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Sierra De Luquillo
The Sierra de Luquillo is a mountain range located in the northeastern part of Puerto Rico. Also known as the Luquillo Mountains, these are steep-sided, densely-forested mountains rising to elevations of around , the highest point being the summit of El Toro, closely followed by that of Pico El Yunque. Geography The mountains of the Sierra de Luquillo were formed by tectonic activity some 37 to 28 million years ago, the island being on the junction between the North American Plate and the Caribbean Plate. The main rock types are pyroclastic rocks, quartzdiorite and contact metamorphic hornfels, with some outcrops of alluvium, basalt and mafic rocks. Nine rivers have their sources in the mountains, flowing downward through steep, rocky and boulder-strewed channels before reach the coastal plains. Easterly winds off the Atlantic Ocean rise and cool as they pass over the mountains, and the ensuing heavy precipitation brings an annual rainfall of on the ridge. The lower slopes a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
El Yunque (Puerto Rico)
:''This article refers to the mountain. For information on the national forest, see El Yunque National Forest. For the mountain in Cuba, see El Yunque.'' Pico El Yunque or El Yunque Peak (Taíno: ''Yukiyu'') is a mountain that is located fully within the boundaries of the El Yunque National Forest, part of the U.S. Forest Service, which is the only tropical rainforest under the U.S. Forest Service jurisdiction. It is located in the municipality of Río Grande. Background The peak itself, standing at above sea level is not the highest in Puerto Rico or even the Sierra de Luquillo range where it is located. It is however the most famous peak due to its curious shape, its natural environment and history, and for its cultural importance to the Taino people. The peak is nearly always covered in thin mist and, due to its high humidity, a quick shower develops during some afternoons. The hike to the top from the Mina Falls is not challenging yet it takes almost hours. This peak is l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mount Britton (Puerto Rico)
:''This article refers to the mountain. For information on the national forest, see El Yunque National Forest. For the mountain in Cuba, see El Yunque.'' Pico El Yunque or El Yunque Peak (Taíno: ''Yukiyu'') is a mountain that is located fully within the boundaries of the El Yunque National Forest, part of the U.S. Forest Service, which is the only tropical rainforest under the U.S. Forest Service jurisdiction. It is located in the municipality of Río Grande. Background The peak itself, standing at above sea level is not the highest in Puerto Rico or even the Sierra de Luquillo range where it is located. It is however the most famous peak due to its curious shape, its natural environment and history, and for its cultural importance to the Taino people. The peak is nearly always covered in thin mist and, due to its high humidity, a quick shower develops during some afternoons. The hike to the top from the Mina Falls is not challenging yet it takes almost hours. This peak is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cloud Forest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud cover, usually at the canopy level, formally described in the ''International Cloud Atlas'' (2017) as silvagenitus. Cloud forests often exhibit an abundance of mosses covering the ground and vegetation, in which case they are also referred to as mossy forests. Mossy forests usually develop on the saddles of mountains, where moisture introduced by settling clouds is more effectively retained. Cloud forests are among the most biodiversity rich ecosystems in the world with a large amount of species directly or indirectly depending on them. Other moss forests include black spruce/feathermoss climax forest, with a moderately dense canopy and a forest floor of feathermosses including ''Hylocomium splendens'', ''Pleurozium schreberi'' and ''Ptil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Podocarpus Coriaceus
''Podocarpus coriaceus'', commonly known as the yucca plum pine, is a species of conifer, an evergreen tree in the family Podocarpaceae. It is found in the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. Description ''Podocarpus coriaceus'' is a small tree rarely exceeding in height. The bark is thick and smooth when young, growing fissured and flaky with age. The branches are spreading, and often contorted. The leathery leaves grow in opposite pairs and are up to long and wide. They have parallel sides and straight margins, the upper surface being dark green and the underside dull green. The pollen cones and seed cones grow in the axils of the leaves, the seed cones having short stalks and developing into succulent red fruits about , each containing a single seed. Distribution and habitat This tree is endemic to the West Indies where it has a unique distribution. It is found in the arc of islands from Trinidad to Hispaniola but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brunellia Comocladifolia
''Brunellia comocladifolia'', commonly known as the West Indian sumac, is a species of tree in the family Brunelliaceae. It is native to Central America, the West Indies, and northern South America. Description ''Brunellia comocladifolia'' is a small tree growing to a height of about with a spreading crown. The leaves and young shoots are clad in rusty coloured hairs and the foliage often has a reddish tinge. The pinnate leaves have toothed margins and are up to long. They are in opposite pairs, with five to eleven pairs of elliptical to oblong leaflets and a terminal leaflet. The leaflets have rounded bases and acuminate tips and are up to long and wide. The underside of the leaflets are clad in short, velvety hairs. Male and female flowers are on separate trees. They are both very small and are borne in panicles clad in short hairs. The flowering period is April to August and the fruits appear from June to October. Distribution and habitat ''Brunellia comocladifolia'' is n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weinmannia Pinnata
