Puerto Rican Dry Forests - Ecology

Ecology

Puerto Rican dry forests (like Caribbean dry forests in general) consist of short-stature (usually <5 m/16 ft tall), multi-stemmed trees. The canopy is largely evergreen (dominated by Gymnanthes lucida (Euphorbiaceae) in areas of limestone soil), while the emergent layer is considerably more dry-season deciduous. Guaiacum officinale, Coccoloba venosa, Ceiba pentandra, and Capparis cynophallophora are common trees in coastal dry forests. Dry limestone forest species include Pisonia albida, Guaiacum sanctum, and Plumeria alba.

Although most of the forest was destroyed for agriculture prior to the 1940s, some patches of forest which pre-date that period still exist. Areas that were used for charcoal production or for fence-posts have recovered rapidly - after 50 years forests that had been used for charcoal production recovered to the point where they were indistinguishable from much older forests.

In addition, large areas of secondary forest have grown back on abandoned agricultural land. Unlike areas which were only lightly used, these forests on abandoned farmland have far fewer species than do natural forests. Their path to recovery remains uncertain.

Puerto Rican dry forests are dominated by plants in the families Rubiaceae, Euphorbiaceae, and Myrtaceae. In this regard they are similar to Jamaican dry forests, but differ sharply from dry forests on the mainland of South and Central America, which are dominated by Fabaceae and Bignoniaceae.

The best example of dry forests in Puerto Rico (and probably, in the Caribbean as a whole) are in the Guánica State Forest (Bosque Estatal de Guánica) outside the town of Guánica. This site has also been the focus of the vast majority of studies of dry forests.