Moist Pacific Coast mangroves


The Moist Pacific Coast mangroves ecoregion covers a series of disconnected mangrove sites along the Pacific Ocean coast of Costa Rica and Panama. These sites occur mostly on coastal flatlands around lagoons, particularly where rivers from the inland mountains reach the sea, bringing fresh water to the coastal forests. The area is in a transition zone from the drier coastline to the north; rainfall in this ecoregions is over 2,000 mm/year, and reaches over 3,600 mm/year at the southern end.

Location and description

The mangroves of this ecoregion are found along a 500 km stretch of coastline, from Jacó, Costa Rica to southwest corner of the Azuero Peninsula in Panama. The mangroves extend inland only a few kilometers where the saltwater influence changes to freshwater. The surrounding ecoregion is the Isthmian–Pacific moist forests ecoregion. Specific mangrove sites include:Jacó, Costa Rica, a small area south of townIsla Damas, with mangroves around the estuaryTérraba-Sierpe Wetland, a RAMSAR wetland of international importance, where the Sierpe River and Térraba River meet at the coastGolfo Dulce, Costa Rica, at the eastern end of the Costa Rican coastGulf of Chiriquí, at the western end of the Panamanian coastCoiba Island, offshore from the Gulf of MontijoMontijo District and the surrounding margins of the Gulf of Montijo, a RAMSAR wetland of international importance.

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 savannah. The dry month usually at or right after the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

Flora and fauna

The mangroves in this ecoregion are more fully developed than those farther north, both because of the higher precipitation and because of the greater amounts of freshwater and sediments received from the runoff of the Talamanca Mountain Range immediately inland. Mangrove trees in the ecoregion include red mangrove, Rhizophora harrisonii, Rhizophora racemosa, black mangrove, Avicennia bicolor, Avicennia tonduzii, white mangrove, and tea mangrove Associated species include the mangrove fern and Tabebuia palustris.
The mangrove hummingbird and yellow-billed cotinga are endemic to the ecoregion.

Protected areas

Officially protected areas in the ecoregion include: