Flora
The ecoregion is home to three main plant communities, evergreen transition forests, evergreen montane cloud forests, and upper montane elfin forest, which are determined by elevation and exposure.
- Evergreen transition forests
The Evergreen transition forests extend from 600–900 meters to 1000 meters elevation. They lie above the drier lower montane semi-deciduous forests of the La Costa xeric shrublands. The transition forests have a closed canopy made up of Trophis racemosa, Ficus macbridei, Tetragastris caracasana, Zanthoxylum ocumarense, Banara nitida, etc. The giant endemic tree Gyranthera caribensis, which can grow up to 60 meters in height, forms small emergent stands that rise above the forest canopy. The understory is composed of woody shrubs, ferns, and large herbs like Heliconia bihai, Heliconia revoluta, and Dieffenbachia maculata.
- Evergreen montane cloud forests
The Evergreen montane cloud forests range from 1000 to 2000–2400 meters elevation, and the most species-rich plant community in the ecoregion. The forests have a closed canopy of 15–20 meters elevation. Palms are common in both the canopy and the understory, growing as solitary trees or in large clumps, depending on the species. The forests support a dense understory of shrubs, herbs, and ferns, and the trees are festooned with abundant epiphytes (ferns, orchids, bromeliads, ericads and gesneriads).
- Upper montane elfin forest and scrub
The Upper montane elfin forest and scrub is found above 2000–2400 meters. It consists of low mossy forests of dwarfed trees, including Clusia multiflora, Weinmannia spp., and Prumnopitys harmsiana, as well as open scrublands dominated by Libanothamnus neriifolius.
Read more about this topic: Cordillera De La Costa Montane Forests
Famous quotes containing the word flora:
“A man’s interest in a single bluebird is worth more than a complete but dry list of the fauna and flora of a town.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)