The Magdalena–Urabá moist forests (NT0137) is an ecoregion in the north of Colombia. The terrain is largely flat or undulating, but includes mountainous areas in the south. It contains moist forests and large wetlands that are important to resident and migratory birds. The ecoregion forms a bridge between the Pacific coast ecoregions of Colombia and Central America, and the ecoregions of the Andes and Amazon. It is surrounded by the more populated parts of Colombia and is threatened by farming, ranching, logging, oil exploitation and water pollution in the main rivers.

Geography

Location

The ecoregion is in the north of Colombia, with an area of . It includes the flat landscape along the lower course of the

Magdalena River The Magdalena River (, ; less commonly ) is the main river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of its lower reaches, ...

, and extends west over the coastal plain to the

Gulf of Urabá The Gulf of Urabá is a gulf on the northern coast of Colombia. It is part of the Caribbean Sea. It is a long, wide inlet located on the coast of Colombia, close to the connection of the continent to the Isthmus of Panama. The town of Turbo, Co ...

. To the north the ecoregion transitions into the Sinú Valley dry forests and

Guajira–Barranquilla xeric scrub The Guajira–Barranquilla xeric scrub is a deserts and xeric shrublands, xeric shrubland ecoregion in Colombia, Venezuela, and the ABC Islands (Leeward Antilles), covering an estimated area of . Rainfall varies from , and the median temperature i ...

ecoregions. To the west it meets the Chocó–Darién moist forests, and to the south merges into the Northwestern Andean montane forests,

Cauca Valley montane forests The Cauca Valley montane forests (NT0109) is an ecoregion in western Colombia. It covers the sides of the Cauca Valley, which runs from south to north between the Cordillera Central (Colombia), Central and Cordillera Occidental (Colombia), Western ...

and Magdalena Valley montane forests. The ecoregion transitions into the

Magdalena Valley dry forests The Magdalena Valley dry forests (NT0221) is an ecoregion in Colombia along the upper Magdalena River, a large river that runs from south to north between the two main ''cordilleras'' of the Andes. There are many endemic species, but much of the o ...

in the extreme south.

Terrain

The Eastern Ranges and Central Ranges bound the eastern part of the ecoregion, and the Western Ranges borders the western part, which extends to the

and the

Chocó Department Chocó Department () is a department of the Pacific region of Colombia known for hosting the largest Afro-Colombian population in the nation, and a large population of Amerindian and mixed African-Amerindian Colombians. It is in the west of the ...

. A series of ranges run along the southern part of the region, the Serranía de Abibe, Serranía de San Jerónimo, Serranía de Ayapel and Serranía de San Lucas, which rises to over above sea level. Other than these ranges and some isolated mountains, the terrain is undulating. The center of the region is flat. The main river in the ecoregion is the

. Other important rivers include the lower Cauca, Nechí, San Jorge, Sinú and Atrato. In the center of the ecoregion the rivers form the ''ciénagas'' (wetlands), a large system of marshes, lakes and ponds, of great importance to resident and migratory birds.

Climate

The ecoregion has a seasonal climate, with dry periods in January–March, when strong winds carry clouds from the Caribbean to the southern serranías, and in July–August. There is more rainfall around the Serranía de San Lucas, in the center of the region, and in the upper valleys of the Sinú, San Jorge and Nechí rivers. Mean annual rainfall in the lower areas is . As much as may fall in the upper river valleys and canyons. At a sample location at coordinates the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

is "Am": equatorial, monsoonal. The mean temperature ranges from in October to in March. Yearly total rainfall is about . Monthly rainfall is under in January and February, rising to in August.

Ecology

The 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 tropics, tropical Ecoregion#Terrestrial, terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperat ...

, in 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 (WWF). Description TSMF is generally found in la ...

biome. The Magdalena–Urabá moist forests ecoregion links the Central American and Chocó ecoregions with the ecoregions of the Andes and the Amazon basin. It has high diversity of species and a high level of endemism. The ecoregion is sometimes seen as the eastern part of the Chocó, but it has different characteristics and different endemic species.

Flora

In the flooded areas vegetation is palmettos and wetland flora. In the drier areas the vegetation is dense, high rainforest with a rich understory, with great diversity of flora. Large trees include '' Anacardium excelsum'', '' Cariniana pyriformis'', '' Caryocar amygdaliferum'', '' Caryocar glabrum'', ''

Cedrela odorata ''Cedrela'' is a genus of several species in the mahogany family, Meliaceae. They are evergreen or dry-season deciduous trees with pinnate leaves, native to the tropical and subtropical New World, from southern Mexico south to northern Argentina ...

