African natural areas. Monsoon forests: description, climate, fauna and interesting facts
Africa is an amazing continent that combines a large number of geographical areas. Nowhere else are these distinctions so visible.
natural areas Africa is very clearly visible on the map. They are distributed symmetrically about the equator and depend on uneven precipitation.
Characteristics of the natural zones of Africa
Africa is the second largest continent on Earth. It is surrounded by two seas and two oceans. But the most main feature- this is its symmetry in position in relation to the equator, which divides Africa into two parts along the horizon.
Hard-leaved evergreens are located in the north and south of the mainland. moist forests and shrubs. Next come deserts and semi-deserts, then savannahs.
In the very center of the continent there are zones of variable-humid and permanent moist forests. Each zone is characterized by its climate, flora and fauna.
Zone of variable-moist and humid evergreen equatorial forests of Africa
The zone of evergreen forests is located in the Congo Basin and runs along the Gulf of Guinea. Over 1000 plants can be found here. In these zones, predominantly red-yellow soils. Many types of palm trees grow here, including oilseeds, tree ferns, bananas, and creepers.
Animals are placed in tiers. In these places, the animal world is very diverse. A huge number of shrews, lizards and snakes live in the soil.
A huge number of monkeys live in the zone of humid forests. In addition to monkeys, gorillas and chimpanzees, more than 10 species of individuals can be found here.
Lots of anxiety local residents delivered by dog-headed baboons. They are destroying the plantations. This species is distinguished by ingenuity. They can only be frightened by weapons, they are not afraid of a person with a stick.
African gorillas in these places grow up to two meters and weigh up to 250 kilograms. Elephants, leopards, small ungulates, forest pigs live in the forests.
Good to know: The tsetse fly lives in the eucalyptus regions of Africa. It is very dangerous for humans. Its bite infects with deadly sleeping sickness. A person begins to be disturbed by severe pain and fever.
savannah zone
About 40% of the entire territory of Africa is occupied by savannahs. The vegetation is represented by tall grasses and umbrella trees towering above them. The main one is the baobab.
This is the tree of life, which is of great importance to the people of Africa. , leaves, seeds - everything is eaten. The ash from the burnt fruit is used to make soap.
In dry savannahs, aloes grow with fleshy and prickly leaves. In the rainy season, the savannah is very abundant vegetation, but in the dry season it turns yellow, fires often occur.
The red soils of the savannah are much more fertile than those in the rainforest zone. This is due to the active accumulation of humus during the dry period.
In the territory African savannah inhabited by large herbivores. Giraffes, elephants, rhinos, buffaloes live here. The savannah area is the habitat of predators, cheetahs, lions, leopards.
Tropical and semi-desert zones
Savannahs change into zones tropical deserts and semi-deserts. Precipitation in these places is very irregular. In certain areas, it may not rain for several years.
Climatic features zones are characterized by excessive dryness. Often occur sandstorms There are significant temperature differences throughout the day.
The relief of the deserts is a placer of stones and salt marshes in those places where once there were seas. There are practically no plants here. There are rare spines. There are types of vegetation with short term life. They grow only after the rains.
Zones of evergreen hard-leaved forests and shrubs
The most extreme zone of the continent is the territory of evergreen hard-leaved leaves and shrubs. These areas are characterized by wet winters and hot dry summers.
Such a climate favorably affects the condition of the soil. In these places it is very fertile. Lebanese cedar, beech, oak grow here.
In this zone, the highest points of the mainland are located. On the peaks of Kenya and Kilimanjaro, even in the hottest period, there is always snow.
Table of Natural Areas of Africa
The presentation and description of all the natural zones of Africa can be visualized in the table.
| Name of the natural area | Geographic location | Climate | Vegetable world | Animal world | The soil |
| Savannah | Neighboring zones from equatorial forests north, south and east | subequatorial | Herbs, cereals, palms, acacias | Elephants, hippos, lions, leopards, hyenas, jackals | Ferrolitic red |
| Tropical semi-deserts and deserts | Southwest and north of the mainland | Tropical | Acacias, succulents | Turtles, beetles, snakes, scorpions | Sandy, rocky |
| Variable-humid and humid forests | north of the equator | Equatorial and subequatorial | Bananas, palm trees. coffee trees | Gorillas, chimpanzees, leopards, parrots | brown yellow |
| Hardwood evergreen forests | Far north and far south | Subtropical | Arbutus, oak, beech | Zebras, leopards | brown, fertile |
Position climatic zones mainland is very clearly demarcated. This applies not only to the territory itself, but also to the definition of fauna, flora and climate types.
