Tumbes-Piura dry forests


The Tumbes-Piura dry forests is an arid tropical ecoregion along the Pacific coasts of southern Ecuador and northern Peru.
The ecoregion contains many endemic species of flora and birds adapted to the short wet season followed by a long dry season.
Threats include extraction of wood for fuel or furniture, and capture of wild birds for sale.

Location

The Tumbes-Piura dry forests ecoregion has an area of.
The northern tip is in the southern coastal plain of Ecuador, while most of the ecoregion is in the northwestern coastal plain of Peru.
It covers all or part of the regions of Tumbes, Piura, Lambayeque and Cajamarca in northern Peru.
Further north the similar Ecuadorian dry forests extend along the coast of central Ecuador.
The Andes rise to the east.
The northern tip of the ecoregion adjoins the Guayaquil flooded grasslands.
In the north it is bounded to the west by a stretch of South American Pacific mangroves and to the east by Northwestern Andean montane forests.
Further south the ecoregion reaches to the Pacific Ocean to the west, and adjoins Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests to the east.
Further south again it is bordered by Sechura Desert to the west and to the east by patches of Marañón dry forests, Peruvian Yungas and Cordillera Central páramo.

Physical

The terrain includes coastal lowlands, low undulating hills and the foothills of the Andes.
The soils in the lower regions are mostly sand and clay formed during the recent Holocene epoch.
Higher up the soils are made of Precambrian amphibolites, Paleozoic granites, Devonian quartzites and black slate, and Carboniferous dark limestone, sandstone and lutites.
The main rivers, which mostly rise in Ecuador and flow throughout the year, are the Guayas, Zarumilla, Tumbes, Piura and Chira rivers.
Other streams are seasonal, flowing only in the rainy season.

Climate

The climate is dry.
The Köppen climate classification is "BWh": arid; desert; hot arid.
Average annual temperature is.
At a sample location at coordinates mean annual temperature is just under, with average maximum of and minimum of.
Mean monthly temperatures range from in July–August to in February–March.
There is a rainy season from January to March and a marked dry season.
Typical annual rainfall is.
The El Niño–Southern Oscillation is a major event in the region, when rainfall increases and thousands of plants species germinate, providing food for many animal species.

Ecology

The Tumbes-Piura dry forests ecoregion is in the neotropical realm, in the tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests biome.
It is part of the Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena biodiversity hotspot, one of 25 biogeographic regions globally that have with a significant reservoir of biodiversity under threat from humans.
The ecoregion is part of the Tumbesian-Andean Valleys Dry Forests global ecoregion, which holds six terrestrial ecoregions: Tumbes-Piura dry forests, Ecuadorian dry forests, Patía Valley dry forests, Magdalena Valley dry forests, Cauca Valley dry forests and Marañón dry forests.
The fauna and flora of the global ecoregion have high levels of endemism.

Flora

There is a wide range of habitats, including desert areas with shrubs and cactuses and dense thorn forests.
Many species of flora are endemic, adapted to the arid conditions.
Large areas are covered by seasonal dry forests that lose their leaves after the rainy season.
Common species in the dry forests include Loxopterygium huasango, Handroanthus billbergii and holy wood, all threatened by human exploitation.
Other common species are Ziziphus thyrsiflora, Caesalpinea corymbosa, Capparis angulata, Bombax discolor, Pitthecellobium multiflorum and Geoffroya striata.
The ceibal forest mainly holds the endemic Ceiba trischistandra.
The chaparral is mainly made up of shrubs such as papelillo, cacti and the overo.
The area is rich in mesquite, which capture and fix nitrogen in their roots, enriching the soil and assisting other species.
The algarrobal'' is mainly composed of algarrobo.
in southern Ecuador

Fauna

There are six orders of mammals, two orders of reptiles and one order of amphibians.
Typical fauna include southern tamandua, Guayaquil squirrel and green iguana.
Endangered reptiles include green sea turtle and hawksbill sea turtle. The false monitor tegu is Near Threatened.
Endangered amphibians include phantasmal poison frog.
There are 14 orders of birds, with significant endemism.
Bird species include El Oro parakeet and white-edged oriole.
Endangered birds include grey-cheeked parakeet, grey-backed hawk, rufous flycatcher, slaty becard, white-winged guan, Peruvian plantcutter, El Oro parakeet, yellow-bellied seedeater, Peruvian tern and blackish-headed spinetail.
The bronze-winged parrot and saffron siskin are also endangered.
Birds with limited distribution include white-tailed jay and red-masked parakeet.

Status

The World Wildlife Foundation gives the ecoregion a status of "Critical/Endangered".
In the past, the ecoregion suffered from extract of selected fauna and flora.
This included capture of parrots and parakeets for sale as pets, hunting some mammals and reptiles for food, and extraction of wood for firewood, charcoal and timber.
As of 2000 some recent improvements had been observed, in part due to El Niño effects and in part to establishment of the Cerros de Amotape National Park.
The park management and other groups were working with communities to find ways to maintain biodiversity.
Protected areas also include the Reserva del Noroeste biosphere reserve.