Pacific Equatorial Forest

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The Pacific Equatorial Forest is a tropical forest ecosystem located at 0 latitud
e in coastal Ecuador, in the province of Manab. The ecosystem is most notable for
its high diversity of forest types unusually close in proximity. Tropical rainf
orest, moist evergreen forest, premontane cloud forest, and tropical deciduous f
orest can all be encountered over the course of a one-day hike, and the change f
rom one type of forest to another can occur in as little as 100 metres.
The Pacific Equatorial Forests, along with the rest of the coastal forests of Ec
uador, is considered the most threatened tropical forest in the world and is par
t of the Tumbes-Choc-Magdalena biodiversity hotspot.[1] As much as 98% of coastal
tropical forest have already been lost in Ecuador, almost all occurring during
the last three generations.[2] The Pacific Equatorial Forest, in particular, rep
resents the greatest concentration of unprotected forest in coastal Ecuador and
has been designated by several international conservation organizations as a glo
bal conservation priority.
Contents [hide]
1 Location
2 Climate
3 Wildlife
4 Threats
5 Conservation status
6 References
Location[edit]
The Pacific Equatorial Forests is bound by the shores of the Pacific Ocean to th
e west and the peaks of the long and narrow Jama-Coaque Coastal Mountain Range,
which stretches along the coast at an average distance of 10 km inland. The Paci
fic Equatorial Forest extends as far south as Cabo Posado, at 0 degrees and 22 m
inutes south of the equator, and as far north as Pedernales, at 0 degrees and 3
minutes north of the equator. However, patches of the ecosystem can be found as
far north as Punta Tortuga and Galera at 0 degrees and 46 minutes north of the e
quator.[3]
The core area of the Pacific Equatorial Forest covers two counties, Jama and Ped
ernales, in the northwest of the province of Manab in Ecuador. The Jama-Coaque mo
untains (pronounced "Hama Ko-Ah-Kay") takes its name from the ancient civilizati
on that thrived in the region from 355 B.C. to 1532 A.D; whose territory is beli
eved to have been limited to this specific ecosystem and the adjacent coastline.
The Pacific Equatorial Forest covers 650 square kilometres, or 65,000 hectares
of land, of which approximately 19,000 hectares are still forested.
Climate[edit]
The Pacific Equatorial Forest is subject to what is known as a tropical monsoon
climate.[4] The ecosystem is located directly adjacent to the changeover from th
e cold and dry Humboldt ocean current from southern Chile and the warm El Nio oce
an current (also known as the Equatorial Counter Current) from Panama. The cold
water and air temperatures associated with the Humboldt Current inhibit rainfall
in southern coastal Ecuador and Peru, creating dry to arid conditions, whereas
the warm temperaturas associated with the El Nino current create humid condition
s with high rainfall in northern Ecuador and coastal Colombia.
For its location at the confluence of these two ocean currents, the Pacific Equa
torial Forest is a transition zone between the wettest forests (the Choc in Colom
bia) and the driest desert (the Atacama in Peru) recorded on earth. This complex
climatological effect is multiplied by the Jama-Coaque Coastal Mountain Range,
whose sharp changes in altitude so close to the ocean account for wide variation
s in precipitation in very small expanses of land. The mountains rise to 845 met
res (2,772 feet) above sea level at the highest peak, although the rest of the m

