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Interandean Valles
The term Interandean valles refers to those valleys located in the Andes mountains. The interandean valles comprise most of the mid-elevation areas of the " sierra" of Peru, "los valles" of Bolivia and the " Cuyo region" of Argentina. In Colombia the main interandean valles are formed by Magdalena River and its affluent, the Cauca River. Geography The rugged topography of the Central Andes creates the warm, dry valleys that typifies the valles. Generally lying between 1,200 and 3,500 meters above sea level (m.a.s.l.) or 4,000 - 13,000 feet above sea level. Much of the area features steep hillsides and deep canyons, including the world's deepest canyon, the Colca Canyon. Most of the major cities and towns of the valles are found in broader, open valleys with expansive flat land created by ancient lakes or floodplains that is more amenable to agriculture than the highly erodible slopes. To the south and west, are the harsh, frigid deserts, salt flats and alpine grasslands o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valley
A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over a very long period. Some valleys are formed through erosion by glacier, glacial ice. These glaciers may remain present in valleys in high mountains or polar areas. At lower latitudes and altitudes, these glaciation, glacially formed valleys may have been created or enlarged during ice ages but now are ice-free and occupied by streams or rivers. In desert areas, valleys may be entirely dry or carry a watercourse only rarely. In karst, areas of limestone bedrock, dry valleys may also result from drainage now taking place cave, underground rather than at the surface. Rift valleys arise principally from tectonics, earth movements, rather than erosion. Many different types of valleys are described by geographers, using terms th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polylepis
''Polylepis'' is a genus comprising 28 recognised shrub and tree species, that are endemic to the mid- and high-elevation regions of the tropical Andes. This group is unique in the rose family in that it is predominantly wind-pollinated. They are usually gnarled in shape, but in certain areas some trees are 15–20 m tall and have 2 m-thick trunks. The foliage is evergreen, with dense small leaves, and often having large amounts of dead twigs hanging down from the underside of the canopy. The name ''Polylepis'' is, in fact, derived from the Greek words poly (many) plus letis (layers), referring to the shredding, multi-layered bark that is common to all species of the genus. The bark is thick and rough and densely layered for protection against low temperatures. Some species of ''Polylepis'' form woodlands growing well above normal tree line within grass and scrub associations at elevations over 5000 m; which makes ''Polylepis'' appear to be the highest naturally occurring arbor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as eucalypts. Plants in the genus ''Eucalyptus'' have bark that is either smooth, fibrous, hard or stringy, leaves with oil glands, and sepals and petals that are fused to form a "cap" or operculum over the stamens. The fruit is a woody capsule commonly referred to as a "gumnut". Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are native to Australia, and every state and territory has representative species. About three-quarters of Australian forests are eucalypt forests. Wildfire is a feature of the Australian landscape and many eucalypt species are adapted to fire, and resprout after fire or have seeds which survive fire. A few species are native to islands north of Australia and a smaller number are only found outside the continent. Eucalypts have been grow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinú Valley Dry Forests
The Sinú Valley dry forests (NT0229) is an ecoregion in the north of Colombia. Geography Location The Sinú Valley is an area of . located within the zone of parallel, north-northeast trending hills that lies between the low-point Magdalena and the Gulf of Urabá in Northwestern Colombia. In the north, the ecoregion surrounds the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Santa Marta montane forests ecoregion. To the north it transitions into patches of the Guajira–Barranquilla xeric scrub ecoregion, and into a section of Amazon–Orinoco–Southern Caribbean mangroves along the coast. To the southeast it transitions into the Cordillera Oriental montane forests ecoregion and in the south meets the Magdalena Valley montane forests ecoregion. To the southwest it transitions into the Magdalena–Urabá moist forests ecoregion. Climate At a sample location at coordinates the Köppen climate classification is "Tropical wet and dry or savanna (Aw)". Mean temperatures range from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patía Valley Dry Forests
The Patía Valley dry forests (NT0225) is an ecoregion in southwestern Colombia. It covers a dry valley surrounded by mountains. The original habitat has mostly been destroyed by human activity, although a few pockets remain. Location The Patía Valley is in southwestern Colombia along the Patía River and its tributaries, surrounded by ranges of the Andes. It has an area of . It is almost completely surrounded by the Northwestern Andean montane forests ecoregion. The western extension downstream along the Patía River merges into the Chocó–Darién moist forests ecoregion.. Physical The Patía river flows westward from the Central massif of Colombia, cuts through the Western Cordillera and drains into the Pacific Ocean. In its upper section it runs through cloud forests and montane forests. The central section of the river forms the Patía dry valley. The lower section to the west of the Western Cordillera flows through the Chocó jungles of the Pacific region. The Patía is f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marañón Dry Forests
