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NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



onca), puma {Felis concolor soderstromi), 

 jaguarondi {Herpailurus yaguarondi), 

 bassaricyon (Bassaricijon alleni), {Bas- 

 saricyon gahhii medius), squirrels (sev- 

 eral distinct groups) (Sciurus hoffmani) 

 group 2 {Sciurus tricolor) group 1. 

 Microsciurus (pigmy squirrel), cane 

 rat (Dactylomys dactylinus), rabbits 

 {Sylvilagus surdaster, S. daulensis and S. 

 kelloggi), sloth (Bradypus spp.), sloth 

 {Choloepus hoffmanni), ant-eater {Ta- 

 mandua spp.), ant-eater (Cyclopes vari- 

 ous races), giant ant-eater {Myrme- 

 cophaga juhata), nine-banded armadillo 

 (Dasypus novemcinctus) , mouse opossum 

 (Marmosa spp.), large opossums {Di- 

 delphys marsupialis group, and D. 

 paraguayensis group), coati-mundi (Na- 

 sua quichua jivaro), grison {Grison 

 vittaia brasiliensis) , kinkaiou (Potos 

 flavus modestus), tayra {Tayra barbara 

 madeirensis and b. senilis). 



2. Arid deciduous forest (arid lower 

 tropical zone) 



a. Manta district. Here there is a 

 short rainy season and a long period 

 of extreme drought during which trees 

 lose their leaves. It is a region of 

 intense sunlight and open spaces, a 

 region of little rainfall and of hot, 

 parched plains and hillsides. River 

 valleys open up long vistas from the 

 coast eastward into the interior, 

 where the conditions of this zone prevail. 



The mammals include the tapir, 

 white-lipped peccary, jaguar, puma, 

 ocelot, sloth, ant-eater, nine-banded 

 armadillo; coati-mundi, grison, and 

 tayra; capuchin monkey, black howling 

 monkey, opossums, weasels, hares, squir- 

 rels, kinkajou, aguit, paca. 



3. Savanna (arid lower 

 tropical zone) 



Below Guayaquil, in the region of 

 Santa Rosa, the broken plains are 

 covered with low scrub interspersed with 

 bits of grassland, dry during part of the 

 year; in the region of Guayaquil, and 

 extending up the valleys of the Guayas 

 and Daule, the land is very low and is 

 covered in places by scrubby forest; 



elsewhere it is open, with grass in wet 

 season, and arborescent shrubs scat- 

 tered here and there. 



The mammals include the Ecuadorian 

 Fox {Cerdocyon sechurae), nine-banded 

 armadillo, jaguar, ocelot, opossums, 

 squirrels (Sciurus straminens group), 

 ant-eater, rabbit, deer (Odocoileus). 



4-. Semi-desert (arid lower 

 tropical zone) 



Vegetation in the extreme southern 

 portion is very scant, essentially desert. 



The mammals include the Ecuadorian 

 fox, squirrel (Sciurus stramineus) , nine- 

 banded armadillo, bats of many species. 



5. Montane forest (humid 

 subtropical zone) 



It lies between 3000 and 9000 ft. in 

 humid regions. "The animal life is 

 quite similar to that of the tropical. 

 For a great many species this is the 

 zone of greatest abundance." 



See list tropical rain forest animals. 

 Practically all of the species listed for 

 tropical forest would range, at times 

 at least, up to 9000 ft. 



6. Inter andine grassland and savanna 

 (arid subtropical zone) 



7000 to 9000 ft. The principal hoyos, 

 or inter-Andean basins, of Ecuador, 

 beginning at the Colombian frontier 

 and going southward, are as follows: 

 That of Ibarra, drained by the Rio 

 Mira which flows into the Pacific near 

 Tumaco in Colombia; Quito, drained 

 by the Guaillabamba which is an affluent 

 of the Esmeraldas and also flows into the 

 Pacific; the plains of Latacunga and 

 Riobamba, drained by the River Pas- 

 taza, an affluent of the Amazon; the 

 relatively small plains of Chimbo, 

 Alausi, and Canar, all drained by small 

 streams flowing into the Pacific; Cuenca. 

 These plains are separated by pdramo 

 regions and in general lie between the 

 eastern and western ranges of the Andes. 

 Formerly (and still in many places), 

 jaguar, puma, hares, and many small 

 rodents probably occurred. 



