The Guayanan Highlands moist forests (NT0124) is an

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 l ...

in the south of Venezuela and the north of Brazil and in Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana. It is in the

Amazon biome The Amazon biome ( pt, Bioma Amazônia) contains the Amazon rainforest, an area of tropical rainforest, and other ecoregions that cover most of the Amazon basin and some adjacent areas to the north and east. The biome contains blackwater and white ...

. It encompasses an upland region with diverse fauna and flora, which contains dramatic

tepui A tepui , or tepuy (), is a table-top mountain or mesa found in South America, especially in Venezuela and western Guyana. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the Pemon, the indigenous people who inhabit the Gran S ...

s, or sandstone table mountains. The region has been inaccessible in the past and is generally fairly intact, apart from the north and northeast where large scale agriculture, ranching and mining operations are steadily encroaching on the ecosystem. New roads are opening the interior to logging, and planned dams will have a drastic impact on the

riparian zone A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks ar ...

Location

The ecoregion includes parts of southern Venezuela, western and southern Guyana and northern Brazil, with scattered portions in Suriname and French Guiana. It extends into eastern Colombia. It has a total area of . The ecoregion lies on the

Guiana Shield The Guiana Shield (french: Plateau des Guyanes, Bouclier guyanais; nl, Hoogland van Guyana, Guianaschild; pt, Planalto das Guianas, Escudo das Guianas; es, Escudo guayanés) is one of the three cratons of the South American Plate. It is a ...

, an ancient upland area between the Amazon and Orinoco basins. It is surrounded by lowland grassy savannas and lowland forest. All areas of the ecoregion contains enclaves of the Pantepuis ecoregion on the tops of table mountains. Most areas of the ecoregion in the east are surrounded by the

Guianan moist forests The Guianan moist forests (NT0125) is an ecoregion in the east of Venezuela, north of Brazil and the Guyanas (Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana). It is in the Amazon biome. The climate is hot and humid, with two rainy seasons each year. As of 1996 ...

ecoregion, and most areas in the west are surrounded by the

Guianan piedmont and lowland moist forests The Guianan piedmont and lowland moist forests (NT0182) is an ecoregion in the south of Venezuela and the north of Brazil. It is in the Amazon biome. The ecoregion is relatively intact, largely protected by conservation units or indigenous territor ...

ecoregion. Sections of the ecoregion in the east border the Uatuma-Trombetas moist forests to the south. The central part of the ecoregion surrounds the northern part of the largest section of the

Guianan savanna The Guianan savanna (NT0707) is an ecoregion in the south of Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname and the north of Brazil. It is in the Amazon biome. The savanna covers an area of rolling upland plains on the Guiana Shield between the Amazon and Orinoco ...

ecoregion The southwestern part of the ecoregion rises above the Negro-Branco moist forests ecoregion. The Guayanan Highlands moist forests and the Tepuis together make up the Guayanan Highlands Forests

Global 200 The Global 200 is the list of ecoregions identified by the World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF), the global conservation organization, as priorities for conservation. According to WWF, an ecoregion is defined as a "relatively large unit of land or w ...

ecoregion.

Physical

The terrain is rugged, with elevations in the ecoregion from above sea level. Taller table mountains in the region rise to elevations of and host the

Tepui A tepui , or tepuy (), is a table-top mountain or mesa found in South America, especially in Venezuela and western Guyana. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the Pemon, the indigenous people who inhabit the Gran S ...

ecoregion. The Guayanan Highlands ecoregion is an "island" of higher land surrounded by lower grasslands and forests collectively known as the

. Most of the land drains into the

Orinoco The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the wor ...

through the Ventuari, Caroní,

Paragua ''Marihuana prensada'' or ''cannabis prensado'' (pressed cannabis or marijuana), also known as ''ladrillo'' (brick weed) or, colloquially, ''paragua'' or ''paraguayo'' is a compressed cannabis (drug), cannabis cut into blocks that facilitate trans ...

