Loro Paco Mt., Michoacan, Mexico Photograph by WWF/ Estaban Cruzzley   Neotropical Tropical and Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests   10,100 square miles (26,100 square kilometers) -- about the size of Maryland Critical/Endangered

· The World’s Richest Dry Forests
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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The World’s Richest Dry Forests

The Jalisco Dry Forests are a region of unparalleled diversity in Mexico. These rich forests, with more than 750 species of plants, are a crucial point in the migratory routes of many birds coming from Canada and the United States each winter. They also provide refuge for many of the rare and endangered species in Mexico; more than a quarter of the 70 mammal species that live here are endangered. These forests are also known for their high numbers of endemic plant, reptile, and invertebrate species. The forests in Chamela alone have more endemic vertebrates than any other part of Mexico.

Special Features

The Jalisco Dry Forests grow on a terrain dominated by small mountains that include lava spills and volcanic formations near the Colima volcano. The climate is tropical subhumid, with rains during four or five months of the year. One of the most characteristic features of this forest is that the trees loose their leaves for a long period of time during the dry season. This forest is also unusual in that it rarely burns. Some scientists believe compounds in the leaf litter and wood may inhibit the burning of these forests.

	The most diverse forests in the world are believed to be the Jalisco Dry Forests of Mexico and the Chiquitano Dry Forests of Bolivia.

Wild Side

Moving about quietly in the treetops of the Jalisco Dry Forests, pairs of Lilac-crowned parrots nibble on seeds of palms and primavera. On the ground below, a gray fox explores a hollow log for mice and rodents, while a secretive ocelot moves through the trees in search of iguanas and small rodents. Amidst this activity, the 27 species of termites in Jalisco's dry forests are busily feeding on dead plants, thus recycling nutrients for the growth of new plants and the abundance of climbing vines that drape the forest trees. All white ghost bats roost on the undersides of palm and heliconia leaves during the days. Fishing bats roost in hollow trees, and, when in search of prey, snatch small fish with their claws. The swamps and marshes are home to a variety of animals, from the marsh mouse to the American crocodile. Cuachalalate, a medicinal herb for gastritis, and cascalote, a tree with abundant yellow-white flowers, thrive here. Columnar cacti are used as nesting cavities by some birds and rodents. Orange-bellied buntings, San Blas jays, and West Mexican chachalacas fill the dawn with their urgent calls.

Cause for Concern

Over the past 50 years, the dry forests of Jalisco have been intensively exploited by humans. Vast areas once covered by the original vegetation have been logged to use as agricultural fields. And today, there are only two protected areas that cover less than 10 percent of the original extent of the forests. Most of the ecoregion is still at risk from increasing human settlement in the area and by intensive logging and agricultural pressure. Other threats include hunting by native villagers in an attempt to eliminate competition between their own livestock and wildlife species and illegal wildlife trade.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.