Geographical location, natural conditions
In the subequatorial zone, due to seasonal precipitation and uneven distribution of precipitation over the territory, as well as contrasts in the annual course of temperatures, landscapes of subequatorial variable humid forests develop on the plains of Hindustan, Indochina and in the northern half of the Philippine Islands.
Variably humid forests occupy the wettest areas of the lower reaches of the Ganges-Brahmaputra, coastal regions of Indochina and the Philippine archipelago, are especially well developed in Thailand, Burma, the Malay Peninsula, where at least 1500 millimeters of precipitation falls. On drier plains and plateaus, where the amount of precipitation does not exceed 1000-800 millimeters, seasonally moist monsoon forests grow, which once covered large areas of the Hindustan peninsula and southern Indochina (Korat Plateau). With a decrease in precipitation to 800-600 millimeters and a reduction in the rainfall period from 200 to 150-100 days a year, forests are replaced by savannas, woodlands and shrubs.
The soils here are ferralitic, but predominantly red. With a decrease in the amount of rain, the concentration of humus in them increases. They are formed as a result of ferralitic weathering (the process is accompanied by the decay of most of the primary minerals, with the exception of quartz, and the accumulation of secondary ones - kaolinite, goethite, gibbsite, etc.) and humus accumulation under the forest vegetation of the humid tropics. They are characterized by low content of silica, high content of aluminum and iron, low cation exchange and high anion absorption capacity, predominantly red and variegated yellow-red color of the soil profile, very acid reaction. Humus contains mainly fulvic acids. Humus contain 8-10%.
The hydrothermal regime of seasonally humid tropical communities is characterized by constantly high temperatures and a sharp change in the wet and dry seasons, which determines the specific features of the structure and dynamics of their fauna and animal population, which noticeably distinguish them from communities of tropical rainforests. First of all, the presence of a dry season lasting from two to five months determines the seasonal rhythm of life processes in almost all animal species. This rhythm is expressed in the confinement of the breeding period mainly to the wet season, in the complete or partial cessation of activity during the drought, in the migratory movements of animals both within the biome under consideration and outside it during the unfavorable dry season. Falling into full or partial anabiosis is typical for many terrestrial and soil invertebrates, for amphibians, and migration is typical for some insects capable of flight (for example, locusts), for birds, bats and large ungulates.
Vegetable world
Variably humid forests (Figure 1) are similar in structure to hylaea, differing at the same time in a smaller number of species. In general, the same set of life forms, variety of vines and epiphytes is preserved. Differences are manifested precisely in the seasonal rhythm, primarily at the level of the upper tier of the forest stand (up to 30% of the trees of the upper tier are deciduous species). At the same time, the lower tiers include a large number of evergreen species. The grass cover is represented mainly by ferns and dicots. In general, these are transitional types of communities, in places largely reduced by man and replaced by savannahs and plantations.
Figure 1 - Variably humid forest
The vertical structure of humid subequatorial forests is complex. Usually there are five tiers in this forest. Upper tree layer A is formed by the tallest trees, isolated or forming groups, the so-called emergents, raising "heads and shoulders" above the main canopy - a continuous tier B. The lower tree tier C often penetrates into tier B. Tier D is commonly called shrub. It is formed mainly by woody plants, of which only a few can hardly be called shrubs in the exact sense of the word, or rather, these are “dwarf trees”. Finally, the lower tier E is formed by grasses and tree seedlings. The boundaries between adjacent tiers may be better or worse. Sometimes one tree layer imperceptibly passes into another. Tree layers are better expressed in monodominant communities than in polydominant ones.
