Omiltemi Ecological State Park is a protected area in southern

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 Guatema ...

. It is located in the

Sierra Madre del Sur The Sierra Madre del Sur is a mountain range in southern Mexico, extending from southern Michoacán east through Guerrero, to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in eastern Oaxaca. Geography The Sierra Madre del Sur joins with the Eje Volcánico Transv ...

Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...

. The park includes well-preserved pine–oak forests and cloud forests.

Geography

Omiltemi Ecological State Park is located in the Sierra Madre del Sur, 15 km west of

Chilpancingo Chilpancingo de los Bravo (commonly shortened to Chilpancingo; ; Nahuatl: Chilpantsinko) is the capital and second-largest city of the state of Guerrero, Mexico. In 2010 it had a population of 187,251 people. The municipality has an area of in ...

. The topography is rugged, with steep slopes and deep gorges. Elevations range from 1800 to 2800 meters.

Flora and fauna

The park is in the Sierra Madre del Sur pine–oak forests ecoregion. Plant communities include pine forest, pine–oak forest, cloud forest, oak forest, humid oak forest, and areas of dry scrub. The forests of the reserve are some of the best-preserved in Guerrero. 595 species of

vascular plant Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They al ...

s from 102 families have been identified in the park, including 103 species

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 ...

s in 41 genera. 167 species of birds have been recorded. 79% of species are permanent residents, 18% are winter residents, 1% are summer residents, and 2% are of uncertain seasonality.BirdLife International (2021) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Omiltemi. Accessed 4 October 2021

/ref> 20 species or subspecies are endemic to the Sierra Madre del Sur. Bird species include the long-tailed wood partridge (''Dendrortyx macroura''),

singing quail The singing quail (''Dactylortyx thoracicus'') is a species of bird in the family Odontophoridae, the New World quail. It is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The singing quail is the only ...

(''Dactylortyx thoracicus''),

banded quail The banded quail (''Philortyx fasciatus'') is a species of bird in the family Odontophoridae. It is found only in Mexico where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tr ...

(''Philortyx fasciatus''),

white-faced quail-dove The white-faced quail-dove (''Zentrygon albifacies'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.Soberanes-González, C. A., C. I. Rodríguez-Flores, M. d. C. Arizmendi, ...

(''Zentrygon albifacies''),

military macaw The military macaw (''Ara militaris'') is a large parrot and a medium-sized macaw that gets its name from its predominantly green plumage resembling a military parade uniform. It is native to forests of Mexico and South America and though conside ...

(''Ara militaris''),

dusky hummingbird The dusky hummingbird (''Phaeoptila sordida'') is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is endemic to Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The dusky hummingbird was formerly placed in the genus ...

(''Phaeoptila sordida''), white-tailed hummingbird (''Eupherusa poliocerca''), pine flycatcher, (''Empidonax affinis''),

white-throated jay The white-throated jay (''Cyanolyca mirabilis''), also known as the Omiltemi jay, is a species of bird in the family Corvidae. It is endemic to the Sierra Madre del Sur ranges of Mexico. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist mont ...

or Omiltemi jay (''Cyanolyca mirabilis''),

Boucard's wren Boucard's wren (''Campylorhynchus jocosus'') is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics Boucard's wren has sometimes been considered conspecific with the spotted wren (''Campylorhynch ...

(''Campylorhynchus jocosus''),

Aztec thrush The Aztec thrush (''Ridgwayia pinicola'') is a species of bird in the family Turdidae. It is found mainly in Mexico, but vagrants are occasionally seen in the United States. Its natural habitat is montane forests. The IUCN Red List denotes it as ...

(''Ridgwayia pinicola''),

blue mockingbird The blue mockingbird (''Melanotis caerulescens'') is a species of bird in the family Mimidae. It is endemic to Mexico, but has occurred as a vagrant in the southern United States. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, sub ...

(''Melanotis caerulescens''),

red-headed tanager The red-headed tanager (''Piranga erythrocephala'') is a medium-sized American songbird in the family Cardinalidae, the cardinals or cardinal grosbeaks. It is endemic to Mexico. The red-headed tanager is around long, the male has predominantl ...

(''Piranga erythrocephala''),

rufous-capped brushfinch The rufous-capped brushfinch (''Atlapetes pileatus'') is a species of bird in the family Passerellidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slope ...

(''Atlapetes pileatus''), and

white-throated towhee The white-throated towhee (''Melozone albicollis'') is a species of bird in the family Passerellidae that is endemic to Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shr ...

(''Melozone albicollis'').. Endemic and limited-range species include

Wagler's toucanet Wagler's toucanet (''Aulacorhynchus wagleri'') is a species of bird in the toucan family Ramphastidae. It is endemic to southwestern Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics Wagler's toucanet was originally described in the genus '' Pteroglossus''. ...

(''Aulacorhynchus wagleri''), white-throated jay, white-tailed hummingbird,

white-striped woodcreeper The white-striped woodcreeper (''Lepidocolaptes leucogaster'') is a species of bird in the Dendrocolaptinae subfamily. It is endemic to Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest A forest is an area of land domin ...

(''Lepidocolaptes leucogaster''), Aztec thrush, and subspecies of the long-tailed wood partridge. Omiltemi is designated an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

for the presence of the white-tailed hummingbird and white-throated jay. The

Omiltemi cottontail The Omilteme cottontail (''Sylvilagus insonus'') is a cottontail rabbit found only in the state of Guerrero, Mexico in the mountain range of Sierra Madre del Sur. Belonging to the family Leporidae, it is one of fourteen species in the genus ''Sy ...

(''Sylvilagus insonus'') and

Omiltemi minute salamander ''Thorius omiltemi'' is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the area around Omiltemi in the Sierra Madre del Sur of Guerrero, Mexico, at elevations of asl. It is a terrestrial salamander that inhabits pine- ...

(''Thorius omiltemi'') are limited to the park and surrounding mountains.

References

{{reflist Protected areas of Guerrero Sierra Madre del Sur Important Bird Areas of Mexico Cloud forests of Mexico