Difference between revisions of "Atlantic Forest" - New World Encyclopedia

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Part of Atlantic Forest seen from SPOT satellite

The Atlantic Forest (Mata Atlântica in Portuguese) is a region of tropical and subtropical moist forest, tropical dry forest, tropical savannas, and mangrove forests that extends along the Atlantic coast of Brazil from Rio Grande do Norte state in the north to Rio Grande do Sul state in the south, and inland as far as Paraguay and northern Argentina. In northeastern Brazil it occupies a thin coastal strip 40 miles or less wide, while in the south it extends as far as 200 miles inland.

Because of its isolation from the Amazon Basin by a drier region to its west, the Atlantic Forest contains many distinctive plant and animal communities. For example, about 92 percent of the amphibians are found nowhere else.

Many of these endemic organisms persist in patches of forest that are all that remain due to centuries of clearing the forest for agriculture and urban development. Of the more than 386,000 square miles (1 million sq km) of original forest that are believed to have once covered the coast of Brazil, only an estimated 7 percent is intact.

Fauna and flora

Around 2,200 species of birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians live in the Atlantic Forest, including nearly 200 bird species found nowhere else. Of the 26 species of small primates, most are only found there. These include the golden-headed lion tamarin (L. chrysomelas), black-faced lion tamarin (L. caissara), black lion tamarin (L. chrysopygus), and the highly endangered golden lion tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia).

Other mammal species include the muriqui or woolly spider monkeys (Brachyteles arachnoides) and the maned sloth (Bradypus torquatus). Birds include the red-necked tanager (Tangara cyanocephala), the red-billed currasow (Crax blumenbachii), seven-colored tanager (Tanagara fastuosa), blue-bellied parrot (Triclaria malachitacea), and the three-toed jacamar (Jacamaralcyon tridactyla).

The forest is also home to around 20,000 species of plants, and new species continue to be discovered. The Amazon Institute is active in reforestation efforts in the northeastern state of Pernambuco, Brazil. During 2007, 5,500 new trees were planted in the mountains, adding to what little remains of the ancient forest. The Nature Conservancy, its Brazilian counterpart, and several corporations are involved in reforestation and forest management projects in the south.

During glacial periods, however, the Atlantic Forest is known to have shrunk to extremely small refuges in highly sheltered gullies, with most of the land area more recently occupied by the characteristic Atlantic Forest being occupied by dry forest or even semi-desert. Some maps even suggest the forest actually survived in moist pockets well away from the coastline, where its endemic rainforest species mixed with much cooler-climate species.

Endangered species

The Atlantic Forest is now designated a World Biosphere Reserve because it contains a large number of highly endangered species, including the well-known marmosets and lion tamarins. It has been extensively cleared since colonial times, mainly for the farming of sugar cane and for urban settlements.

Ecoregions

Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests

Araucaria moist forests
Atlantic Coast restingas
Bahia coastal forests
Bahia interior forests
Caatinga enclaves moist forests
Paraná-Paraíba interior forests
Pernambuco coastal forests
Pernambuco interior forests
Serra do Mar coastal forests

Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests

Atlantic dry forests

Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands

Campos Rupestres montane savanna

Mangroves

Bahia mangroves
Ilha Grande mangroves
Rio Piranhas mangroves
Rio São Francisco mangroves

Economy

Logging, agriculture, and the clearing of forests to create pastureland create jobs but also threaten the forest's longevity. In the south, Asian water buffalo are raised on land cleared from the forest. The Nature Conservancy and affiliated conservation organizations are working to help local residents balance their economic activities with improved forest management. Sustainable development activities may include ecotourism, organic agriculture, ornamental and medicinal plant production, and craft production for the growing number of tourists. New employment opportunities include working as park wardens and in reforestation efforts, carbon monitoring, and infrastructure development.

Looking to the future

Two of the world's largest cities, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, lie within the Atlantic Forest ecoregion. Protecting biodiversity while meeting the needs of growing metropolitan and rural populations is a serious challenge. Logging, agricultural expansion, and associated road building threaten the forests in this region, while habitat loss, hunting, and the wildlife trade threaten many species.

The Nature Conservancy, American Electric Power, General Motors, Texaco, and Sociedade de Pesquisa em Vida Selvagem e Educação Ambiental (SPVS) are jointly sponsoring the Guaraqueçaba Climate Action Project aimed at protecting and restoring over 17,000 acres of threatened and degraded rainforest in southeastern Brazil. By abating the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the project is expected to have a positive influence in mitigating global climate change.

The probability of species extinctions is high without intensive conservation efforts. Relatively extensive but generally unprotected blocks of forest remain in the southern portion of the ecoregion, particularly in Argentina and Paraguay.

External links

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 Many of these endemic organisms persist in patches of forest that are all that remain due to centuries of clearing the forest for [[agriculture]] and urban development. Of the more than 386,000 square miles (1 million sq km) of original forest that are believed to have once covered the coast of Brazil, only an estimated 7 percent is intact.
-==Types of forest==
-The Atlantic Forest region includes several variations of forests.
-* Coastal ''restingas''—low forests growing on stabilized coastal dunes.
-* Coastal forests, also known as Atlantic moist forests_evergreen tropical forests with  structures.
-* Interior (inland) forests, also known as the Atlantic semi-deciduous forests—where many trees drop their leaves during the dry season.
-* Atlantic dry forests farther inland—forming a transition between the arid Caatinga to the northeast and the Cerrado savannas to the east.
-* Montane moist forests—occur in the Serra do Mar and across the [[mountain]]s and plateaus of southern Brazil; are home to ''Araucaria'' and [[evergreen]] trees of the [[laurel]] (Lauraceae) and [[myrtle]] (Myrtaceae) families.
-* Shrubby montane savannas—occur at the highest elevations.
-The Atlantic Forest is unusual in that it extends as a true ''tropical'' [[rainforest]] to latitudes as high as ''24°S''. This is because the [[trade wind]]s produce precipitation throughout the southern winter. In fact, the northern Zona da Mata of northeastern Brazil receives much more rainfall between May and August than during the southern summer.
 ==Fauna and flora==
 Around 2,200 [[species]] of [[bird]]s, [[mammal]]s, [[reptile]]s, and [[amphibian]]s live in the Atlantic Forest, including nearly 200 bird species found nowhere else. Of the 26 species of small [[primate]]s, most are only found there. These include the golden-headed lion [[tamarin]] (''L. chrysomelas''), black-faced lion tamarin (''L. caissara''), black lion tamarin (''L. chrysopygus''), and the highly endangered golden lion tamarin (''Leontopithecus rosalia'').