and Caura rivers in Venezuela. In the south, it is drained by the

Uraricoera The Uraricoera River (Uraricuera) is a river of Roraima state in northern Brazil. The confluence of the Uraricoera and Takutu Rivers forms the Branco River. Basin The river drains the Guayanan Highlands moist forests ecoregion. Part of the river' ...

and Branco rivers in Brazil into the

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

. The upland terraces and mountains consist mainly of quartzitic or sandstone rocks, with granitic rock in some areas. The lowland plains are recent, formerly flooded by lakes or by the sea. Most of the landscape is forest-covered rolling

peneplain 390px, Sketch of a hypothetical peneplain formation after an orogeny. In geomorphology and geology, a peneplain is a low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion. This is the definition in the broadest of terms, albeit with frequency the usage ...

s and

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

s. The undulating peneplains between the Caura and Paragua rivers hold low hills up to high. There are scattered upland areas of undulating plains, rounded hills, low mountains and Tepuis up to high, and the lower slopes of the higher tepuis. Soils are mostly sandy and low in nutrients.

Ecology

The Guianan Highlands moist forests ecoregion is in the

Neotropical realm The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bioge ...

and the

tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally found in large, discont ...

biome.

Climate

The

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

is "Am": equatorial, monsoonal. Temperatures vary little throughout the year. Yearly average temperatures range from a minimum of to a maximum of , with a mean of . Annual rainfall varies considerably, but in some areas averages . Monthly rainfall is lowest in January at and highest in July at .

Flora

There are various habitats including large areas of tall primary rainforest, open savannas and gallery forests. The peneplains hold evergreen forests with dense canopies of with emergent trees in the

Calophyllum ''Calophyllum'' is a genus of tropical flowering plants in the family Calophyllaceae. They are mainly distributed in Asia, with some species in Africa, the Americas, Australasia, and the Pacific Islands. History Members of the genus ''Calophyllu ...

Anacardium ''Anacardium'', the cashews, are a genus of flowering plants in the family Anacardiaceae, native to tropical regions of the Americas. The best known species is '' Anacardium occidentale,'' which is commercially cultivated for its cashew nuts and ...

Manilkara ''Manilkara'' is a genus of trees in the family Sapotaceae. They are widespread in tropical and semitropical locations, in Africa, Madagascar, Asia, Australia, and Latin America, as well as various islands in the Pacific and in the Caribbean. A ...

, Protium,

Inga ''Inga'' is a genus of small tropical, tough-leaved, nitrogen-fixing treesElkan, Daniel. "Slash-and-burn farming has become a major threat to the world's rainforest" ''The Guardian'' 21 April 2004 and shrubs, subfamily Mimosoideae. ''Inga''s l ...

Parkia ''Parkia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. Several species are known as African locust bean. In 1995, about 31 species were known.Melissa Luckow and ...

Copaifera ''Copaifera'' is a genus of tropical plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The scientific name means "copal-bearer" (or more accurately, ''copaiba''-bearer), since economically important resins and essential oils can be acquired from them. They ...

Erythrina ''Erythrina'' is a genus of plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 130 species, which are distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They are trees, with the larger species growing up to in height. The generic na ...

and

Dipteryx ''Dipteryx'' is a genus containing a number of species of large trees and possibly shrubs. It belongs to the "papilionoid" subfamily – Faboideae – of the family Fabaceae. This genus is native to South and Central America and the Carib ...

genera. Common trees on the plains include '' Micropholis melinoniana'',

Dacryodes ''Dacryodes'' is a genus of about 60 species of trees in the family Burseraceae. The generic name is from the Greek ' meaning "tear(drop)", referring to how resin droplets form on the bark surface. Description ''Dacryodes'' species grow as shrub ...

species, ''

Euterpe precatoria ''Euterpe precatoria'' is a tall, slender-stemmed, pinnate-leaved palm native to Central and South America and Trinidad and Tobago. ''E. precatoria'' is used commercially to produce fruits, although ''Euterpe oleracea'' is more commonly cultivate ...

