300px, Springtime in Chilean matorral a few kilometers north of Santiago along the Pan-American Highway Matorral is a Spanish language, Spanish word, along with ''tomillares'', for shrubland, thicket or bushes. It is used in naming and describing a Mediterranean climate ecosystem in

Southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alba ...

Mediterranean region

''Matorral'' originally referred to the Matorral shrublands and woodlands in the Mediterranean climate regions of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

and other

Mediterranean Basin In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and w ...

countries. These

scrub Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," ...

shrublands and woodlands are a plant community and a distinct

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

. Other common general names for this Mediterranean region shrubland habitat ecosystem are: in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

as '' Maquis'' and '' Garrigue''; in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

as ''Macchia Mediterranea''; in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...

as ''Phrygana''; in Portugal as ''Mato''; and in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

as ''Batha''. Now the term is used more broadly to include similar bio-assemblages where ever they occur. In

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

, the term ''mato'' or ''matagal'' is used to refer to the scrublands, or heaths, that formed on the

Cambrian The Cambrian Period ( ; sometimes symbolized Ꞓ) was the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 53.4 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran Period 538.8 million years ag ...

and

Silurian The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, Mya. The Silurian is the shortest period of the Paleozoi ...

schists in the north and central parts of Portugal. Mediterranean ''Matorral'' shrublands are often part of a mosaic landscape, interspersed with

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

, and scrublands.

The Americas

The term ''matorral'' followed

Spanish colonization of the Americas Spain began colonization of the Americas, colonizing the Americas under the Crown of Castile and was spearheaded by the Spanish . The Americas were invaded and incorporated into the Spanish Empire, with the exception of Colonial Brazil, Braz ...

, and is used to refer to both Mediterranean (climate) woodlands and scrub,Jiménez, Héctor E. and Armesto, Juan J. (December 1992) "Importance of the Soil Seed Bank of Disturbed Sites in Chilean Matorral in Early Secondary Succession" ''Journal of Vegetation Science'' 3(5): pp. 579-586, p. 579 and xeric shrublands ecosystems in

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

,Camargo-Ricalde, Sara Lucía; Dhillion, Shivcharn S. and Grether, Rosaura (October 2002) "Community Structure of Endemic Mimosa Species and Environmental Heterogeneity in a Semi-Arid Mexican Valley"''Journal of Vegetation Science'' 13(5): pp. 697-704

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

, and elsewhere. There are Chilean Matorral areas in central Chile, including portions of La Campana National Park. The Central Mexican matorral,

Meseta Central matorral The Meseta Central matorral is a deserts and xeric shrublands ecoregion in north-central Mexico. Geography The Meseta Central matorral occupies the central portion of the Mexican Plateau. It is bounded on the east by the Sierra Madre Oriental. ...

, Tamaulipan matorral, and

Tehuacán Valley matorral The Tehuacán Valley matorral is a xeric shrubland ecoregion, of the deserts and xeric shrublands biome, located in eastern Central Mexico. Matorral is a Spanish word, along with ''tomillares'', for shrubland, thicket or bushes. The term ...

are xeric shrubland ecoregions of Mexico. The Portuguese term ''mato'' was imported to colonial eastern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the souther ...

, where it was used to refer to the great scrublands, savannas, and

flooded grasslands Flooded grasslands and savannas is a terrestrial biome of the WWF biogeographical system, consisting of large expanses or complexes of flooded grasslands. These areas support numerous plants and animals adapted to the unique hydrologic regimes ...

region called the

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – lit. "Thick Bush") is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP. Neighborin ...

, in present-day western

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Popular usage

The regional Mexican band Los Tigres Del Norte used the term matorrales, the plural form of matorral, in their now-famous song "Pacas De A Kilo," an example of the infamous ''narco-corridos'' or drug ballads.

References

* {{Authority control 01 Environment of the Mediterranean Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub Deserts and xeric shrublands Ecoregions of Europe Ecoregions of Italy Ecoregions of Spain * * Palearctic ecoregions

Mediterranean region

The Americas

Popular usage

See also

References