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| Ecoregions of Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|
| Name | Sri Lanka |
| Area km2 | 65610 |
| Biome | Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests; tropical dry broadleaf forests; mangroves; freshwater; marine |
| Countries | Sri Lanka |
Ecoregions of Sri Lanka are the distinct ecological regions found on the island of Sri Lanka including montane rainforests, lowland rainforests, dry savannas, freshwater river basins, and coastal mangroves, and are critical for biodiversity conservation in the Indian Ocean region and the South Asian subcontinent. These ecoregions have been delineated by organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and research institutions including the University of Peradeniya and the James Cook University, informing national strategies by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (Sri Lanka), the Central Environmental Authority (Sri Lanka), and policies influenced by international agreements like the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Ramsar Convention.
Sri Lanka's ecoregions reflect interactions among the Western Ghats, the Palk Strait, the Gulf of Mannar, and the island's central highlands, producing gradients recognized by the Global 200, the WWF Ecoregions of the World framework, and regional assessments by the Asian Development Bank and the United Nations Environment Programme. Key climatic drivers include the Southwest monsoon, the Northeast monsoon, and orographic rainfall linked to the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka and sites such as Pidurutalagala and Horton Plains National Park. Delineations follow historical biogeographic work by scholars associated with institutions like the Natural History Museum, London, the Biodiversity Secretariat (Sri Lanka), and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Terrestrial ecoregions encompass montane and lowland rainforests, dry-zone forests, and montane grasslands such as the Sri Lanka montane rain forests, the Sri Lanka lowland rain forests, and the Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests, with protected areas including Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Yala National Park, Wilpattu National Park, Knuckles Conservation Forest, and Peak Wilderness Sanctuary. These ecoregions host endemic flora recorded by the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka and faunal surveys by the Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka, featuring species catalogued in the IUCN Red List and conserved through sites designated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization such as Sinharaja Rain Forest Reserve (World Heritage Site). Land cover studies have been conducted by the IWMI and the Food and Agriculture Organization to assess forest fragmentation near landscapes like Knuckles Mountain Range and corridors linking Adam's Peak and Horton Plains.
Freshwater ecoregions are defined around river basins like the Mahaweli River, the Kelani River, and the Kalu Ganga, and lacustrine systems including Kandy Lake and reservoirs such as Victoria Reservoir and Kala Wewa, with wetlands designated under the Ramsar Convention like Madu Ganga. These basins support endemic freshwater fish and amphibians surveyed by teams from the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency and the Sri Lanka Freshwater Fish Research Unit, and are affected by hydrological projects by the Mahaweli Development Programme and assessments by the World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
Marine ecoregions around Sri Lanka include coral reef systems in the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, seagrass beds in the Trincomalee Bay area, and nearshore continental shelf habitats mapped by the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency and studies by the University of Ruhuna and the Ceylon Fisheries Corporation. These coastal systems interact with shipping lanes near Colombo Port and are subject to conservation through initiatives of the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (Sri Lanka) and regional partnerships such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association and the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem programme.
Sri Lanka's ecoregions harbor high endemism across plants, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and freshwater fishes documented by the Linnean Society of London collaborations and monographs at the National Museum of Sri Lanka, with emblematic taxa including the Sri Lankan leopard, the purple-faced langur, the Sri Lankan elephant, the frog genus Pseudophilautus, and numerous endemic orchids described by botanists associated with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Conservation statuses are tracked through the IUCN Red List, national checklists by the Biodiversity Secretariat (Sri Lanka), and studies published in journals affiliated with the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the Society for Conservation Biology.
Major threats to these ecoregions include habitat loss from conversion to rice paddies and plantations linked to companies referenced in national land-use plans, illegal logging impacting areas like Sinharaja, overfishing affecting the Gulf of Mannar, invasive species monitored by the Department of Agriculture (Sri Lanka), and impacts from development projects evaluated by the National Environmental Act (Sri Lanka). Conservation responses involve protected area management by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (Sri Lanka), community forestry initiatives with NGOs such as IUCN Sri Lanka partners, restoration projects supported by the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility, and transboundary cooperation with India through initiatives addressing the Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar marine conservation.
Ecoregion mapping in Sri Lanka employs remote sensing by agencies like the Survey Department of Sri Lanka and satellite data from Landsat, classifications by the WWF and the Freshwater Ecoregions of the World project, and biodiversity modelling by universities such as the University of Colombo and international centers like the International Water Management Institute. Methods integrate field inventories performed by the Biodiversity Secretariat (Sri Lanka), GIS analyses in collaboration with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, and scenario planning influenced by climate projections from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and regional climate bodies.
Category:Ecoregions by country Category:Environment of Sri Lanka