'', ''

Ceiba pentandra ''Ceiba pentandra'' is a tropical tree of the order (biology), order Malvales and the family (biology), family Malvaceae (previously emplaced in the family Bombacaceae), native to Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, northern South America, ...

'', '' Cordia gerascanthus'', '' Hymenaea courbaril'', ''

Myroxylon balsamum ''Myroxylon balsamum'', Santos mahogany, is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae. It is native to tropical forests from Southern Mexico through the Amazon regions of Peru and Brazil at elevations of . Plants are found growing in well drained ...

'', '' Ochroma lagopus'', '' Schizolobium parahyba'' and ''

Tabebuia rosea ''Tabebuia rosea'', also called pink poui, and rosy trumpet tree is a neotropical tree that grows up to and can reach a diameter at breast height of up to . The Spanish name ''roble de sabana'', meaning "savannah oak", is widely used in Costa R ...

''. The forest contains large vines that support creepers, ''

Araceae The Araceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe (or leaf-like bract). Also ...

'' and ''

Bromeliaceae The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, ...

''. There are more than 150 species of orchid, including ''

Cattleya warscewiczii ''Cattleya warscewiczii'' (The "Warscewicz's Cattley's orchid"), a labiate ''Cattleya'', is a species of orchid. It was first collected by Józef Warszewicz in Colombia in 1848-49 and formally described by Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach in 1855.Th ...

'', '' Cycnoches chlorochilon'', ''

Peristeria elata ''Peristeria elata'' is a species of orchid occurring from Central America to Panama, Venezuela, and Ecuador. It is the type species of its genus. It is commonly referred to as the Holy Ghost orchid, dove orchid, or flower of the Holy Spirit in E ...

'' and ''

Psychopsis papilio ''Psychopsis papilio'' is a species of orchid. Distribution and habitat ''Psychopsis papilio'' is found in Panama, Trinidad, Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is ...

''. Endemic flora include '' Heliconia laxa'', '' Heliconia lentiginosa'', '' Heliconia rigida'' and '' Heliconia sanctae-theresae''.

Fauna

Large mammals found in the rain forests or wetlands include

Geoffroy's spider monkey Geoffroy's spider monkey (''Ateles geoffroyi''), also known as the black-handed spider monkey or the Central American spider monkey, is a species of spider monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central America, parts of Mexico and possibly a ...

(''Ateles geoffroyi''),

cotton-top tamarin The cotton-top tamarin (''Saguinus oedipus'') is a small New World monkey weighing less than . This New World monkey can live up to 24 years, but most of them die by 13 years. One of the smallest primates, the cotton-top tamarin is easily reco ...

(''Saguinus oedipus''), white-footed tamarin (''Saguinus leucopus''),

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

(''Panthera onca''),

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') (, ''Help:Pronunciation respelling key, KOO-gər''), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount and panther is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North America, North, Central America, Cent ...

(''Puma concolor''),

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted Felidae, wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central America, Central and South America, ...

(''Leopardus pardalis''),

jaguarundi The jaguarundi (''Herpailurus yagouaroundi''; or ) is a wild felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its range extends from central Argentina in the south to northern Mexico, through Central America, Central and South America east of the Andes. T ...

(''Puma yagouaroundi''),

crab-eating raccoon The crab-eating raccoon, southern raccoon, or South American raccoon (''Procyon cancrivorus'') is a species of raccoon native to marshy and jungle areas of Central and South America (including Trinidad and Tobago). It is found from Costa Rica so ...

(''Procyon cancrivorus''),

giant anteater The giant anteater (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') is an Insectivore, insectivorous mammal native to Central America, Central and South America. It is the largest of the four living species of anteaters, which are classified with sloths in the or ...

(''Myrmecophaga tridactyla''),

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

(''Tapirus terrestris colombianus''),

red brocket The red brocket (''Mazama americana'') is a species of brocket deer from forests in South America, ranging from northern Argentina to Colombia and the Guianas. It also occurs on the Caribbean island of Trinidad (it also occurred on the island of ...

(''Mazama americana''),

gray brocket The gray brocket (''Mazama gouazoubira''), also known as the brown brocket, is a species of brocket deer from northern Argentina, Bolivia, southern Peru, eastern and southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It formerly included the Amazonian bro ...

(''Mazama gouazoubira''),

capybara The capybara or greater capybara (''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris'') is the largest living rodent, native to South America. It is a member of the genus '' Hydrochoerus''. The only other extant member is the lesser capybara (''Hydrochoerus isthmi ...