The most common teak forest, which is characterized by a teak tree. Trees of this species can be considered an essential component of the summer green forests of India, Burma, Thailand and the relatively dry regions of eastern Java. In India, where very small patches of these natural zoned forests still exist, mainly ebony trees and marada, or Indian laurel; all these species provide valuable timber. But teak wood, which has a number of valuable properties, is especially in great demand: it is hard, resistant to fungi and termites, and also reacts poorly to changes in humidity and temperature. Therefore, teak growers specially grow teak (in Africa and South America). The monsoon forests are best explored in Burma and Thailand. In them, along with teak wood, there are Pentacme suavis, Dalbergia paniculata, Tectona hamiltoniana, whose wood is stronger and heavier than teak wood, then giving bast fibers Bauhinia racemosa, Callesium grande, Ziziphus jujuba, Holarrhenia dysenteriaca with white soft wood used for turning and woodcarving. One of the bamboo species, Dendrocalamus strictus, grows in the shrub layer. The layer of grasses consists mainly of grasses, among which the bearded vulture predominates. Along the shores of estuaries and in other areas of the sea coast protected from storms, the muddy tidal strip (littoral) is occupied by mangroves (Figure 2). The trees of this phytocenosis are characterized by thick stilted roots, like thin piles extending from the trunks and lower branches, as well as respiratory roots sticking out of the silt in vertical columns.
Figure 2 - Mangroves
Extensive swamps stretch along the rivers in the tropical rainforest zone: heavy rains lead to regular high floods, and floodplain areas are constantly flooded. The marshy forests are often dominated by palm trees and species diversity less here than in drier places.
Animal world
The fauna of the seasonally humid subtropical communities is not as rich as the fauna of the moist equatorial forests due to the dry period, which is unfavorable for animals. Although the species composition of various groups of animals in them is specific, at the level of genera and families, a great similarity with the gilea fauna is noticeable. Only in the driest variants of these communities, in light forests and thorny bushes, do species related to typical representatives of the fauna of arid communities begin to noticeably predominate.
Forced adaptations to drought contributed to the formation of a number of special animal species characteristic of this particular biome. In addition, some species of phytophagous animals turn out to be more diverse here. species composition than in Hylaea, due to the greater development of the herbaceous layer and, accordingly, the greater diversity and richness of herbaceous food.
The layering of the animal population in seasonally humid communities is noticeably simpler than in humid tropical forests. The simplification of layering is especially pronounced in light forests and shrub communities. However, this mainly concerns the tree layer, since the stand itself is less dense, diverse and does not reach such a height as in the hylaea. On the other hand, the herbaceous layer is much more pronounced, since it is not shaded so strongly. woody vegetation. The population of the litter layer is also much richer here, since the deciduousness of many trees and the drying of grasses during the dry period ensure the formation of a rather thick litter layer.
The presence of a layer of litter formed by leaf and grass decay ensures the existence of a trophic group of saprophages with a diverse composition. The soil-litter layer is inhabited by nematode roundworms, megacolocidal annelids, small and large nodule worms, oribatid mites, springtails, springtails, cockroaches, and termites. All of them are involved in the processing of dead plant mass, but the leading role is played by termites already familiar to us from the giley fauna.
Consumers of green mass of plants in seasonal communities are very diverse. This is determined primarily by the presence of a well-developed herbaceous layer in combination with a more or less closed tree layer. Thus, chlorophytophages specialize either in eating the leaves of trees or in using herbaceous plants, many feed on plant sap, bark, wood and roots.
Plant roots are eaten by larvae of cicadas and various beetles - beetles, gold beetles, dark beetles. The juices of living plants are sucked by adult cicadas, bugs, aphids, worms and scale insects. Green plant mass is consumed by caterpillars of butterflies, stick insects, herbivorous beetles - beetles, leaf beetles, weevils. Seeds of herbaceous plants are used as food by reaper ants. The green mass of herbaceous plants is eaten mainly by various locusts.
Numerous and diverse consumers of green vegetation and among vertebrates. These are terrestrial turtles from the genus Testudo, granivorous and frugivorous birds, rodents and ungulates.
AT monsoon forests South Asia is home to the wild chicken (Callus gallus) and the common peacock (Pavochstatus). In the crowns of trees, Asian necklace parrots (Psittacula) get their food.
Figure 3 - Asian ratuf squirrel
Among herbivorous mammals, rodents are the most diverse. They can be found in all tiers of seasonal tropical forests and light forests. The tree layer is inhabited mainly by various representatives of the squirrel family - palm squirrels and a large ratuf squirrel (Figure 3). In the terrestrial layer, rodents from the mouse family are common. In South Asia, a large porcupine (Hystrix leucura) can be found under the forest canopy; Rattus and Indian bandicots (Bandicota indica).
Various predatory invertebrates live in the forest floor - large centipedes, spiders, scorpions, predatory beetles. Many spiders that build trapping nets, such as large nephilous spiders, also inhabit the tree layer of the forest. Praying mantises, dragonflies, ktyr flies, predatory bugs prey on small insects on the branches of trees and shrubs.
