Santa Marta montane forests
| Santa Marta montane forests (NT0159) | |
|---|---|
Cerro Murillo
|
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| Ecology | |
| Realm | Neotropical |
| Biome | Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests |
| Geography | |
| Area | 4,920 km2 (1,900 sq mi) |
| Countries | Colombia |
| Coordinates | 10°31′55″N 73°37′01″W / 10.532°N 73.617°WCoordinates: 10°31′55″N 73°37′01″W / 10.532°N 73.617°W |
| Climate type | Cwb: warm temperate, winter dry, warm summer. |
The Santa Marta montane forests (NT0159) is an ecoregion in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, a massif on the Caribbean coast of northern Colombia. The ecoregion covers altitudes from near sea level up to around 3,300 metres (10,800 ft), where it gives way to Santa Marta páramo. The isolation of the massif and the range of elevations and climates has resulted in a wide variety of species including many endemics. The lower levels contained tropical rainforest, which has largely been cleared. Higher up, this gives way to cloud forest. Much of this has also been cleared for coffee plantations, pasture for sheep and cattle, and farming.
The ecoregion covers the slopes of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in the north of Colombia, with an area of 492,097 hectares (1,216,000 acres). The range rises to snow-covered peaks only 60 kilometres (37 mi) from the Caribbean sea. The ecoregion is almost entirely surrounded by the Sinú Valley dry forests ecoregion. To the northeast and northwest it transitions directly into Guajira-Barranquilla xeric scrub. In the higher elevations of the mountains the ecoregion gives way to Santa Marta páramo.
The triangular Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta massif covers 12,230 square kilometres (4,720 sq mi) and rises to an elevation of 5,775 metres (18,947 ft), with peaks that are permanently capped in snow. The northern edge is parallel to the Caribbean coast. The southwestern edge descends to the dry and warm Magdalena River alluvial plain and the Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta marshes. The southeastern edge adjoins the valleys of the Cesar River and Ranchería River.
Volcanic rocks from the Mesozoic (252–66 Ma) and Tertiary (65–2.58 Ma) eras include batholiths of granite, diorite and quartz monzonite, and there are areas of sedimentary rocks. The massif was pushed up to its present height in the Miocene (23–5.33 Ma) and (126,000–11,700 years ago). Glacial lakes at elevations over 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) are the sources of the main rivers that originate in the massif.
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Wikipedia