ORIGINAL BIOTA OF THE AMERICAS 



79 



tailed chat, western mockingbird, Pal- 

 mer's thrasher, Bendire's thrasher, cris- 

 sal thrasher, white-throated wren, 

 bridled titmouse, lead-colored bush-tit, 

 Lloyd's bush-tit, verdin, plumbeous 

 gnatcatcher, L. Jones. 



9. MONTANE FORESTS BIOTA (CLOUD 



FOREST; TEMPERATE RAIN FOREST; 

 LOWER MOUNTAIN FOREST) 



This forest occurs at various eleva- 

 tions in tropical mountains where 

 clouds, fog, and heavy rainfall produce 

 very moist conditions. The trees are 

 not so tall as in the Luxuriant Tropical 

 Rain-Forest, but in other respects the 

 Montaine Forests rival the luxuriance 

 of the former. Ferns form a conspic- 

 uous element in the vegetation as 

 epiphytes, lianes and terrestrial plants, 

 while tree ferns are conspicuous among 

 the subordinate trees. The trees are 

 evergreen, mostly with small leaves; 

 but solid stands of conifers are also 

 found, depending upon soil conditions. 



In Central America the fauna of 

 the Montane forest is in part highly 

 peculiar. Endemic genera of birds are 

 numerous. North American temperate 

 zone plants and animals here reach 

 their limit also. In parts of South 

 American the conspicuous animals are 

 about the same as in the rain forest. 



10. SUBALPINE EVERGREEN FOREST 

 BIOTA (UPPER MONTANE FOREST) 



The mountains rising above 9000 ft. 

 are clothed with a temperate and de- 

 ciduous broad-leaved forest of ever- 

 green trees or conifers. Monkeys and 

 other tropical rain forest species are 

 excluded from this belt. Numerous 

 small rodents characterize it, however. 



11. ANDINE BUSHLAND BIOTA (AN- 

 DINE BRUSHWOOD) 



The Andine Bushlands are just below 

 timber-line, being frequently broken 

 by small areas of grassland (paramillos). 

 Tree shrubs and dwarfed trees form a 

 low but compact stand, which becomes 

 lower and more open at still higher 

 altitudes. Deer, wild-cats, wolves, 

 bear, and forest rabbit occur in this 

 belt. 



12. ANDINE MEADOW BIOTA (PARAMOSJ 

 ALPINE MEADOW) 



Lying above the uppermost shrubby 

 vegetation, chiefly over 12,000 ft. ele- 

 vation, are the Andine Meadows, which 

 are composed of grasses, sedges, many 

 species of composites, notably of the 

 genus Espeletia, and scattering repre- 

 sentatives of various genera of tem- 

 perate relationship. Plants with hoary 

 tomentum are conspicuous in this 

 vegetation, as are also areas of sphag- 

 num. Deer, wild-cats, forest rabbit, 

 and numerous small rodents occur in 

 this belt. 



13. MANGROVE SWAMP BIOTA 



The Mangrove Swamps of tropical 

 America consist of nearly pure stands 

 of Rhizophora mangle, Avicennia nitida 

 or A. tomentosa, occupying the coast, 

 the shallow saline or brackish waters 

 of bays and lagoons. The interlocking 

 prop-roots of these trees make the 

 Mangrove Swamps very difficult to 

 penetrate from either land or water. 

 There are characteristic insects, birds, 

 etc., but the fauna of the swamps varies 

 in different regions on account of their 

 wide geographical range. 