'' and ''

Quassia cedron ''Quassia'' ( or ) is a plant genus in the family (biology), family Simaroubaceae. Its size is disputed; some botanists treat it as consisting of only one species, ''Quassia amara'' from tropical South America, while others treat it in a wide ci ...

''. There are fewer emergent trees in the hilly areas, where tree species include '' Newtonia suaveolens'', ''

Couratari guanensis ''Couratari'' is a genus of trees in the family Lecythidaceae, first described as a genus in 1775. They are native to tropical South America and Central America. They are large trees, often rising above the rainforest canopy. The leaf, leaves a ...

'',

Alexa Alexa may refer to: Technology *Amazon Alexa, a virtual assistant developed by Amazon * Alexa Internet, a defunct website ranking and traffic analysis service * Arri Alexa, a digital motion picture camera People *Alexa (name), a given name and ...

species, ''

'' and ''

Micrandra minor ''Micrandra'' is a plant genus of the family (biology), family Euphorbiaceae first described in 1854. It is native to South America. Species Species currently included in ''Micrandra'': # ''Micrandra australis'' (R.E.Schult.) R.E.Schult. - Am ...

''. The seasonally flooded forests along the rivers have similar formations of flora to the Amazon region. Common tree species on the upper Orinoco include ''

Combretum frangulifolium ''Combretum'', the bushwillows or combretums, make up the type genus of the family Combretaceae. The genus comprises about 272 species of trees and shrubs, most of which are native to tropical and southern Africa, about 5 to Madagascar, but the ...

'', ''

Gustavia augusta Gustavia may refer to * Gustavia, Saint Barthélemy, the largest town on (and capital of) the Caribbean island of St. Barthélemy * Gustavia, Rügen, an unfinished town project in Swedish Pomerania * ''Gustavia'' (plant), a genus of plants in the ...

'',

Pterocarpus ''Pterocarpus'' is a pantropical genus of trees in the family Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Faboideae, and was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic ''Pterocarpus'' clade within the Dalbergieae. Most species of ''Pterocarpus'' ...

species, '' Etaballia dubia'', ''

Albizia corymbosa ''Albizia'' is a genus of more than 160 species of mostly fast-growing subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae. The genus is pantropical, occurring in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, America and ...

'', ''

Spondias mombin ''Spondias mombin'', also known as yellow mombin or hog plum is a species of tree and flowering plant in the family Anacardiaceae. It is native to the tropical Americas, including the West Indies. The tree was introduced by the Portuguese in Sout ...

'', ''

Mabea nitida Mabea may refer to: * Mabea (plant), ''Mabea'' (plant) a genus of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae) of flowering plants; * Mabi, Mabea ethnic groups of Cameroon {{Disambig ...

'', ''

Eschweilera tenuifolia ''Eschweilera'' is a genus of woody plants in the family Lecythidaceae first described as a genus in 1828.Astrocaryum aculeatum ''Astrocaryum aculeatum'' (known in Brazilian Portuguese as ''tucumã'', ''acaiúra'', ''acuiuru'', ''coco-tucumã'', ''tucum'', ''tucumã-açu'', ''tucumã-macaw'', ''tucum-açu'', ''tucumaí-da-terra-firme'', ''tucumãí-uaçu'', ''tucumã-pirir ...

'' and

species. Floodplain trees include ''

Caryocar microcarpum ''Caryocar'' (souari trees) is a genus of flowering plants, in the South American family Caryocaraceae described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1771. It is native primarily to South America with a few species extending into Central America and the Wes ...

'', ''

Caraipa densifolia ''Caraipa'' is a plant genus in the family (taxonomy), family Calophyllaceae.Stephens, P.F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008. http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/Research/APweb/ Species include: *''Caraipa ampla'' *''Car ...

'', ''

Macrolobium acaciaefolium ''Macrolobium'' is a legume genus in the subfamily Detarioideae. It is a tropical genus with about 80 species. Half occur in Brazil, where they are common in the floodplains of the Amazon rainforest, Amazonian Basin. Members of the genus are used ...

'', ''

Abuta grandfolia ''Abuta'' is a genus in the flowering plant family Menispermaceae, of about 32 species, native to tropical Central and South America. Description It consists in dioecious climbers or rarely erect trees or shrubs ('' Abuta concolor'') with s ...

'' and ''

Panopsis rubescens ''Panopsis'' is a genus of trees in the family Proteaceae. The species, which occur in Central and South America, include: Newer species that can be considered part of the ''Panopsis'' genus has been discovered recently, called ''Panopsis magnif ...

''.

Fauna

209 species of mammals have been recorded, including

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...

(''Panthera onca''),

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...

(''Puma concolor''),

South American tapir The South American tapir (''Tapirus terrestris''), also commonly called the Brazilian tapir (from the Tupi ''tapi'ira''), the Amazonian tapir, the maned tapir, the lowland tapir, the ''anta'' (Portuguese), and ''la sachavaca'' (literally "bushcow ...

(''Tapirus terrestris''),

white-lipped peccary The white-lipped peccary (''Tayassu pecari'') is a species of peccary found in Central America, Central and South America and the only member of the genus ''Tayassu''. Multiple subspecies have been identified. White-lipped peccaries are similar ...

(''Tayassu pecari''),

collared peccary The collared peccary (''Dicotyles tajacu'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed) mammal in the family Tayassuidae found in North, Central, and South America. It is the only member of the genus ''Dicotyles''. They are commonly referred to as ' ...

(''Pecari tajacu''),

brocket deer Brockets or brocket deer are the species of deer in the genus ''Mazama''. They are medium to small in size, and are found in the Yucatán Peninsula, Central and South America, and the island of Trinidad. Most species are primarily found in forest ...

(Mazama genus),

white-eared opossum The white-eared opossum (''Didelphis albiventris''), known as the timbu in Brazil and comadreja overa in Argentina, is an opossum species found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It is a terrestrial and, sometimes, arboreal a ...

(''Didelphis albiventris''),

big lutrine opossum The big lutrine opossum (''Lutreolina crassicaudata''), also known as the little water opossum, comadreja colorada, thick-tailed opossum, or coligrueso is an opossum species from South America in the genus ''Lutreolina''. Description The big ...

(''Lutreolina crassicaudata''),

Robinson's mouse opossum Robinson's mouse opossum (''Marmosa robinsoni'') is a species of opossum in the family Didelphidae. It is found in Belize, Colombia, Ecuador, Grenada, Honduras, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. Robinson's mouse opossums move al ...

(''Marmosa robinsoni''),

Davy's naked-backed bat Davy's (lesser) naked-backed bat (''Pteronotus davyi'') is a small, insect-eating, cave-dwelling bat of the Family Mormoopidae. It is found throughout South and Central America, including Trinidad, but not Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, or French Gu ...

(''Pteronotus davyi''),

Fernandez's sword-nosed bat Fernandez's sword-nosed bat (''Lonchorhina fernandezi'') is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is the smallest species of the ''Lonchorhina'' genus. It is endemic to Venezuela. In 2013, Bat Conservation International listed this s ...

(''Lonchorhina fernandezi''),

highland yellow-shouldered bat The highland yellow-shouldered bat (''Sturnira ludovici'') is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and Venezuela. Refer ...

(''Sturnira ludovici''),

eastern lowland olingo The eastern lowland olingo (''Bassaricyon alleni'') is a species of olingo from South America, where it is known from the lowlands east of the Andes in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela.fiery squirrel (''Sciurus flammifer''), Guyanan spiny rat (''Proechimys hoplomyoides'') and

Orinoco agouti The Orinoco agouti (''Dasyprocta guamara'') is a species of rodent in the family Dasyproctidae. It is Endemism, endemic to Delta Amacuro in Venezuela, where it is found in areas with rainforest or mangroves. References

* Dasyprocta Rode ...

