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| The Guajira ecoregion
along the Caribbean Sea in
Venezuela and Colombia
is a unique xerophytic area
in the neotropics. Proposed
as a bird center of endemism,
this arid habitat is
dominated by thorn scrub.
Herpetofauna is particularly
rich with sixty-six
species including the endangered
species Geochelone
carbonaria, and
Phrynops dahli. Two national
parks protect what
little intact habitat is left
from agricultural development. |
| The Guajira xeric scrub is located in three enclaves along
the Caribbean Sea. The largest enclave is located in the
Guajira Peninsula, which is the northernmost point of South
America, in both northwestern Venezuela and northeastern
Colombia. The enclave extends south between the Sierra
Nevada de Santa Marta and the Serrania de Perijá. The second
and smallest of the three enclaves is located east of the
Santa Marta Bay, in the north of the Magdalena department
of Colombia. The third enclave is found in the north of the
Cordoba, Sucre, Bolivar and Atlantico departments, along
the Caribbean Sea. The largest city in the ecoregion is Barranquilla,
Colombia. |
The altitude in this ecoregion ranges from 0 in the coastal
area to 865 masl in the Serranía de Macuira. Precipitation
ranges from 125 to 1000 mm. In the Guajira Peninsula precipitation
occurs from August to November, while in the
rest of the ecoregion, precipitation occurs from May to November.
The highest average temperature in the area is 32.7
oC, the median is 26 oC and the lowest is 19.6 oC. Landscape
elements in this ecoregion consist of hills (Serranía de
Macuira), lowlands (llanuras), and some rivers. The largest
river is the Magdalena. There are also smaller rivers that
originate in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and make
their way to the Caribbean Sea through this ecoregion, including
the Guachaca, Buritaca, Don Diego, Palomino,
Ancho, Dibulla and Corual. |
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| Dominant vegetation in this ecoregion includes thorn trees
and succulents. Among some of the plant communities,
there are forests dominated by Lonchocarpus punctatus,
along with other species such as Bunchosia odorata and
Ayenia magna. There are also forests of Prosopis juliflora,
Erythrina velutina and Clerodendron ternifolium. Other
plant communities in the area show several associations of two dominant species. |
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| Some examples are associations of
Astronium graveolens with Tabebuia spp, Haematoxylon
brasiletto with Melochia tomentosa, Libidibia coriaria with
Cordia curassavica, Bursera glabra with Castela erecta, |
| Vitex cymosa with Libidibia coraria, Mimosa cabrera with
Cordia curassavica, Bursera tomentosa with Bursera
graveolens, and Castela erecta with Cercidium praecox.
The most common vegetation in the ecoregion includes
Acacia glomerosa, Bourreria cumanensis, Bulnesia arborea,
Caesalpinia coriniana, Copaifera venezolana, Croton sp.,
Gyrocarpus americanus, Hyptis sp., Jacquinia pungens,
Malpighia glabra, Myrospermum frutescens, Opuntia caribaea,
Pereskia guamacho, Piptadenia flava, Proposes juliflora,
Ritterocereus griseus, and R. deficiens. |
| There are two important protected areas in the region,
Macuira National Park (IUCN Category II) and Tayrona
National Park (IUCN Category II) (UNEP n.d). Macuira
Park is located in the northeastern side of the Guajira Peninsula.
The park has an area of 25,000 ha., and is part of the
Serranía de Macuira, which is an "island" of dense vegetation
different from the surrounding desert. The elevation of
the Serranía is 500 masl. The most common species are
Acacia farnesiana, Anacardium excelsum, Cardiospermum
carindum, Cassia tora, Cephalocereus colombianus, Dodonea
viscosa, Fagara sp., Genipa americana, Lemaireocereus
griseus, Pristimera vernicosa, Ruperchtia ramiflora The
Park has isolated populations of caiman (Caiman crocodylus),
ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), margay (Leopardus
wiedii), and primates of the genus Alouatta. There are 7
endemic subspecies of birds in the Park (Forero 1988). |
| Tayrona National Park has an area of 150 km2 (UNEP n.d). |
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| The Park consists of mangroves and xeric scrubs. The most
common species are Capparis odoratissima and Pltymiscium
plystachum. The Park has recorded appriximately 100
species of mammals, 200 birds, and 31 species of amphibians.
Some of the mammals are jaguar (Felis onca), paca
(Cuniculus paca), collared peccary (Tayassu tajacu), red
howler monkey (Alouatta seniculus seniculus), and various
species of Chiropterans. |
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