Sierra Juárez and San Pedro Mártir pine–oak forests | |
---|---|
Ecology | |
Realm | Nearctic |
Biome | Temperate coniferous forests |
Borders | |
Geography | |
Area | 4,000 km2 (1,500 sq mi) |
Country | Mexico |
State | Baja California |
Rivers | Tijuana River |
Climate type | Mediterranean (Csa and Csb) |
Conservation | |
Protected | 16.89% [1] |
The Sierra Juárez and San Pedro Mártir pine–oak forests is a Nearctic temperate coniferous forests ecoregion that covers the higher elevations of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir ranges of the Peninsular Ranges, of the northern Baja California Peninsula of Mexico. [2] The pine–oak forests extend throughout the central portion of the Mexican state of Baja California and terminate near the border with the U.S. state of California.
The pine–oak forests cover an area of 4,000 km2 (1,500 sq mi), bounded by the southern extent of the California chaparral and woodlands to the west, by the Baja California desert to the southwest, and by the Sonoran Desert to the east. It lies at the southeastern extent of the Mediterranean climate region that covers much of California and the northwestern corner of Baja California, and the climate is temperate with winter rains. It is one of the southernmost ecoregions of the temperate coniferous forest biome in North America, and the only instance of this biome in Mexico.
These forests are predominantly pine, juniper, fir, and oak. Ten pine species can be found in the ranges, including tamarack pine (Pinus contorta subsp. murrayana), sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana), Jeffrey pine (Pinus jefferyi), and Parry pinyon (Pinus quadrifolia), along with white fir (Abies concolor subsp. lowiana), and California incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens). [3] Native oak species include coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), Engelmann oak (Quercus engelmannii), canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepis), Baja oak (Quercus peninsularis). There are also several isolated stands of quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) on the higher slopes.[ citation needed ]
Tecate cypress (Cupressus forbesii) are found in scattered groves across the range. The critically endangered San Pedro Mártir cypress (Hesperocyparis montana) is endemic to the Sierra San Pedro Mártir, where it grows on slopes and in canyons from 1,900 to 2,520 meters elevation. [4] The Sierra Juárez and San Pedro Mártir pine–oak forests are near the southern limit of the distribution of the California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera). [5] The higher portions of these Peninsular Ranges harbor many rare and endemic species.
About 66 species are endemic to the Sierra San Pedro Martír oak and conifer forests. Endemic and near-endemic species include Amorpha apiculata (Fabaceae), Castilleja ophiocephala (Scrophulariaceae), Dudleya pauciflora (Crassulaceae), Ambrosia flexuosa, Stenotus pulvinatus, Cirsium trachylomum, Stephanomeria monocephala , and Artemisia martirensis (Asteraceae), and Echinocereus pacificus subsp. mombergerianus (Cactaceae). [6]
Native mammals include the puma (Puma concolor), desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni), bobcat (Lynx rufus), coyote (Canis latrans), fringed myotis (Myotis thysanodes), California chipmunk (Tamias obscurus), ornate shrew (Sorex ornatus), [3] and western gray squirrel (Sciurus griseus anthonyi). [7] Anthony's Mexican mole (Scapanus anthonyi) is endemic to the ecoregion. [8]
Native birds include the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), California condor (Gymnogyps californianus), pinyon jay (Gymnohinus cyanocephalus), and white-breasted nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis). [3] California condors were extirpated from the mountains by the 1930s. [9] Condors were reintroduced to the ecoregion in 2002, and by 2022 numbered about 40 individuals. [10]
16.89% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. They include Constitución de 1857 National Park and Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park. Laguna Hanson in Constitución de 1857 National Park is designated a Ramsar site (wetland of international importance). [1]
Sierra de San Pedro Mártir is a mountain range located within southern Ensenada Municipality and southern Baja California state, of northwestern Mexico.
The Peninsular Ranges are a group of mountain ranges that stretch 1,500 km (930 mi) from Southern California to the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula; they are part of the North American Pacific Coast Ranges, which run along the Pacific Coast from Alaska to Mexico. Elevations range from 150 to 3,300 m.
Hesperocyparis arizonica, the Arizona cypress, is a North American species of tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to the southwestern United States and Mexico. Populations may be scattered rather than in large, dense stands.
The Baja California desert is a desert ecoregion of Mexico's Baja California peninsula. This ecoregion occupies the western portion of the Baja California peninsula, and occupies most of the Mexican states of Baja California Sur and Baja California. It covers 77,700 square kilometers. The climate is dry, but its proximity of the Pacific Ocean provides humidity and moderates the temperature. The flora mostly consists of xeric shrubs and over 500 species of recorded vascular plants.
The Madrean pine–oak woodlands are subtropical woodlands found in the mountains of Mexico and the southwestern United States. They are a biogeographic region of the tropical and subtropical coniferous forests and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biomes, located in North America.
The Northern California coastal forests are a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of coastal Northern California and southwestern Oregon.
The Sierra de Juárez, also known as the Sierra Juarez, is a mountain range located in Tecate Municipality and northern Ensenada Municipality, within the northern Baja California state of northwestern Mexico.
The Sierra de la Laguna is a mountain range at the southern end of the Baja California peninsula in Mexico, and is the southernmost range of the Peninsular Ranges System.
The Sierra de la Laguna pine–oak forests are a subtropical coniferous forest ecoregion, found in the Sierra de la Laguna mountain range at the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula, Mexico.
The Sierra Madre Occidental pine–oak forests are a Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of the Sierra Madre Occidental range from the southwest USA region to the western part of Mexico. They are home to a large number of endemic plants and important habitat for wildlife.
Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park is a national park in the Mexican state of Baja California. The Park is part of the municipality of Ensenada, Baja California. The area was first explored by Native people then Europeans in 1701 by Eusebio Francisco Kino by Dominican orders.
The northern broad-footed mole is a species of mammal in the family Talpidae. It is endemic to the United States, where it is found in northern California, Nevada and Oregon at elevations up to 9,800 feet (3,000 m) above sea level.
The Sierra Madre Oriental pine–oak forests are a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion of northeastern and Central Mexico, extending into the state of Texas in the United States.
The California coastal sage and chaparral is a Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregion located in southwestern California and northwestern Baja California (Mexico). It is part of the larger California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion.
The California montane chaparral and woodlands is an ecoregion defined by the World Wildlife Fund, spanning 7,900 square miles (20,000 km2) of mountains in the Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges, and Coast Ranges of southern and central California. The ecoregion is part of the larger California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion, and belongs to the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome.
The Sierra Madre del Sur pine–oak forests is a subtropical coniferous forest ecoregion in the Sierra Madre del Sur mountain range of southern Mexico.
The Mexican mole is a species of mammal in the family Talpidae. It is endemic to Baja California in Mexico, where it is restricted to the highlands of the Sierra de San Pedro Mártir mountain range. Its specific epithet references naturalist Alfred Webster Anthony.
The broad-footed mole was a former mole species that has since been split into three distinct species in the genus Scapanus: