Central American Atlantic moist forests


The Central American Atlantic moist forests ecoregion covers the lowland coastal forests of Honduras, southeast Guatemala, and the eastern forests of Nicaragua. Half of the ecoregion is closed-canopy tropical broadleaf evergreen forest, with tree heights reaching 50 meters. This ecoregion has the largest single fragment of natural forest in Central America, with a size of. The total area is.

Location and description

The ecoregion stretches for 700 km from the valley of Lake Izabal in southeastern Guatemala, across the northern coast of Honduras, and down across most of the eastern half of Nicaragua. The mean elevation is, with a maximum of.

Climate

The climate of the ecoregion is Tropical monsoon climate. This climate is characterized by relatively even temperatures throughout the year, and a pronounced dry season. The driest month has less than 60 mm of precipitation, but more than mm. This climate is mid-way between a tropical rainforest and a tropical savanna. Average precipitation in the ecoregion is 2,333 mm/year.

Flora and fauna

Half of the ecoregion is closed-canopy broadleaf evergreen rain forest, but with 30% of the territory converted agriculture. The remainder is open canopy evergreen forest or herbaceous wetland. From 1990 to 2000, the ecoregion was experiencing deforestation at a rate of just under 1% per year. The ecoregion contains a number of large undisturbed fragments, which is important for larger species of animals. .

Protected areas

30.2% of the ecoregion is officially protected. These protected areas include: