of ecosystem; for example, the raque tree. In addition, it is the habitat of a large number of species of birds and plants that inhabit its dry, cold and humid lands.

Some of the ecoregions that make up the Andean forest are the montane forests of the Venezuelan Andes, the Magdalena Valley in Colombia and the Cordillera Real Oriental in northern Peru.

General characteristics

Extension

The Andean forest is located in the Andes mountain range, between Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. It constitutes a vast extension of land with very similar characteristics in all the countries it occupies.

The Andean forest covers an area of ​​approximately 490,000 square kilometers, consisting mainly of highlands, humid, dry and various valleys.

Relief

The altitude of the Andean forest is considered one of the most varied and highest in the world. The height ranges from sea level (masl) to 5,000 meters or more above it.

The Andean landscape offers a varied range of geographical features: valleys, plateaus, moors, plains and snow-capped peaks.

The Bolívar peak (Venezuela), the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Colombia) and the Chimborazo summit (Ecuador), constitute some of the highest points of the Andean forest, reaching even more than 5,000 meters above sea level.

ALJB, from Wikimedia Commons

There are also other mountains within the Andean forest that are recognized in Latin America for their height, such as the Sierra Nevada de Mérida, the Humboldt, the Serranía de Perijá, the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, Cotopaxi and Antisana.

Humidity, mist and drought

The Andean forest grows in lands with a cold climate, whose temperatures tend to drop sharply at night. This forest is characterized by having an infinity of mountainous areas that are covered by clouds for most of the time.

Its geographical characteristics make the forests highly humid. They are mostly known by the name of Andean cloud forests.

Despite this, there are several sections of the Andean forest that grow in dry areas and have the presence of different vegetation, such as semi-arid scrub.

Vegetation

The vegetal zones that are located in the highest parts of the Andean forest are formed by low-rise trees. In addition, they have small leaves and extremely dense understory (plants that grow in soils).

In this forest, the branches and trunks of the trees are mostly covered by plants such as bromeliads, orchids and mosses; typical of the vegetation of the intertropical mountain forests.

Location

Andes mountains

The Andean forest is located in the largest mountain range in the world, known as the Cordillera de los Andes, which is located in South America.

The mountain range extends from Cape Horn (in the southern part of the continent), passing through Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia to the limits of the Lara and Yaracuy states of Venezuela. However, the Andean forest only constitutes the montane forests of the northern part of South America.

The forest is located in the highlands of the tropical Andean region. It extends from Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Colombia) to the north, to Huancabamba (Peru) in the south. In the northeast it is located from the Sierra de Perijá (Colombia and Venezuela) and the Cordillera de Mérida (Venezuela).

Flora

As a result of climatic, geographical and habitat changes, the Andean forest presents one of the regions with the most floral diversity in the world. It serves as a home for more than 8,000 species of plants.

Dry vegetation

A part of the Andean forest has dry areas, such as the Seboruco mountains in Venezuela. These areas are made up of relatively low lands, with mountains that do not exceed 600 meters above sea level.

The type of vegetation that can be found in these areas is xerophilic (plants that do not need much water to live), such as cacti and prickly pears that lack leaves but have thorns.

Lush trees

The Andean forest is above the level of the tropical rain forest, between 1,800 and 2,000 meters above sea level, and the mountains are frequently covered with mist; the trees that inhabit areas located at this height are usually leafy, with bromeliads and orchids on their branches.

Each tree is home to dozens of other plant species due to its epiphytic status (plants that grow from tree branches).

The leaves are large and their green color does not change during the year. The stem of the trees is usually not as tall as those of the tropical forest; otherwise they are medium in size.

Moorland vegetation

The flora that prevails in the highest areas in the Andean forest is called the high Andean forest of páramo. The vegetation that is situated between 3,000 and 4,000 meters above sea level has a wide biological diversity.

Its general characteristic is the formation of mosses and lichens on the branches of trees. Some of the most common plants that inhabit the moor areas of the Andean forest are some trees such as mortiño, rosemary and alder.