''Weinmannia pinnata'', commonly known as the bastard briziletto, is a species of tree in the family Cunoniaceae. It is native to Mexico, Central America, South America and the West Indies. It typically grows in wet habitats at high altitudes, and is one of the species found in dwarf forests perpetually wreathed in clouds. Description ''Weinmannia pinnata'' is a large shrub some tall which sometimes grows into a small tree. The trunk can reach in diameter and the bark exudes an astringent gum. The pinnate leaves are up to long and are stalkless. They are arranged in opposite pairs and have a winged midrib. The nine to twenty leaflets are oval, have serrated margins and rusty-brown hairs on the underside. The small flowers are in spikes similar to those of the bottlebrush; the buds are tinged pink and the flowers are white with pink centres. The fruits are dry and red, and divided in two parts. They are tipped by the remains of the long style. Distribution and habitat In Sou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ocotea
''Ocotea'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Lauraceae. Many are evergreen trees with lauroid leaves. There are over 520 species currently accepted within the genus, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (around 300 species) including the Caribbean and West Indies, but also with some species in Africa, Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands. One species (''O. foetens'') is native to the Macaronesia (in Canary Islands and Madeira). The genus is suspected to be paraphyletic. Description They are trees or shrubs, occasionally with adventitious roots (''O. hartshorniana'', ''O. insularis''). Leaves simple, alternate, rarely opposite or whorled. The leaves are lauroid, they are commonly dark green glossy with sometimes brown on the underside and fragrant oil cells. The African and Madagascan species all have bisexual flowers (possessing both male and female parts), whereas many of the American species have flowers that a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cecropia Peltata
''Cecropia peltata'' is a fast-growing tree in the genus ''Cecropia''. Common names include trumpet tree, trumpet-bush, bacano and snakewood. It is listed as one of the world's 100 worst invasive alien species. Description ''Cecropia peltata'' is a fast-growing tree, normally reaching , but occasionally growing up to tall. The leaves are large – in length and width, but more commonly about 20 × and palmately divided into 7–11 (but generally 8–10) lobed. The upper surfaces of the leaves are scaled, while the lower surfaces are covered with minute hair, interspersed with longer ones. The petioles are generally long, while the branches are green and covered with short, stiff hairs. Like other members of the genus, ''C. peltata'' is dioecious – there are separate male and female plants. Male flowers, which are long, are borne in spikes long. The male inflorescence is enclosed in a spathe which splits open and drops off once the anthers mature. The female flowers are b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prestoea Montana
''Prestoea montana'' (Vernacular English: Sierran palm;''Prestoea acuminata (Willd.) H.E. Moore var. montana (Graham) A. Hend. & G. Galeano: Sierran palm.'' USDA. Natural Resources Conservation Service. Retrieved 5 September 2013. Vernacular Spanish: Palma de sierra''Bosques de Puerto Rico: Bosque Estatal de Toro Negro.'' Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente. July 2008. ublication/Issue: P-030Puerto Rico Departme ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cyathea Arborea
''Cyathea arborea'' (vernacular English: West Indian treefern, vernacular Spanish: ''helecho gigante'' or ''palo camarón'') is a plant of the family Cyatheaceae in the order Cyatheales. Tree ferns are an ancient growth form of plant, although Cyatheales evolved fairly recent and are only distantly related to earlier tree ferns. Like other modern fern they originate and almost exclusively grow in tropical and subtropical forests, with one species native to the Mediterranean. This species of tree fern is native to the Caribbean, including Cuba, Hispaniola, and the El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico. Description This perennial fern can reach a height of 27 feet. It has a thornless trunk measuring from 3 to 5 inches. The surface of the trunk is hard with a soft, white core. Its crown has 10 or more leaves in the form of a fan. When they are young, its leaves are rolled up and as they grow they unroll until they reach their horizontal position. As with all ferns, species of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orchid
Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering plants. The Orchidaceae have about 28,000 currently accepted species, distributed in about 763 genera. (See ''External links'' below). The determination of which family is larger is still under debate, because verified data on the members of such enormous families are continually in flux. Regardless, the number of orchid species is nearly equal to the number of bony fishes, more than twice the number of bird species, and about four times the number of mammal species. The family encompasses about 6–11% of all species of seed plants. The largest genera are ''Bulbophyllum'' (2,000 species), ''Epidendrum'' (1,500 species), ''Dendrobium'' (1,400 species) and ''Pleurothallis'' (1,000 species). It also includes ''Vanilla'' (the genus of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epiphyte
An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phorophytes. Epiphytes take part in nutrient cycles and add to both the diversity and biomass of the ecosystem in which they occur, like any other organism. They are an important source of food for many species. Typically, the older parts of a plant will have more epiphytes growing on them. Epiphytes differ from parasites in that they grow on other plants for physical support and do not necessarily affect the host negatively. An organism that grows on another organism that is not a plant may be called an epibiont. Epiphytes are usually found in the temperate zone (e.g., many mosses, liverworts, lichens, and algae) or in the tropics (e.g., many ferns, cacti, orchids, and bromeliads). Epiphyte species make good houseplants due to their minimal wat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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