Small predatory animals prey on rodents, lizards and birds. The most characteristic are various viverrids - civet, mongoose.
Of the large carnivores in the seasonal forests, the leopard is relatively common, penetrating here from the hylae, as well as tigers.
"Peoples of Eurasia" - Romance peoples are dark-haired, swarthy. Russian Ukrainians Belarusians. Frenchwoman. Oriental. On the territory of Eurasia live peoples belonging to different language families and groups. About 3/4 of the population lives in Eurasia the globe. Slavic peoples. Religions of Eurasia. Poles, Czechs, Slovaks. The Germanic peoples are characterized by blond hair and fair skin.
"Climatic features of Eurasia" - High average annual and summer temperatures. Temperature. Definition of climate types. Climatic zones and regions of Eurasia. The climate is mild. Arctic air. January temperature. You have learned to read. Temperature and winds in January. Climate charts. Relief. Climatic features of Eurasia. The largest number precipitation.
"Eurasia Geography Lesson" - To introduce students to the idea of Eurasia. Explain the effect of size on natural features. Semenov-Tan-Shansky P.P. The most high mountain in the world Chomolungma - 8848 m. Geographical position Eurasia. General information about Eurasia. Name the names of travelers and explorers of the continent. Obruchev V.A.
"Nature of Eurasia" - Square. Minerals. Inland waters. natural areas. Climate. Eurasia. Relief. organic world. Geographical position. Mainland records.
"Lakes of Eurasia" - The correct answer. -Tectonic lakes in faults have great depth, elongated shape. Lake basin of glacial origin. Such lakes are lakes - seas: Caspian and Aral. Internal waters of Eurasia. Determination of the types of lake basins in Eurasia. Lake basin of tectonic origin.
"Natural zones of the temperate zone of Eurasia" - Flora. The flora of the taiga. Animal world of the taiga. Fauna: very similar to the fauna of the taiga... Animal world. In Eurasia, forest-steppes stretch in a continuous strip from west to east from the eastern foothills of the Carpathians to Altai. Taiga. In Europe and in the European part of Russia, light broadleaf forests from oak (oak), beech, linden, chestnut, ash, etc.
The tundra occupies such territories as the coastal outskirts of Greenland, the western and northern outskirts of Alaska, the coast of Hudson Bay, some areas of the Newfoundland and Labrador peninsulas. On Labrador, due to the severity of the climate, the tundra reaches 55 ° N. sh., and in Newfoundland it drops even further south. The tundra is part of the circumpolar Arctic subregion of the Holarctic. The North American tundra is characterized by the spread of permafrost, strong soil acidity and rocky soils. The northernmost part of it is almost completely barren, or covered only with mosses and lichens. Large areas are occupied by swamps. In the southern part of the tundra, a rich herbaceous cover of grasses and sedges appears. Some dwarf tree forms are characteristic, such as creeping heather, dwarf birch (Betula glandulosa), willow and alder.
Next comes the forest tundra. It is to the west of the Hudson Bay takes its maximum size. Woody forms of vegetation are already beginning to appear. This strip forms the northern border of forests in North America, dominated by species such as larch (Larix laricina), black and white spruce (Picea mariana and Picea canadensis).
On the slopes of the mountains of Alaska, the plain tundra, as well as on the Scandinavian Peninsula, is replaced by mountain tundra and bald vegetation.
In terms of species, the vegetation of the tundra North America almost no different from the Euro-Asian tundra. There are only some floristic differences between them.
coniferous forests temperate zone occupy most of North America. These forests form the second after the tundra and the last vegetation zone, which stretches across the entire continent from west to east and is a latitudinal zone. Further south latitudinal zonality preserved only in the eastern part of the mainland.
On the coast of the Pacific Ocean, taiga is distributed from 61 to 42 ° N. sh., then it crosses the lower slopes of the Cordillera and then spreads to the plain to the east. In this area, the southern boundary of the zone coniferous forests rises north to a latitude of 54-55 ° N, but then it descends back to the south to the territories of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, but only its lower reaches.<
Coniferous forests along the line from the eastern slopes of the mountains of Alaska to the coast of Labrador are characterized by a significant uniformity in the species composition of the rocks.