The Marañón dry forests (NT0223) is an ecoregion in northern Peru. It covers the lower valley of the Marañón River and its tributaries along the eastern edge of the Andes. It has a dry climate due to rain shadow from mountains further east. The habitat has long been modified by farming, ranching and logging and is now threatened by construction of hydroelectric and irrigation dams. Location The Marañón dry forests ecoregion in northwestern Peru has an area of . It extends along the upper valley of the Marañón River and its tributaries. To the north the ecoregion adjoins the Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests. The northern part of the ecoregion extends from the Tumbes–Piura dry forests in the west to the Ucayali moist forests in the east. The ecoregion extends to the southeast through the Peruvian Yungas and patches of the Cordillera Central páramo. Physical The Marañón River rises on the Nevado de Yapura glacier, and runs northwest through northern Peru between ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magdalena Valley Dry Forests
The Magdalena Valley dry forests (NT0221) is an ecoregion in Colombia along the upper Magdalena River, a large river that runs from south to north between the two main ''cordilleras'' of the Andes. There are many endemic species, but much of the original habitat has been destroyed by agriculture and over-grazing, mainly by goats. The habitat is not protected by any national park, and is at risk of complete destruction. Location The Magdalena Valley dry forests ecoregion is in the valley of the upper Magdalena River, a river that flows north through the Andes to the Caribbean. It has an area of . The Magdalena River is the largest in Colombia. The dry forests are almost entirely surrounded by the Magdalena Valley montane forests ecoregion. At its northern end the dry valley merges into the Magdalena–Urabá moist forests. It holds a small patch of the Northern Andean páramo ecoregion. Terrain The Magdalena River runs from the Central Massif between the Eastern and Central Ran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cauca Valley Dry Forests
The Cauca Valley dry forests is a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion in Colombia. Location The Cauca Valley dry forests occupies an area of , extending in a long, narrow strip along the Cauca River. The Cauca Valley is nestled between the Cordillera Occidental and Cordillera Central in the northern Andes. These ranges create a rain shadow, which makes the Cauca Valley drier than the surrounding forests. The Cauca Valley dry forests lie below 1000 meters elevation; the higher slopes are occupied by the distinct Cauca Valley montane forests. Most of these forests have been cleared for agriculture over the years making it one of the most critically endangered ecoregions in Colombia. Laguna de Sonso Nature Reserve has a small area of protected forest. Ecology The ecoregion is part of the Tumbesian-Andean Valleys Dry Forests global ecoregion, which holds six terrestrial ecoregions: Tumbes–Piura dry forests, Ecuadorian dry forests, Patía Valley dry forests, Magdalena ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bolivian Montane Dry Forests
The Bolivian montane dry forests (NT0206) is an ecoregion in Bolivia on the eastern side of the Andes. It is a transitional habitat between the puna grasslands higher up to the west and the Chaco scrub to the east. The habitat is under severe stress from a growing human population. Geography Location The ecoregion is in the dry mountain valleys of the Andes in southern Bolivia. It has an area of . In the south large areas of the ecoregion are found within the Central Andean puna and Southern Andean Yungas. To the east the dry forests transition into the Dry Chaco ecoregion. Further north smaller areas of the ecoregion are found in contact with the Central Andean dry puna, Central Andean wet puna and Bolivian Yungas. Terrain The terrain is rugged, with cliffs, steep hillsides, valleys and gullies. Altitudes are from above sea level. In the east fingers of the dry forest stretch into the yungas, while in the west fingers of puna grassland extend into the dry forest. Climate A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural communities and species. The biodiversity of flora, fauna and ecosystems that characterise an ecoregion tends to be distinct from that of other ecoregions. In theory, biodiversity or conservation ecoregions are relatively large areas of land or water where the probability of encountering different species and communities at any given point remains relatively constant, within an acceptable range of variation (largely undefined at this point). Three caveats are appropriate for all bio-geographic mapping approaches. Firstly, no single bio-geographic framework is optimal for all taxa. Ecoregions reflect the best compromise for as many taxa as possible. Se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tropical Dry Forest
The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive several hundred centimeters of rain per year, they have long dry seasons that last several months and vary with geographic location. These seasonal droughts have great impact on all living things in the forest. Deciduous trees predominate in most of these forests, and during the drought a leafless period occurs, which varies with species type. Because trees lose moisture through their leaves, the shedding of leaves allows trees such as teak and mountain ebony to conserve water during dry periods. The newly bare trees open up the canopy layer, enabling sunlight to reach ground level and facilitate the growth of thick underbrush. Trees on moister sites and those with access to ground water tend to be evergreen. Infertile sites also tend to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Wildlife Fund
The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States. WWF is the world's largest conservation organization, with over five million supporters worldwide, working in more than 100 countries and supporting around 3,000 conservation and environmental projects. They have invested over $1 billion in more than 12,000 conservation initiatives since 1995. WWF is a foundation with 65% of funding from individuals and bequests, 17% from government sources (such as the World Bank, DFID, and USAID) and 8% from corporations in 2020. WWF aims to "stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature." The Living Planet Report has been published every two y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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