Hispaniolan pine forests
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Hispaniolan pine forests are a tropical coniferous forest ecoregion found on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. The ecoregion covers 11,600 km² (4,500 square miles) or about 15% of the island. The ecoregion lies above 850 meters elevation in the mountains of Hispaniola, extending from the Cordillera Central of the Dominican Republic and into the northern massif of Haiti. It is surrounded at lower elevations by the Hispaniolan moist forests and Hispaniolan dry forests ecoregions, which covers the remainder of the island.
The natural vegetation of the region consists primarily of stands of the native Hispaniolan Pine tree, (Pinus occidentalis). The pines are mixed with other conifers, including Juniperus gracilior, J. eckmanii, and Podocarpus aristulatus (syn. P. buchii). Below 2100 meters elevation, the pine forests are interspersed with areas of montane broadleaf forest.
More than half of the ecoregion's area has been lost to clearing for agriculture, pasture, or plantations of exotic trees. The Haitian portion of the ecoregion is more deforested than the Dominican portion.