A distinctive feature of the coniferous forests of the Pacific coast from the forest zone of the east is their appearance and composition of the rocks. So the forest zone of the Pacific coast is very similar to the eastern regions of the Asian taiga, where endemic coniferous species and genera grow. But the eastern part of the mainland is similar to the European taiga.
The “Hudson”, eastern taiga is characterized by the predominance of fairly developed coniferous trees with a high and powerful crown. This species composition includes such endemic species as white or Canadian spruce (Picea canadensis), Banks pine (Pinus banksiana), American larch, balsam fir (Abies balsamea). From the latter, a resinous substance is extracted, which finds a direction in technology - Canadian balsam. Although conifers predominate in this zone, there are still many deciduous trees and shrubs in the Canadian taiga. And in the burnt places, which are very numerous in the Canadian taiga region, even deciduous ones predominate.
Deciduous tree species of this coniferous zone include: aspen (Populus tremuloides), balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera), paper birch (Betula papyrifera). This birch has a white and smooth bark, with which the Indians built their canoes. A very diverse and rich undergrowth of berry bushes is characteristic: blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, black and red currants. Podzolic soils are characteristic of this zone. In the north, they turn into soils of permafrost-taiga composition, and in the south, these are soddy-podzolic soils.
The soil and vegetation cover of the Appalachian zone is very rich and diverse. Here, on the slopes of the Appalachians, rich broad-leaved forests grow in species diversity. Such forests are also called Appalachian forests. These forests are very similar to the genera of East Asian and European forests, in which the dominant role is dominated by endemic species of noble chestnut (Castanea dentata), May beech (Fagus grandifolia), American oak (Quercus macrocarpa), red plane tree (Platanus occidentalis). A characteristic feature of all these trees is that they are very powerful and tall trees. These trees are often entwined with ivy and wild grapes.
For tropical wet evergreens, or as they are sometimes called, rainforests are characterized by a three-tier structure of the tree canopy. The tiers are poorly demarcated. The upper tier is made up of giant trees 45 m or more in height, 2-2.5 m in diameter. The middle tier is represented by trees about 30 m high with a trunk diameter of up to 90 cm. Smaller, exceptionally shade-tolerant trees grow in the third tier. There are many palm trees in these forests. The main area of \u200b\u200btheir growth is the Amazon basin. Here they occupy vast areas, including, in addition to the northern part of Brazil, French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, the southern part of Venezuela, the west and south of Colombia, Ecuador and the east of Peru. In addition, this type of forest is found in Brazil in a narrow strip along the Atlantic coast between 5 and 30°S. Similar evergreen forests also grow along the Pacific coast from the border of Panama to Guayaquil in Ecuador. Here are concentrated all types of the genus Svitania (or mahogany), rubber-bearing genus Hevea, Brazil nut (Bertolletia excelsa) and many other valuable species.
Tropical variable-humid deciduous forests distributed in the southeast of Brazil and in the south of Paraguay. Tree species in them are relatively small in height, but often with thick trunks. Legumes are widely represented in the forests. Subtropical deciduous broadleaf forests most common in the south of Brazil and Parguay, in the west of Uruguay and in the north of Argentina along the Parana and Uruguay rivers. montane evergreen forests cover the slopes of the Andes from Venezuela to central Bolivia. These forests are characterized by thin-stemmed low trees forming dense stands. Due to the fact that these forests occupy steep slopes and are far from populated areas, they are exploited very little.
Araucaria forests located in two isolated regions. Brazilian Araucaria (Araucaria brasiliana) is predominant in the states of Parana, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, as well as in Uruguay, Eastern Paraguay and Argentina. A less significant massif is formed by forests of Chilean araucaria (A. araucana) found in the Andes at 40°S. in the altitude range from 500 to 3000 m above sea level. seas. These forests are characterized by hardwood species, among which the most important is embuya (Phoebe porosa). In the undergrowth of the araucaria forests, the mate shrub, or Paraguayan tea (Ilex paraguariensis), is also widespread on plantations.
Low growing xerophilous forests distributed in the east of Brazil, in the northern part of Argentina and in the western part of Paraguay. The most important tree species in these forests is the red querbacho (Schinopsis sp.), from which tannin is obtained. mangrove forests occupy the coastal strip of the Atlantic part of South America. These forests are dominated by red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle), forming pure stands or mixed with Avicenna (Avicennia marina) and Conocarpus erecta.
In addition to timber harvesting, rubber, food products (seeds, nuts, fruits, beans, leaves, etc.), oils, medicinal substances, tannins, resins, including chicle (Zschokkea lascescens), raw materials for the production of chewing gum.
