Sierra de Bahoruco National Park


The Sierra de Bahoruco National Park is a national park located in the Dominican Republic. It was created in 1983 by Presidential Decree.

Geography

The park is bordered by Lake Enriquillo and Jaragua National Park. Together with the two parks, it constitutes the Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo biosphere reserve, created on November 6, 2002.
The park is located within the provinces of Pedernales Province, Independencia Province and Barahona Province and borders Haiti. It has an area of approximately 1126 km². Part of the park includes the Baoruco Mountain Range.

Climate

There are a variety of biomes in the park, ranging from tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests at sea level to temperate rainforest in the center of the park. In the mountains, the average temperature is 18 °C, and the average annual rainfall is between 1000mm and 2500mm.

Geology

The geological formation of the Baoruco Mountain Range rests on sedimentary limestone which contains various species of algae.

Vegetation and fauna

The park contains vast areas of pine forest and large broad-leaved trees, mixed forest and a wide variety of orchids.
There are 32 species of endemic birds that inhabit the island, of which 30 can be found in the park. The park is home to several threatened species, including bay-breasted cuckoos, Hispaniolan amazons, the least poorwill, white-necked crows, western chat-tanagers and La Selle thrushes. The park also has populations of Stygian owls and sharp-shinned hawks.