(''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris'') and

West Indian manatee The West Indian manatee (''Trichechus manatus''), also known as the North American manatee, is a large, aquatic mammal native to warm coastal areas of the Caribbean, from the Eastern United States to northern Brazil. Living alone or in herds, it ...

(''Trichechus manatus''). Endangered mammals include

black-headed spider monkey The black-headed spider monkey (''Ateles fusciceps'') is a type of New World monkey from Central and South America, specifically Colombia, Ecuador, and Panama. Although primatologists such as Colin Groves (1989) follow Kellogg and Goldman (194 ...

(''Ateles fusciceps''),

(''Ateles geoffroyi''), red-crested tree-rat (''Santamartamys rufodorsalis''), white-footed tamarin (''Saguinus leucopus'') and

(''Saguinus oedipus''). The ecoregion is a wintering place or feeding place for many species of birds. It provides the main winter habitat for species such as

northern pintail The pintail or northern pintail (''Anas acuta'') is a duck species with wide geographic Range (biology), distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and North America. It is bird migration, migratory an ...

(''Anas acuta''),

American wigeon The American wigeon (''Mareca americana''), also known as the baldpate, is a species of dabbling duck found in North America. Formerly assigned to ''Anas'', this species is classified with the other wigeons in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca'' ...

(''Anas americana''),

northern shoveler The northern shoveler (; ''Spatula clypeata''), known simply in Britain as the shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and throughout the Palearctic and across most of North America, and winters in southe ...

(''Anas clypeata''),

cinnamon teal The cinnamon teal (''Spatula cyanoptera'') is a species of duck found in western North and South America. It is a small dabbling duck, with bright reddish plumage on the male and duller brown plumage on the female. It lives in marshes and ponds, ...

(''Anas cyanoptera''),

blue-winged teal The blue-winged teal (''Spatula discors'') is a species of bird in the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. One of the smaller members of the dabbling duck group, it occurs in North America, where it breeds from southern Alaska to Nova Scotia, ...

(''Anas discors''), and

osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...

(''Pandion haliaetus''). Native species include

great green macaw The great green macaw (''Ara ambiguus''), also known as Buffon's macaw or the great military macaw, is a critically endangered Central and South America parrot found in Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador. Two allopat ...

(''Ara ambiguus''),

military macaw The military macaw (''Ara militaris'') is a medium- to large-sized macaw, named after its green and red plumage vaguely resembling a military uniform. It is native from west-central Mexico south through northern Argentina and Bolivia. While most ...

(''Ara militaris''),

blue-and-yellow macaw The blue-and-yellow macaw (''Ara ararauna''), also known as the blue-and-gold macaw, is a large Neotropical parrot with a mostly blue dorsum, light yellow/orange venter, and gradient hues of green on top of its head. It is a member of the large g ...

(Ara ararauna),

scarlet macaw The scarlet macaw (''Ara macao'') also called the red-and-yellow macaw, red-and-blue macaw or red-breasted macaw, is a large yellow, red and blue Neotropical parrot native to humid evergreen forests of the Americas. Its range extends from south ...

(''Ara macao''),

red-and-green macaw The red-and-green macaw (''Ara chloropterus''), also known as the green-winged macaw, is a large, mostly-red macaw of the genus ''Ara''. It is popular in aviculture, and is the second most commonly kept macaw species after the Blue and Yellow. ...

(''Ara chloroptera'')

chestnut-fronted macaw The chestnut-fronted macaw or severe macaw (''Ara severus'') is one of the largest of the mini-macaws. It reaches a size of around of which around half is the length of the tail. They can be found over a large part of Northern South America fr ...

(''Ara severus''),

northern screamer The northern screamer (''Chauna chavaria'') is a Near Threatened species of bird in family Anhimidae of the waterfowl order Anseriformes. It is found in Colombia and Venezuela. Taxonomy and systematics The northern screamer shares genus ''Ch ...

(''Chauna chavaria''),

Muscovy duck The Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') is a duck native to the Americas, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. The species has been Domestic Muscovy duck, domesticated, and feral Muscovy ducks can b ...

(''Cairina moschata''),

knob-billed duck The knob-billed duck (''Sarkidiornis melanotos'') or African comb duck is a type of duck found along the tropical/sub-tropical wetlands and waterways of Sub-Saharan Africa and the island of Madagascar, as well as most of South Asia and mainland I ...

(''Sarkidiornis melanotos''),

black-bellied whistling duck The black-bellied whistling duck (''Dendrocygna autumnalis''), formerly called the black-bellied tree duck, is a whistling duck that before 2000 bred mainly in the southernmost United States, Mexico, and tropical Central America, Central to sout ...