The raque is a native plant of the Andean forest, which reaches 15 meters in height and is located in the high mountains, between 2,000 and 4,000 meters above sea level.

Its trunk grows crooked, with a large number of branches and pale green leaves, which are pear-shaped. It generally blooms with shades of red and crimson.

Dick Culbert from Gibsons, BC, Canada, via Wikimedia Commons

The encenillo is also one of the typical plants of the Andean forest; grows specifically in Colombia and Venezuela. It is usually distributed at heights between 2,500 and 3,700 meters above sea level

This plant has a height - like most of the trees in this area - of medium size. They do not usually exceed 25 meters in height. Also, the leaves and flowers are small, with thin, dark branches.

Fauna

Mammals

Among the most prominent mammals of the Andean forest is the frontin bear, also called the South American bear. It is medium in size compared to other bears in the world, as are most of the mountain forest animals.

The kinkajú is an animal known to be a family of raccoons and typical of the northern part of South America. Its long tail allows it to climb the trees of the Andean forest. Other common mammals are the common opossum, rabbits, wildcat, and paracana.

Kalamazoo Public Library, via Wikimedia Commons

The limpet is the most common rodent in the Andean forest, being considered one of the most precious animals for hunters. The matacán deer usually travels through the Andean forest, although it is usually common in the forest of Argentina.

Birds

In the Andean forest there are approximately 1,450 species of birds.

The stone tuft helmeted is one of the most common birds in the Andean forest area of ​​Colombia and Venezuela. Their habitat is mainly made up of cloud forests and they prefer heights of 2,500 meters above sea level.

Among other birds that inhabit this area, the following stand out: the condor, the black eagle, the hummingbird of the moors, the owls, the parrots, the turpial, the torrent ducks, the hummingbirds and the cockerels of the sierra.

Reptiles

In the Andean forest there are many snakes, such as the rattlesnake, the coral and the macaurel. The mapanare is one of the most common snakes in the Andean forest and one of the most dangerous in this region. Iguanas and lizards are other of the most common reptiles of the Andean forest.

Fishes

The tararira is a robust fish that is seen more frequently in the lagoons and rivers of the páramos in quite cold climates. Beyond its commercial value, this animal tends to be sought after in sport fishing activities.

Trout also tend to move through cold waters, specifically in the Venezuelan, Colombian, Ecuadorian and Peruvian Andes. In addition to being known for their good taste, they are one of the commercial fish in the area, like the dorado.

Weather

Intertropical mountain forest climates

Depending on the altitude, the climate can vary; Between 2,000 and 4,500 meters above sea level, the temperature is between 12 and 6 degrees Celsius, which can drop to 0 degrees Celsius at certain times of the year.

When the altitude is between 1,000 and 2,000 meters above sea level, the forest regions are called highland forests. They have a temperature that is between 14 and 20 degrees Celsius.

The Andean lowland forest, which can be situated between 300 and 700 meters above sea level, has an average temperature greater than 18 degrees Celsius.

The humid winds from the coast and the Atlantic Ocean move towards the forest, maintaining a considerably humid climate. The lowlands have less rainfall than the higher altitude areas.

At times, the drought occurs most strongly in the lower part of the Venezuelan Andes. Other areas of the forest can reach a high degree of drought, but rarely equal that of the Andes of Venezuela.

References

1. Andean forests, Andean Forest and Climate Change Portal, (nd). Taken from Bosquesandinos.org
2. Andean forest, Wikipedia in Spanish, (nd). Taken from wikipedia.org
3. The Venezuelan Andes, Portal Venezuela Tuya, (nd). Taken from venezuelatuya.com
4. Vision of the Biodiversity of the Northern Andes, World Wildlife Fund, (2001). Taken from assets.panda.org
5. Mountain forest, Wikipedia in Spanish, (nd). Taken from wikipedia.org