(''Dasyprocta guamara''). Endangered mammals include

black bearded saki The black bearded saki (''Chiropotes satanas'') is a species of New World monkey, native to the Amazon rainforest of South America, specifically to an area of north-eastern Brazil. It is one of five species of bearded saki. Bearded sakis are med ...

(''Chiropotes satanas''),

(''Lonchorhina fernandezi'') and

giant otter The giant otter or giant river otter (''Pteronura brasiliensis'') is a South American carnivorous mammal. It is the longest member of the weasel family, Mustelidae, a globally successful group of predators, reaching up to . Atypical of musteli ...

(''Pteronura brasiliensis''). Snakes include fer-de-lance (''

Bothrops asper Terciopelo (''Bothrops asper'') is a species of pit vipers occurring at low to moderate elevations in northeast Mexico and Central America, and into South America where it is known from elevations up to 2600 meters in the Colombian and Ecuador ...

''), palm pit-vipers (

Bothriechis ''Bothriechis'' is a genus of venomous pit vipers, commonly called palm vipersMehrtens JM. 1987. ''Living Snakes of the World in Color''. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . or palm-pitvipersCampbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. ''The Venomous Repti ...

genus), coral snakes (

Micrurus ''Micrurus'' is a genus of venomous coral snakes of the family Elapidae. Geographic range Species in the genus ''Micrurus'' are endemic to the Americas. Species The following 83 species are recognized as being valid. *''Micrurus albicinctus'' ...

genus), boa constrictors (''

Boa constrictor The boa constrictor (scientific name also ''Boa constrictor''), also called the red-tailed boa, is a species of large, non-venomous, heavy-bodied snake that is frequently kept and bred in captivity. The boa constrictor is a member of the family B ...

'') and bushmasters (''

Lachesis muta ''Lachesis muta'', also known as the Southern American bushmaster or Atlantic bushmaster, is a venomous pit viper species found in South America, as well as the island of Trinidad in the Caribbean. Two subspecies are currently recognized, includi ...

''). There are many green iguanas (''Iguana iguana'') and tegus lizards (

Tupinambis ''Tupinambis'' is a lizard genus which belongs to the family Teiidae and contains eight described species. These large lizards are commonly referred to as tegus (''teiús'' in Portuguese). '' T. merianae'' (Argentine black and white tegu), '' T. ...

genus). Endangered amphibians include the demonic poison frog ('' Minyobates steyermarki''). 631 species of birds have been recorded, including

white-cheeked pintail The white-cheeked pintail (''Anas bahamensis''), also known as the Bahama pintail or summer duck, is a species of dabbling duck. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' under its current ...

(''Anas bahamensis''),

aplomado falcon The aplomado falcon (''Falco femoralis'') is a medium-sized falcon of the Americas. The species' largest contiguous range is in South America, but not in the deep interior Amazon Basin. It was long known as ''Falco fusco-coerulescens'' or ''Falco ...

(''Falco femoralis''), brown-throated parakeet (''Eupsittula pertinax''),

pavonine cuckoo The pavonine cuckoo (''Dromococcyx pavoninus'') is a Neotropical cuckoo with a long graduated tail and a short crest. It is one of three species of Neotropical cuckoo which are known to be brood parasites. Description The head and crest of this ...

(''Dromococcyx pavoninus''),

Middle American screech owl The Middle American screech owl (''Megascops guatemalae''), also known as the Guatemalan screech owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is found from northern Mexico to western Panama. Taxonomy and systematics The taxonomy of th ...

(''Megascops guatemalae''),

burrowing owl The burrowing owl (''Athene cunicularia''), also called the shoco, is a small, long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or an ...

