- Representative Flowers of Colombia
- The May Flower
- The Wax Palm of Quindío
- Victoria Regia
- Cinchona
- Representative Fauna of Colombia
- Land crab
- Golden Frog
- Blue-billed Curassow
- Chigüiro
- References
The flora and fauna of Colombia is distributed in the various ecosystems that this beautiful country has and is one of the most biodiverse on the planet.
The climate of Colombia and its geography have allowed the reproduction of its own species, as well as the insertion of species from other parts of the world.
Malpelo Island
As for the flora of Colombia, it is one of the most varied since it has the largest number of species of orchids and palms. This has made the country one of the great leaders in diversity in terms of flora.
The fauna is as varied as Colombia's ecosystems, an example of this is Malpelo Island. It has the largest number of bird species existing in that country, as well as crab species that are only observed in it.
Representative Flowers of Colombia
The May Flower
The orchids of Colombia are considered the most beautiful in the world. Colombia concentrates the most varied amount of species, managing to register 4,270 diverse species until 2015.
The Flower of May is the most representative of the country and has been chosen as a national symbol. It grows in the treetops in wooded areas.
The Wax Palm of Quindío
It is a palm tree that can reach 70 meters high. It is found in the area of the Colombian Andes and is considered the national tree.
The uses that are given to it are varied; Its wood is coveted for its high quality, its leaves are used in Catholic rituals such as Palm Sunday, its fruits serve as food for native fauna and it is also used to feed cattle.
It is a palm that produces wax, which is why it was widely used for making candles.
Victoria Regia
It is a lily found in shallow waters. Its large size is its main feature.
Its flowers open only at night and it spreads an apricot-like aroma in the environment. From its roots a liquid is extracted, which is used to dye hair black
Cinchona
It is a plant from whose bark quinine is extracted. They are trees of approximately 15 meters high and are found in the warm areas of the country.
Representative Fauna of Colombia
Land crab
Although there is a varied amount of land crabs, on Malpelo Island there is an original species that belongs to the Gecarcinidae family. Its scientific name is Johngarthia malpilensis.
Its coloration is orange with slightly darker veins of the same color.
Golden Frog
This frog is considered the most poisonous in the world because it exudes a poison called batraciotoxin through its skin.
Its natural habitat is the tropical jungle of the Colombian department of Chocó. The toxin is used by pharmaceutical companies to make muscle relaxants and anagelsics.
Blue-billed Curassow
Bird known as the Colombian peacock, it is originally from the department of Magdalena. Their habitat is tropical jungles and they can be up to 90 centimeters long.
Chigüiro
Mammal similar to a large rodent, they can reach up to 130 cm long at maturity.
It is wide-bodied and short-legged. Its habitat is found in the eastern plains.
References
- Mateo López-Victoria and Bernd Werding (2008). Ecology of the endemic land crab Johngarthia malpilensis (Decapoda: Brachyura: Gecarcinidae), a little-known species from the eastern Pacific. Pacific Science 2008 62 (4), 483-493
- Nation Encyclopedia. Toamdo from nationsencyclopedia.com
- Cultural Submanagement of the Bank of the Republic. (2015) Open Fund of Colombian authors. Taken from banrepcultural.org.
- UNESCO World Heritage Center (2017). Taken from whc.unesco.org.
- Fauna & Flora International (2017) Taken from fauna-flora.org.