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 ...
on the island of Hispaniola. They cover , around 60% of the island's area.
Geography
Moist forests occur on most of the eastern half the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...
, stretching from the coast all the way to high elevations in the mountains. In Haiti, they are found in the
Tiburon Peninsula
The Tiburon Peninsula (french: Péninsule de Tiburon), or The Xaragua Peninsula, simply "the Tiburon" (''le Tiburon''), is a region of Haiti encompassing most of Haiti's southern coast.
It starts roughly at the southernmost point of the Haiti-D ...
in the southern part of the country as well as the
Massif du Nord
The Massif du Nord is the longest mountain range of Haiti.
Geography
The mountain range is located in the northern region of Haiti, in the departments of the and in . The range's altitude varies from . The Plaine-du-Nord lies along the norther ...
. The
drainage basin
A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
s for the island's main rivers, the
Yaque del Norte
The Yaque Del Norte River (Spanish, ''Río Yaque del Norte'') is the longest river in the Dominican Republic, as well as the second longest river on Hispaniola, behind the Artibonite River. It is 296 km long and flows northwest into the Atlanti ...
and
Yaque del Sur
The Yaque del Sur River (Spanish, ''Río Yaque del Sur'') is a river in the southwestern Dominican Republic. It is approximately 183 km in length.
Etymology
''Yaque'' or ''Yaqui'' was a Taíno word given to two rivers in the Dominican Republ ...
, Yuna, and Artibonite, occur in this ecoregion. The forests cover diverse topography, including flatlands, valleys, plateaus, slopes and foothills up to an altitude of about . Soils are either
calcareous
Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines.
In zoology
''Calcareous'' is used as an ad ...
(neutral or somewhat alkaline) or acidic.
Climate
Mesic forests receive of annual rainfall, while more than falls in wet forests. The rainy season lasts from April to December. Temperature varies from in open areas near the coast and averages around in higher areas. Freezing temperatures occur in the highest zones at certain times of the year.
Flora
Moist forests are classified as being either lowland mesic, montane mesic, lowland wet, or montane wet. Characteristic lowland species are Haitian catalpa ('' Catalpa longissima''), particularly in well-drained soils, and West Indian mahogany (''
Swietenia mahagoni
''Swietenia mahagoni'', commonly known as American mahogany, Cuban mahogany, small-leaved mahogany, and West Indian mahogany, is a species of ''Swietenia'' native to South Florida in the United States and islands in the Caribbean including the Ba ...
''). Puerto Rican royal palm ('' Roystonea borinquena'') is common where soil is
calcareous
Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines.
In zoology
''Calcareous'' is used as an ad ...
Genipa americana
''Genipa americana'' () is a species of trees in the family Rubiaceae. It is native to the tropical forests of North and South America, as well as the Caribbean.
Description
''Genipa americana'' trees are up to 30 m tall and up to 60 cm d ...
''), black olive ('' Bucida buceras''), West Indian lancewood (''
Oxandra lanceolata
''Oxandra lanceolata'' is a species of plant in the Annonaceae family. It occurs naturally in Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.
It is an evergreen tree growing up to 15 metres high. Its leaves are 3.5-9.5 ...
Haematoxylum campechianum
''Haematoxylum campechianum'' (blackwood, bloodwood tree, bluewood, campeachy tree, campeachy wood, campeche logwood, campeche wood, Jamaica wood, logwood or logwood tree) is a species of flowering tree in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is ...
''), iris (''
Hippeastrum puniceum
''Hippeastrum puniceum'' is a bulbous perennial native to tropical regions of South America, although it has become naturalized elsewhere. Common names include Barbados lily, Easter lily, cacao lily, cocoa lily and amaryllis lily, although it is ...
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
s have formed from degraded forest are indicated by trees such as the sandpaper tree ('' Curatella americana''), grandleaf seagrape ('' Coccoloba pubescens''), Jamaican nettletree (''
Trema micrantha
''Trema micrantha'', the Jamaican nettletree or capulin, is a plant species native to warmer parts of the Western Hemisphere. It has been reported from Mexico, Central America, tropical South America, the Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Cuba, Hispaniola ...
'') and ''
Tabebuia
''Tabebuia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Bignoniaceae.Eberhard Fischer, Inge Theisen, and Lúcia G. Lohmann. 2004. "Bignoniaceae". pages 9-38. In: Klaus Kubitzki (editor) and Joachim W. Kadereit (volume editor). ''The Families ...
'' species. Cashews (''Anacardium occidentale'') are present in zones that have marginal earth and precipitation closer to that of the
dry forests
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 ...
Alchornea latifolia
''Alchornea latifolia'' is a species of tree in the family Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of a genus in the ...
Guarea guidonia
''Guarea guidonia'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Meliaceae. It ranges from Cuba and Honduras south to Argentina.
The bark of ''Guarea rusbyi'' (Britton) Rusby, a synonym of ''Guarea guidonia'' (L.) Sleumer, is used as an expector ...
Hymenaea courbaril
''Hymenaea courbaril'', the courbaril or West Indian locust, is a tree common in the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. It is a hardwood that is used for furniture, flooring, and decoration. Its hard fruit pods have edible dry pulp ...
Prestoea montana
''Prestoea montana'' (Vernacular English: Sierran palm;Hispaniolan pine (''Pinus occidentalis'') is common on lateritic soils. Wet forests consist of trees covered by
parasitic plant
A parasitic plant is a plant that derives some or all of its nutritional requirements from another living plant. They make up about 1% of angiosperms and are found in almost every biome. All parasitic plants develop a specialized organ called the ...
s and epiphytes. The principal indicator species include tree ferns (''
Cyathea
''Cyathea'' is a genus of tree ferns, the type genus of the fern order Cyatheales.
The genus name ''Cyathea'' is derived from the Greek ''kyatheion'', meaning "little cup", and refers to the cup-shaped sori on the underside of the fronds.
De ...
'' spp.) and ''
Chionanthus
''Chionanthus'' , common name: fringetrees, is a genus of about 150 species of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae.
The genus has a wide distribution primarily in the tropics and subtropics, but with three species extending north into te ...
'' species. At higher elevations, characteristic species are the trembling schefflera ('' Schefflera tremula''), black sapote (''
Diospyros digyna
''Diospyros nigra'', the black sapote, is a species of persimmon. Common names include chocolate pudding fruit, black soapapple and (in Spanish) ''zapote prieto''. The tropical fruit tree is native to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia. The c ...
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, a ...
'', ''
Oreopanax capitatus
''Oreopanax'' is a genus of shrubs and trees in the family Araliaceae, comprising circa 85 species native to the Americas.
Distribution
''Oreopanax'' species' range extends from Mexico and the Antilles to Argentina and Brazil
Brazil ( pt ...
'', ''
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 ...
'', Hispaniolan pines, and ''
Cyathea
''Cyathea'' is a genus of tree ferns, the type genus of the fern order Cyatheales.
The genus name ''Cyathea'' is derived from the Greek ''kyatheion'', meaning "little cup", and refers to the cup-shaped sori on the underside of the fronds.
De ...
'' species.
Fauna
Birds
Birds of the moist forests include the Hispaniolan amazon (''Amazona ventralis''),
Hispaniolan parakeet
The Hispaniolan parakeet (''Psittacara chloropterus'') (Spanish: ''perico'' or ''periquito''), colloquially known as xaxabí, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae that is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominica ...
American kestrel
The American kestrel (''Falco sparverius''), also called the sparrow hawk, is the smallest and most common falcon in North America. It has a roughly two-to-one range in size over subspecies and sex, varying in size from about the weight of ...
narrow-billed tody
The narrow-billed tody (''Todus angustirostris'') is a species of bird in the family Todidae. It is one of two Todus species endemic to Hispaniola, a Caribbean island shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
Taxonomy and systematics
...
(''Todus angustirostris''),
stolid flycatcher
The stolid flycatcher (''Myiarchus stolidus'') is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae.
It is found in Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti), and Jamaica.
Its natural habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array ...
(''Myiarchus stolidus''),
Hispaniolan pewee
The Hispaniolan pewee (''Contopus hispaniolensis'') is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae (flycatcher) family.
It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti) in the Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( ...
white-necked crow
The white-necked crow (''Corvus leucognaphalus'') is the largest of the four Caribbean corvids. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between Haiti and the Dominican Republic); it was formerly also extant on Puerto Rico, but has been ...
(''Corvus leucognaphalus''),
palmchat
The palmchat (''Dulus dominicus'') is a small, long-tailed passerine bird, the only species in the genus ''Dulus'' and the family Dulidae endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti). It is rela ...
(''Dulus dominicus''),
Hispaniolan trogon
The Hispaniolan trogon (''Priotelus roseigaster'') is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae. It
is endemic to Hispaniola (both Haiti and the Dominican Republic) in the Caribbean. It is one of the only two trogon species found in the Caribbea ...
(''Priotelus roseigaster''),
ruddy quail-dove
The ruddy quail-dove (''Geotrygon montana'') is a species of bird in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. It breeds throughout the West Indies, Central America, and tropical South America. It has appeared as a vagrant in Florida and southern Te ...
(''Geotrygon montana''),
red-tailed hawk
The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members wit ...
(''Buteo jamaicensis''),
white-winged warbler
The white-winged warbler (''Xenoligea montana''), also called the white-winged ground-warbler, is a Vulnerable species of bird of the family Phaenicophilidae, the Hispaniolan tanagers. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola which is shared ...
Native mammals include the Hispaniolan hutia (''Plagiodontia aedium''),
Hispaniolan solenodon
The Hispaniolan solenodon (''Solenodon paradoxus'') is a small, furry, shrew-like mammal endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic and Haiti). Like other solenodons, it is a venomous, insect-eating animal that liv ...
(''Solenodon paradoxus''), and 18
bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...
species such as the
Cuban flower bat
The Cuban flower bat (''Phyllonycteris poeyi''), also called Poey's flower bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found on the Caribbean islands of Cuba and Hispaniola (in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic).
Descripti ...