(''Athene cunicularia''), emeralds and hummingbirds in the

Amazilia ''Amazilia'' is a hummingbird genus in the subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in tropical Central and South America. Taxonomy The genus ''Amazilia'' was introduced in 1843 by the French naturalist René Lesson. Lesson had used ''amazilia'' i ...

genus, chestnut-tipped toucanet (''Aulacorhynchus derbianus''),

smoke-colored pewee The smoke-colored pewee (''Contopus fumigatus'') is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. The species is characterized by a uniform dusky-grey plumage. Smoke-colored pewees are found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuado ...

(''Contopus fumigatus''),

orange-crowned oriole The orange-crowned oriole (''Icterus auricapillus'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is found in eastern Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist ...

(''Icterus auricapillus''),

grey seedeater The grey seedeater (''Sporophila intermedia'') is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical seasonally wet ...

(''Sporophila intermedia''),

two-banded warbler The two-banded warbler (''Myiothlypis bivittata'') is a species of bird in the family Parulidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Guyana, Peru, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests and h ...

(''Myiothlypis bivittata'') and

black-backed water tyrant The black-backed water tyrant (''Fluvicola albiventer'') is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is one of three species in the genus Fluvicola. It is found in South America in central and northeastern Brazil a ...

(''Fluvicola albiventer''). Endangered birds include the

yellow-bellied seedeater The yellow-bellied seedeater (''Sporophila nigricollis'') is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae, formerly placed with the American sparrows in the Emberizidae. Taxonomy and systematics Hooded seedeater The hooded seedeater was a proposed ...

(''Sporophila nigricollis'').

Status

The

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 Wo ...

classes the ecoregion as "Relatively Stable/Intact". The interior forests have been inaccessible in the past and are generally intact, although roads are being built that open them up to logging. Logging is illegal in the state of Amazonas, Venezuela, but continues elsewhere. Legal and illegal mining for gold, diamonds, bauxite, and iron ore are a serious threat. Near urban centers in the north and northeast of the ecoregion the habitat is steadily being destroyed by large-scale agriculture, cattle ranching and mining. Planned hydroelectric dams on the Caroni and Paragua rivers would huge areas with devastating effect on the riparian habitats. Part of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Alto Orinoco-Casiquiare Biosphere Reserve The Alto Orinoco-Casiquiare Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO biosphere reserve in the Venezuelan Amazon biome. Location The Alto Orinoco-Casiquiare Biosphere Reserve was designated in 1993. It is located between 00°30' to 04°40'N and 62°45' to 6 ...

lies in the ecoregion. Protected areas include the

El Caura Forest Reserve EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

, Imataca Forest Reserve,

Kaieteur National Park Kaieteur National Park is a national park located in the Potaro-Siparuni Region of Guyana. The Park's boundaries and purpose are defined in the Kaieteur National Park Act, and was created to preserve the natural scenery (including Kaieteur Falls) ...

Canaima National Park Canaima National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Canaima) is a park in south-eastern Venezuela that roughly occupies the same area as the Gran Sabana region. It is located in Bolívar State, reaching the borders with Brazil and Guyana. History Ca ...

, and

Kanuku Mountains The Kanuku Mountains are a group of mountains in Guyana, located in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo region. The name means 'forest' in the Wapishana language, a reference to the rich diversity of wildlife found there. The Eastern Kanuku Mountain ...

. The Canaima National Park protects an area of . There are other national parks, but they are not well funded. The

Pico da Neblina National Park Pico da Neblina National Park ( pt, Parque Nacional do Pico da Neblina) is a national park in the state of Amazonas in the north of Brazil, bordering on Venezuela. It overlaps with several indigenous territories, which creates tensions over land ...

in Brazil and the Parima Tapirapecó and Serranía de la Neblina national parks in Venezuela cover in total. There are many smaller conservation units in the region, but they mainly protect the upper levels of the tepuis.

Notes

External links

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Guayanan Highlands moist forests Ecoregions of Brazil Ecoregions of Guyana Ecoregions of Suriname Ecoregions of Venezuela Neotropical tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests . Amazon biome Montane forests