The biomes of Ecuador make up the entire natural landscape and fauna of Ecuador. Ecuador is one of the countries with the greatest wealth of flora and fauna. This country is considered one of the best preserved in the world, as far as the environment is concerned.
In addition, it is the State with the greatest variety of species in the Latin American region and is one of the 10 countries that have the greatest endemism (distribution of species in a limited area) in the world. This country encompasses four natural regions; their biomes are varied and include a great diversity of species.
Source: maxpixel.net
Among the biomes that can be found in this South American country are: the equatorial dry forest, the equatorial tropical forest, the mangrove swamp and the ocean biome.
Dry forest biomes
The dry forest biome, specifically that of the equatorial dry forest, extends along the coast of Ecuador and its coastal mountain range. It goes from the city of Esmeraldas to the province of Guayas. For this reason, it occupies a representative part of the South American country.
This type of biome presents precipitations between 300 mm and 1,500 mm. A subtype of dry forest biome known as the Tumbes-Piura dry forest biome can also be found. The levels of rainfall of this subtype are lower than that of the previous biome, ranging between 100 mm and 500 mm.
Tropical forest biomes
Another of the biomes that occur in Ecuador is the jungle or tropical forest, especially that of the equatorial tropical forest.
This type of biome is characterized by presenting a significant level of rainfall that is between 2,000 mm and 5,000 mm each year; in addition, it has average temperatures.
Regarding the biome subtypes derived from the jungle biome, the equatorial rainforest biome is the largest and most important in the entire country.
Flora
The predominant vegetation in the areas of Ecuador where the equatorial rainforest biome can be found is that which has wide, evergreen leaves, such as epiphytes.
The biome in question is one of the most biodiversely rich that exists on the planet, so the vegetation of the countries where it is found, such as Ecuador, has a great variety of species.
Source: es.wikipedia.org
Hundreds of tree species live in these areas. In addition, monocotyledonous plants (with a single seed) and ferns present great variations in their forms.
Orchids, lianas, vines, mangroves, daisies and tulips are only a small part of the diversity that this South American country has in regards to its plant population.
Fauna
This type of biome allows the fauna present in Ecuador to also be rich and varied. For this reason, Ecuador is the country with the greatest variety of species in the Latin American region and is one of the 10 states with the greatest endemism in the world.
Despite being a country with such extensive biodiversity, the areas with this type of biome have few large mammals due to the density of the forests. However, some species (such as primates) have a fairly large population in Ecuador.
It is also possible to find smaller mammals such as tree shrews, squirrels, guinea pigs, sloths and deer. As for birds, pigeons, parrots, toucans, hummingbirds and cotingas, are some of the species that inhabit the South American country.
On the other hand, among the reptiles and amphibians that inhabit this region of South America, it is possible to appreciate lizards, snakes and a great diversity of frog species.
In addition, the presence of water in the equatorial rainforest biomes gives the possibility that a great variety of aquatic animals inhabit these areas of Ecuador.
Mangrove biomes
Location
Another type of biome that can be found in Ecuador is the mangrove, which is distributed in the vicinity of the coast to the west of the country, like the dry forest biome. The tallest mangroves in the world can be found north of the Esmeraldas province.
Source: es.wikipedia.org
It is a formation of trees that are tolerant to the levels of salt found in intertidal zones near freshwater mouths. The intertidal zones are part of the coastline that is located between the known levels of the maximum and minimum tides.
Fauna
These spaces are home to a great biological diversity that has high levels of productivity; bird and aquatic species are the predominant ones in these areas.
Thanks to the presence of the mangroves, the coasts are protected against wind erosion and against the waves. In addition, they serve as a host for a significant number of organisms that live near water, such as amphibians and some land animals.
Many migratory birds also stay in the mangroves of Ecuador for a long time. Several of these species inhabit the mangroves of the Galapagos National Park, famous for the great diversity of animals it houses, both endemic and invasive.
The biological wealth that these islands possess made them worthy of being included by UNESCO in this national park in the list of World Heritage Sites.
Ocean biome
Another of the biomes that can be found in Ecuador is the oceanic one. The climate of this type of area is temperate and its main characteristic is the moderate temperatures and the abundant rainfall that is generated by its proximity to the ocean.
The annual thermal oscillation of this type of biome is slight. Ecuador shares the characteristic climate of the oceanic biome with countries such as: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Canada, United States, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, New Zealand, Tasmania, Portugal, Spain, France, Belgium, Holland, United Kingdom, Ireland or Denmark.
References
- Ecuador, Wikipedia in English, (nd). Taken from org
- Rainforest, Wikipedia in Spanish, (nd). Taken from org
- Ocean Biome, Windows to the Universe Website, (nd). Taken from windows2universe.org
- Manglar, Spanish Wikipedia, (nd). Taken from org
- What is a "mangrove" forest ?, National Ocean Service, (nd). Taken from oceanservice.noaa.gov
- Equatorial dry forest, Spanish Wikipedia, (nd). Taken from org