The Caatinga enclaves moist forests are a tropical moist forest ecoregion of northeastern brazil, which forms a series of discontinuous, island-like enclaves in the dry Caatingas xeric shrubland and thorn forests and Cerrado savannas. Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, also known as tropical wet forests and tropical rainforests, are a tropical and subtropical forest biome. ... An ecoregion, sometimes called a bioregion, is a relatively large area of land or water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities. ... In isolation, Hawaiis Silverswords have adapted to xeric microclimates within volcanic craters, trapping and channeling dew and protecting leaves with reflective hairs. ... The cerrado (Portuguese: thick, dense) is a vast area of savanna-like grasslands in Brazil. ... Tropical Savannas (alternate spelling savannah) are a grassland biome, dotted with trees, generally located at tropical latitudes. ...

Setting

The Caatinga enclaves moist forests cover an area of 4,800 square kilometers (1,900 square miles) in northeastern Brazil. The enclaves are found mostly on four major regional plateaus, the Chapada do Araripe, Serra de Ibiapaba, Serra de Baturité, and Serra da Borborema. The enclaves are found on windward slopes and plateaus between 600 and 800 m elevation.

Flora

The main vegetation type is semi-deciduous forest with four strata of vegetation and emergent trees taller than 30 meters. The forest is generally similar in composition to the Atlantic forests further east, but includes species from the caatinga, Cerrado, and Amazonia as well. The emergent and canopy layers are made up mostly of tree species of the families Leguminosae (Peltophorum dubium), Meliaceae (Cedrella fissilis) and Apocynaceae (Aspidosperma pyricollum). A typical ecosystem of Mata Atlântica at Serra do Mar Mata Atlântica is the Atlantic Rain Forest formerly covering the wet coastal hills along the Atlantic coast of Brazil (mostly in the Serra do Mar). ... A river in the Amazon rainforest The Amazon is a rainforest in South America. ... Leguminosae is one of two scientific names allowed for a plant family of close to twenty thousands species. ... Genera See text The Meliaceae, or the Mahogany family, is a flowering plant family of mostly tropical trees and shrubs in the order Sapindales, characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without stipules and by syncarpous, usually bisexual flowers borne in panicles, cymes, spikes, or clusters. ... Genera See Taxonomy and Genera. ...

Fauna

Conservation and threats

External link

Caatinga enclaves moist forests (World Wildlife Fund)