Venezuela. Evergreen (on laterites) and deciduous forests grow on the slopes of the spurs of the Andes and the Guiana Highlands. On the territory of the low llanos, tall-grass savannah with groves of the Mauritian palm is widespread, and in the high llanos, xerophilic light forests and shrub communities are common. Mangroves stretch around Lake Maracaibo, giving way to undersized xerophilous, and to the south - evergreen tropical forests. In the south of the country, in the upper reaches of the river. Orinoco and its right tributaries grow moist evergreen tropical forests, almost inaccessible to exploitation. Of the tree species of economic value, mahogany, roble colorado, baku, balsa, espave (Anacardium spp.), angelino (Ocotea caracasana), oleo-vermelho (Myroxylon balsamum), pao-roxo, guaiacum, tabebuya (Tabebuia pentaphylla ), ceiba (Ceiba pentandra), almasigo (Bursera simaruba), kurbaril (Hymenaea courbaril), adobe (Samanea saman), etc.
Landscape in the center of Venezuela
Colombia. According to natural conditions, two regions are distinguished: the eastern (plain) and the western (mountainous, where the Colombian Andes stretch). The first region is largely occupied by humid evergreen forests of the Magdalena basins and the left tributaries of the Amazon. To the north and west of the Guajira peninsula, along the Caribbean coast, low-growing xerophilous forests extend, in which divi-divi beans (Libidibia coriaria) are harvested for tannin. Guaiac wood (Guaiacum spp.) is also harvested here - this is one of the hardest and heaviest woods in the world, used for the manufacture of rollers, blocks and other engineering products.
Mangrove forests stretch along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts. In evergreen tropical hylaea, especially in the lower part of the Magdalena basin and along the mouth of the river. Atrato, kativo wood (Prioria copaifera) is harvested for export, as well as baku, or "Colombian mahogany" (Cariniana spp.), caoba, or real mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), roble colorado, or Panamanian mahogany (Platymiscium spp.) , purple tree, or paoroxo (Peltogyne spp.), etc. In the eastern part of the elevated plain along the tributaries of the Orinoco, savanna-llanos with rare trees and gallery forests with Mauritius palm (Mauricia sp.) are common. The forests of the mountain regions of the Andes are characterized by a peculiar altitudinal zonality. On the lower parts of the lee slopes and on the northern ridges, deciduous forests or thorny shrubs are common. In the adjacent part of the mountains (from 1000 to 2000 m) mountain broad-leaved evergreen forests grow with tree ferns, wax palm (Copernicia cerifera), cinchona, coca (Erythroxylon coca) and various orchids. Cultivated crops include cocoa and coffee trees. At an altitude of 2000 to 3200 m, humid alpine hylaea, in which there are many species of evergreen oaks, shrubs and bamboos.
Ecuador. Three natural areas are distinguished on the territory of the country: 1) a watershed plateau with moist equatorial forests - hylaea, or selva(together with the upper reaches of the left tributaries of the Amazon); 2) Andes ranges; 3) the Pacific forest-savannah plain and the western slopes of the Andes. The evergreen tropical forests of the first region are poorly studied and difficult to access. On the western slopes of the Andes, up to a height of 3000 m, evergreen mountain broad-leaved forests (hylaea) grow, largely disturbed by slash-and-burn agriculture. They produce a lot of cinchona bark, as well as balsa, kapok from the fruits of ceiba, leaves of the toquilla palm, or hipihapa (Carludovica palmata), used to make Panama hats. Tagua palm (Phytelephas spp.) is also found here, the hard endosperm of the fruits of which is used to produce buttons, and various rubber plants. The lower part of the western slopes is characterized by evergreen tropical forests. In the river valley Guayas is intensively harvested for export balsa wood.
Guyana, Suriname, Guiana. The forests of these countries, located along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and along the Guiana Highlands, are evergreen tropical with a number of valuable species. The green tree, or betabaro (Ocotea rodiaei), which is exported in Guyana and Suriname, stands out in particular. Apomate (Tabebuia pentaphylla), canalette (Cordia spp.), pekia (Caryocar spp.), espave (Anacardium spp.), habillo (Hura crepitans), wallaba (Eperua spp.), carap (Carapa guianensis), virola are no less valuable. (Virola spp.), Simaruba (Simaruba spp.), etc.