ountain range is a series of peaks that average 500 650 metres (1,640-2,132 feet)
of altitude, which are shrouded in fog most of the year.
Starting in late December, a change in atmospheric pressure shifts ocean current
s so that warm waters come closer to shore and displace the cold waters. During
this time, air and water temperatures, tides, sea levels and wave heights, and r
elative humidity all rise. These conditions produce heavy rainfall that used to
last through August, but now usually only lasts into May. Rain during the rainy
season is punctuated by sunny weather.
The dry season, which now begins in June or July and lasts sometimes into mid Ja
nuary, is characterized by cooler temperatures and more overcast skies. The Bamb
oo House research station in the Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve has recorded an
average daily temperature range of 24-31 Celsius (75-88 Fahrenheit) in the rainy s
eason, and 19-29 Celsius (66-84 Fahrenheit) in the dry season. Throughout the enti
re coast of Ecuador, annual precipitation varies widely according to latitude, w
ith as much as 8,000 mm of rain in the extreme north, close to the Colombian bor
der, to as little as 300 mm in the extreme south, close to the Peruvian border.
In the Pacific Equatorial Forest, which is located in between these two extremes
, precipitation primarily varies according to elevation and proximity to the oce
an. In the premontane cloud forest along the peaks of the coastal mountains, whi
ch strip wter from the nearly constant cloud cover, annual precipitation is 2,000
-3,000 mm, and the vegetation is green and lush year-round. Along the shoreline,
annual rainfall can be as little as 800 mm, and in these much drier conditions
the majority of trees shed their leaves during the dry season, creating tropical
deciduous forest (also known as tropical dry forest).
Wildlife[edit]
The Pacific Equatorial Forest provides habitat for serves as habitat and key mig
ratory channel for two endangered species of primates; the (mantled howler monke
y and white-fronted capuchin monkey)and six endangered species of felines, the (
jaguar, puma, ocelot, oncilla, margay and jaguarundi). Other endangered mammals
include the tayra, the three-toed sloth, the western agouti, and the spotted pac
a.[5]
Endemic and/or rare species of birds include the Red-Masked Parakeet, Pale-browe
d Tinamou, Pacific Pygmy Owl, Esmeralda Woodstar hummingbird, Gray-backed Hawk,
Guayaquil Woodpecker, Pacific Royal-Flycatcher, Plumbeous Kite, Rufous-headed Ch
achalaca, and the Choc Toucan.[6]
In 2009, herpetologist Paul S. Hamilton discovered thirty new species of frog an
d one new species of snake in three remnants of Pacific Equatorial Forest (Lalo
Loor Dry Forest Reserve, Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve, and Cerro Pata de Pajar
o).[7]
Threats[edit]
The primary cause of deforestation in the region is the conversion of native for
est into cattle pasture, a process which is aided by illegal logging and slash-a
nd-burn agriculture. The deforestation figure in all of coastal Ecuador is 98%.
The Pacific Equatorial Forest, which has suffered an estimated loss of 75% of it
s native forest, has thus fared somewhat better than the rest of the region owin
g to its limited access and more challenging topography. However, the constructi
on of a new coastal highway through the region threatens to facilitate the defor
estation of the last remnants of Pacific Equatorial Forest.
In 2001, the Centro de Investigacin de Bosques Tropicales (Tropical Forest Resear
ch Center) reported: "Due to the high rate of endemism, the mass elimination of
forest habitat in the Coastal region over the last half-century represents one o
f the greatest species extinction events in history."[8] The human consequences

of regional deforestation have likewise been significant.[clarification needed]

The dramatic loss[clarification needed] of forest cover over the last 50 years h
as altered the rain cycle and caused a sharp decline[clarification needed] in re
gional precipitation.
Whereas three generations ago the rainy season lasted eight months per year and
the dry season four, that ratio has inverted, and now the rainy season barely la
sts four months, followed by eight months of drought. Rivers that used to be via
ble year-round now run dry half of the year, crops fail, and droughts result in
high death rates of livestock, an effect which is particularly acute during peri
ods of theLa Nina ocean-atmosphere phenomenon.[9]
Conservation status[edit]
There are three small ecological reserves that protect remnants of the Pacific E
quatorial Forest: Cerro Pata de Pajaro (Fundacin Tercer Mundo), the Lalo Loor Dry
Forest Reserve (Ceiba Foundation) and the Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve (Third
Millennium Alliance), which protect 1,000 acres, 500 acres, and 830 acres respe
ctively.
The Three Forest Trail, established in 2010, is a 25-km-long trail that connects
the dry forest of the Lalo Loor Dry Forest Reserve with the rainforest of the J
ama-Coaque Ecological Reserve via the cloud-forested mountain ridges. The trail
is meant to function as an incentive for conservation, as all forest owners alon
g the trail receive a percentage of the trail fees.
However, the vast majority of the Pacific Equatorial Forest remains unprotected
and continue to be logged and cleared for agriculture and cattle ranching. In 20
09 the Ecuadorian Ministry of the Environment launched its Socio Bosque (Forest
Partners) program, which provides forest owners with an annual conservation subs
idy of $30 per hectare ($12/acre), has had some traction in the region but the l
ong-term efficacy is still uncertain.[10]
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Tumbes-Choco-Magdalena". Biodiversity Hotspots. Conservation Internat
ional. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
Jump up ^ "Ecuadorian Rainforest Restoration". The Climate Trust. Retrieved 8 Au
gust 2011.
Jump up ^ "Pacific Equatorial Forests". Ecosystem Profile. Third Millennium Alli
ance. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
Jump up ^ "Tropical Monsoon Climate". The Physical Environment. Retrieved 14 Apr
il 2011.
Jump up ^ "CITES Species List". Appendix I, II, and 3. Convention of Internation
al Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
Jump up ^ "Birds". Wildlife at the Lalo Loor Dry Forest Reserve. Ceiba Foundatio
n.
Jump up ^ "Rain Frogs and a Slug-Sucking Snake New to Science but Nearly Extinct
". Reptile and Amphibian Ecology International. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
Jump up ^ Mecham, Jefferson (May 2001). "Causes and consequences of deforestatio
n in Ecuador". Centro de Investigacion de los Bosques Tropicales.
Jump up ^ "Con nueva emergencia agrcola se enfrentar la sequa". Bur de Anlisis Inform
ativo. March 9, 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
Jump up ^ Chiu, Marco A. "Implementing REDD: The Socio Bosque Programme". Minist
ry of the Environment, Republic of Ecuador. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
Categories: Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forestsForests of Ecuador
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