| Jamaican moist forests | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Map of the ecoregion | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Neotropical |
| Biome | tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests |
| Borders | |
| Geography | |
| Area | 8,192 km2 (3,163 sq mi) |
| Country | Jamaica |
| Conservation | |
| Conservation status | Critical/Endangered [1] |
| Global 200 | Greater Antillean moist forests |
| Protected | 1,131 km2 (14%) [2] |
The Jamaican moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Jamaica.
Jamaica is the third-largest island in the Caribbean, lying south of Cuba and west of Hispaniola. The Jamaican moist forests ecoregion covers an area of 8,192 km2, and covers 85% of the island of Jamaica. It includes the Blue Mountains and John Crow Mountains in eastern Jamaica, and Cockpit Country further to the west. [1] The highest peak on Jamaica is Blue Mountain Peak at 2,256 meters elevation.
Two-thirds of the island's land surface has a limestone substrate. The rest of the island is composed of igneous rocks, sedimentary shale, and alluvium. [1] The John Crow Mountains are mostly limestone. In Blue Mountains the limestone has mostly eroded away, exposing shale, igneous, and metamorphic rocks. The island's central region, which covers most of the island, is covered in limestone. In the central Cockpit Country the limestone has eroded into a rugged karst landscape with sinkholes, hollows, and caves and caverns. [3]
The separate Jamaican dry forests ecoregion covers the southern and northwestern coastal areas.
The climate of the ecoregion is tropical, and ranges from subhumid to humid. Average annual rainfall varies from less than 750 mm to more than 7,000 mm. Rainfall generally increases with elevation. [1] The island frequently experiences tropical cyclones between June and November.
The forests of Jamaica vary with substrate, elevation, and rainfall. They are grouped into three broad groups – limestone forests, shale forests, and alluvial and wetland forests on the coastal plains. The forests are species-rich and diverse, containing over 1500 vascular plant species, of which about 400 are endemic to Jamaica. Centers of endemism include the Blue and John Crow Mountains, which have about 87 locally-endemic species, and Cockpit Country, with about 100 species of endemic flowering plants and one endemic fern. [1]
Black River Lower Morass, located in the lower reaches of the Black River on the southwestern shore of the island, is Jamaica's largest wetland, and includes areas of open wetland, freshwater swamp forest, peatland, and coastal mangrove.
The ecoregion has 207 native species of birds. [4] 28 species are endemic to Jamaica, the most endemic species of any Caribbean island. Jamaica has four endemic genera – Trochilus, Loxipasser, Euneornis , and Nesopsar . All of Jamaica's endemic species are native to the moist forests, and some also range into the dry forests. The black-billed streamertail (Trochilus scitulus) is limited to the eastern Blue and John Crow mountains. [5]
Three widespread threatened species are found on Jamaica – the resident West Indian whistling duck (Dendrocygna arborea) and plain pigeon (Patagioenas inornata), and the piping plover (Charadrius melodus), a winter visitor. The Jamaican petrel (Pterodroma caribbaea) is a seabird that once bred in large numbers in the forests of the Blue and John Crow mountains. The petrels are thought extinct from predation by humans and introduced mongooses. [5]
Jamaica's native terrestrial mammals are mostly bats, including the endemic Jamaican fig-eating bat (Ariteus flavescens) and Jamaican flower bat (Phyllonycteris aphylla). [1] The endemic Jamaican serotine is considered a subspecies of big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus lynni) or a separate species (Eptesicus lynni). The Jamaican fruit bat (Artibeus jamaicensis) is native to Jamaica along with the other Greater Antilles, Central America, and northwestern South America.
The only other terrestrial mammal is the Jamaican hutia (Geocapromys brownii), a rabbit-sized rodent endemic to Jamaica which mostly lives in the island's eastern, central and southern mountains. It is threatened by habitat loss and hunting. [1]
The ecoregion is home to 62 species of lizards and snakes. [4] The island has 27 endemic reptile species, and 20 endemic amphibian species.
Reptiles and amphibians endemic to the Jamaican moist forests include Sphaerodactylus richardsonii, Sphaerodactylus semasiops, Anolis garmani, Anolis reconditus, Eleutherodactylus grabhami, Eleutherodactylus griphus, Eleutherodactylus jamaicensis, Eleutherodactylus junori, Eleutherodactylus luteolus, Eleutherodactylus nubicola, Eleutherodactylus orcutti, Eleutherodactylus pantoni , and Eleutherodactylus sisyphodemus . [1]
The forests are home to many insects, including the Jamaican endemic butterflies Eurytides marcellinus and the Jamaican swallowtail (Papilio homerus), the largest butterfly in the Americas. [1]
Jamaica has 562 known species of terrestrial snails and slugs, of which 505, or 90%, are endemic. Most inhabit the moist forests. They include 24 species of Pleurodonte , and Annularia pulchrum . Many are threatened by deforestation and habitat loss, in particular tree snails of the genus Anoma . [3]
The ecoregion is threatened by forest clearance for agriculture and timber, hunting, and introduced species. The small Indian mongoose (Urva auropunctata) was introduced to Jamaica in 1872. It is an adaptable predator which has preyed heavily on native vertebrates, particularly the island's reptiles and amphibians. [1]
1,131 km2, or 14%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas. [2] Protected areas include Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park, Cockpit Country Forest Reserve, Litchfield-Matheson's Run Forest Reserve, and Stephney John's Vale Forest Reserve. Black River Lower Morass is designated a protected Ramsar wetland. [6]
The Vanuatu rain forests are tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion which includes the islands of Vanuatu, as well as the Santa Cruz Islands group of the neighboring Solomon Islands. It is part of the Australasian realm, which includes neighboring New Caledonia and the Solomon Islands, as well as Australia, New Guinea, and New Zealand.
The flora and fauna of Bermuda form part of a unique ecosystem due to Bermuda's isolation from the mainland of North America. The wide range of endemic species and the islands form a distinct ecoregion, the Bermuda subtropical conifer forests.
The Jamaican dry forests is a tropical dry forest ecoregion located in southern Jamaica.
Eleutherodactylus pentasyringos, also known as John Crow yellow-bellied frog and tube robber frog, is a species of frog in the family Eleutherodactylidae. It is endemic to Jamaica. The specific name pentasyringos is derived from Greek and means "calling five times", in allusion to the male advertisement call that typically consists of five "took"-notes.
The Veracruz moist forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in eastern Mexico.
The Caribbean bioregion is a biogeographic region that includes the islands of the Caribbean Sea and nearby Atlantic islands, which share a fauna, flora and mycobiota distinct from surrounding bioregions.
The Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests is a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion which occupies the lower hillsides of the mountainous border region joining Bangladesh, China's Yunnan Province, India, and Myanmar. The ecoregion covers an area of 135,600 square kilometres (52,400 sq mi). Located where the biotas of the Indian Subcontinent and the Indochinese Peninsula meet, and in the transition between subtropical and tropical regions of Asia, the Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests are home to great biodiversity. The WWF rates the ecoregion as "Globally Outstanding" in biological distinctiveness.
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The Biak–Numfoor rain forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Indonesia. The ecoregion covers the islands of Biak, Supiori, Numfoor, and several smaller islands, which lie in Cenderawasih Bay north of Yapen and New Guinea.
The Puerto Rican moist forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in Puerto Rico. They cover an area of 7,544 km2 (2,913 sq mi).
The Vogelkop–Aru lowland rain forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Indonesia. The ecoregion covers the peninsular lowlands of western New Guinea, along with the Aru Islands and other nearby islands.
The Fiji tropical moist forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Fiji and Wallis and Futuna. It covers the windward sides of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, Fiji's largest islands, as well as the smaller Fijian islands and the three islands that make up Wallis and Futuna, an overseas territory of France. The drier leeward sides of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu are home to the distinct Fiji tropical dry forests ecoregion.
The Cook Islands tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion that covers the Southern Cook Islands in the Cook Islands.
The Western Polynesian tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Polynesia. It includes Tuvalu, the Phoenix Islands in Kiribati, Tokelau, and Howland and Baker islands, which are possessions of the United States.
The Eastern Micronesia tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Micronesia. It includes the Marshall Islands, Banaba and the Gilbert Islands in Kiribati, Nauru, and Wake Island, a possession of the United States.
The Palau tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Micronesia. It encompasses the nation of Palau.
The Marianas tropical dry forests is a tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests ecoregion on the Marianas Islands in the western Pacific Ocean.
The Carolines tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in Micronesia. It includes the central and eastern Caroline Islands in the Federated States of Micronesia.
The Yapen rain forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Indonesia. The ecoregion covers the island of Yapen and smaller neighboring islands which lie north of New Guinea.