Brazil. There are more than 7 thousand species of woody and shrubby plants in the flora, of which there are over 4.5 thousand species in the Amazonian selva. High bertholecia grow (giving brazil nuts, etc.), various rubber plants, including brazilian hevea, which has become a valuable plantation crop in many countries of South Asia and Africa, laurels, ficuses, brazilian mahogany, or "pau brazil", which gave the name to the country (Caesalpinia echinata), chocolate tree, or cocoa, mahogany, jacaranda, or rosewood, oleo vermelho, roble colorado and sapukaya, or paradise nut (Lecythis ustata), and many others. In the east, the selva turns into light palm forests, among which we note the valuable babasu palm (Orbignya speciosa), which has highly nutritious nuts. South of the Amazonian selva, landscapes of tropical dry woodlands are common - caatinga, in which trees grow that shed their leaves in the dry season and accumulate moisture in the rainy season, for example, the bottle tree (Cavanillesia arborea), thorny shrubs, cacti (Cereus squamulosus). In the floodplains, there is a carnauba, or wax, palm (Copernicia cerifera), from the leaves of which wax is collected, which is used in technology. From the south, subtropical deciduous forests adjoin forests dominated by palms and savannahs. In the southeast of the country, along the Brazilian Highlands, there are araucaria forests from the Brazilian, or Paran, araucaria (pinheiro, or "Brazilian pine"). Along with it, embuya, tabebuya, cordia grow, and in the undergrowth of yerbamate, Paraguayan tea is prepared from its leaves. Araucaria forests are involved in intensive exploitation.
Along the Atlantic coast and at the mouth of the Amazon, mangrove forests grow, dominated by red mangrove with an admixture of black mangrove (Avicennia marina) and white mangrove (Conocarpus erecta). Tannin is extracted from the bark of these trees.
Road from Calama (Chile) to LaPaz (Bolivia) | Chile. The main forest area is concentrated in the southern half of the country along the Pacific slopes of the Andes. In the region of 41-42 ° S.l. there is a significant array of araucaria forests, dominated by pure stands of pinot, or Chilean araucaria, often called "Chilean pine" (Araucaria araucana). To the south are mixed broad-leaved deciduous forests of the temperate zone with different species of southern beech (Nothofagus spp.), representatives of laurels - linge (Persea lingue), ulmo (Beilschmiedia berteroana). In the extreme south, there are coniferous forests of alerse (Fitzroya cupressoides) and sipres (Pilgerodendron uviferum) with an admixture of canelo (Drimys winteri). The bark of the latter contains substances with antiscorbutic properties. |
Argentina. There are several natural regions. The east is dominated by evergreen forests, in which more than 100 species of trees of great economic importance grow. Among them are cabreuva (Myrocarpus frondosus), kanzherana (Cabralea oblongifolia), Brazilian araucaria, tabebuya, etc. In the west, evergreen ice grows along the slopes of the Andes at an altitude of 2000-2500 m above sea level. seas. Palo blanco (Calycophyllum multiflorum), cedro salteno (Cedrela balansae), roble cryolo (Amburana cearensis), nogal cryolo (Juglans australis), tarco (Jacaranda mimosifolia), type blanco (Tipuana tipu), etc. In the south, along the slopes of the Andes, subantarctic vegetation extends, among which several species of southern beech, alerce, "Cordillera cypress" (Austrocedrus chilensis), etc., are distinguished. palosanto (Bulnesia sarmientoi), guaiacan (Caesalpinia paraguarensis), etc. To the south, along the eastern slopes of the Andes, there are xerophilic broad-leaved forests of the temperate zone with algarrobo, acacias (Acacia caven), carcass (Celtis spinosa), quebracho-blanco.
Paraguay. Forest cover 51%. In the east of the country, mixed tropical evergreen and deciduous forests are common, turning in the west (in the Gran Chaco region) into woodlands and savannahs. The main tree species is quebracho blanco (Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco).
Uruguay. Forests occupy an insignificant part of the total territory of the country and are located in the lower reaches of the Rio Negro and in the valley of the river. Uruguay. The forest cover of the country is 3%. Large areas are beginning to be occupied by artificial plantations - pines on coastal dunes and eucalyptus plantations.
Published according to the monograph: A.D. Bukshtynov, B.I. Groshev, G.V. Krylov. Forests (Nature of the world). M.: Thought, 1981. 316 p.