(''Dendrocygna autumnalis''),

white-faced whistling duck The white-faced whistling duck (''Dendrocygna viduata'') is a whistling duck that breeds in sub-Saharan Africa and much of South America. This species is gregarious, and at favoured sites, the flocks of a thousand or more birds arriving at dawn ...

(''Dendrocygna viduata''),

fulvous whistling duck The fulvous whistling duck or fulvous tree duck (''Dendrocygna bicolor'') is a species of whistling duck that breeds across the world's tropical regions in much of Mexico and South America, the West Indies, the southern United States, sub-Sahar ...

(''Dendrocygna bicolor''),

black hawk-eagle The black hawk-eagle (), also known as the tyrant hawk-eagle, is a species of eagle found from central Mexico through Central America into the south of Brazil to Colombia, eastern Peru, and as far as northern Argentina. There are two known subsp ...

(''Spizaetus tyrannus''),

crested eagle The crested eagle (''Morphnus guianensis'') is a large Neotropical eagle. It is the only member of the genus ''Morphnus''. The crested eagle can grow up to long, with a wingspan up to , and weigh up to . The plumage varies between a light br ...

(''Morphnus guianensis''),

harpy eagle The harpy eagle (''Harpia harpyja'') is a large Neotropical realm, neotropical species of eagle. It is also called the American harpy eagle to distinguish it from the Papuan eagle, which is sometimes known as the New Guinea Harpy Eagle, New Guin ...

(''Harpia harpyja'') and blue-billed curassow (''Crax alberti''). Endangered birds include the recurve-billed bushbird (''Clytoctantes alixii'') and blue-billed curassow (''Crax alberti''). The ecoregion is home to reptiles such as

American crocodile The American crocodile (''Crocodylus acutus'') is a species of crocodilian found in the Neotropics. It is the most widespread of the four Extant taxon, extant species of crocodiles from the Americas, with populations present from South Florida, ...

(''Crocodylus acutus''),

spectacled caiman The spectacled caiman (''Caiman crocodilus''), also known as the white caiman, common caiman, and speckled caiman, is a crocodilian in the family Alligatoridae. It is brownish-, greenish-, or yellowish-gray colored and has a spectacle-like ridge ...

(''Caiman crocodilus''), Magdalena River turtle (''Podocnemis lewyana''),

red-footed tortoise The red-footed tortoise (''Chelonoidis carbonarius'') is a species of tortoise from northern South America. These medium-sized tortoises generally average as adults, but can reach over . They have dark-colored (nearly black), “loaf”-shaped ...

(''Chelonoidis carbonaria''), bushmaster (''

Lachesis muta ''Lachesis muta'', also known as the Southern American bushmaster or Atlantic bushmaster, is a pit viper species found in South America, as well as the island of Trinidad in the Caribbean. Two subspecies are currently recognized, including the no ...

''),

boa constrictor The boa constrictor (scientific name also ''Boa constrictor''), also known as the common 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 ...

(''Boa constrictor''),

green iguana The green iguana (''Iguana iguana''), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly Herbivory, herbivorous species of lizard of the genus ''Iguana''. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. ...

(''Iguana iguana'') and

gold tegu The gold tegu, also known as the golden tegu, common tegu, black tegu, Colombian black and white tegu and tiger lizard (in Trinidad), is a species of tegu. Taxonomy Its old scientific name (synonym) was ''Tupinambis nigropunctatus'', but it has ...

('' Tupinambis teguixin''). Endangered reptiles include Dahl's toad-headed turtle (''Mesoclemmys dahli''). Endangered amphibians include the frog ''

Sachatamia punctulata ''Sachatamia punctulata'' is a species of frog in the family Centrolenidae. It is endemic to the Cordillera Central, Colombia, in the departments of Antioquia, Caldas, and Tolima. Its natural habitats are tropical humid and sub-Andean forest ...

''. The wetlands provide a nursery for a variety of freshwater and salt water fish species.

Status

The

World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based 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 th ...

gives the ecoregion the status of "Critical/Endangered". It is surrounded by most of the population of Colombia. Pressures come from large-scale farming, ranching, gold mining, oil wells and logging. It has suffered from warfare related to illegal narcotics. The largest rivers, the Magdalena and Cauca, are highly polluted. However, there are sizeable areas where there has been little human impact, the largest being the area round the Serranía de San Lucas. Several internationally-funded projects are trying to save important wetlands in the region.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Magdalena-Uraba moist forests Ecoregions of Colombia Neotropical tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests