Haitian lowland forests

Haitian lowland forests
Name	Haitian lowland forests
Country	Haiti, Dominican Republic
Biome	Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests
Area km2	12000
Conservation	Critically endangered

Haitian lowland forests are a tropical ecoregion occupying coastal plains and river valleys on the island of Hispaniola within Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The ecoregion includes low-elevation dry and moist forest types that contrast with montane forests on Massif de la Selle, Cordillera Central (Dominican Republic), and Sierra de Bahoruco. Historically extensive, these forests have been fragmented by agriculture, urban expansion, and extractive industries centered near Port-au-Prince, Santo Domingo, and port towns such as Cap-Haïtien and Puerto Plata.

Geography and extent

The ecoregion spans coastal plains from the Gulf of Gonâve and Artibonite River delta to the eastern plains near the Yaque del Norte River and the Ozama River. Important geographic features include the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac, Plaine du Nord, and the Loma del Toro foothills. Islands and keys like Île de la Tortue and Beata Island host remnants. Major municipalities adjacent to this ecoregion include Gonaïves, Jacmel, La Romana, and Barahona. The soils derive from alluvium, limestone of the Cibao Formation, and volcanic deposits linked to the broader geology of the Greater Antilles.

Climate and ecology

The climate is tropical, influenced by the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, with seasonal trade winds from the northeast and localized rain shadows produced by the island’s highlands such as the Massif du Nord. Rainfall varies from mesic conditions on windward plains to semi-arid conditions in lee-side basins like the Enriquillo Valley. Cyclones associated with the Atlantic hurricane season periodically alter successional dynamics. Ecologically, the region is part of the Neotropical realm and supports associations common to Antillean dry forests, mangrove ecosystems in estuaries near Le Mole-Saint-Nicolas, and patches of seasonally dry deciduous forest on karstic terrain.

Flora

Dominant canopy and emergent taxa historically included genera and species such as Prosopis juliflora (introduced), native legumes and woody taxa in the families Fabaceae and Rubiaceae, and broadleaf trees related to genera like Bursera and Pithecellobium. Characteristic species across the lowlands included dry-forest endemics and widespread Caribbean trees observed in herbarium collections at institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and New York Botanical Garden. Coastal zones feature mangrove species tied to studies by International Union for Conservation of Nature researchers, while limestone outcrops support specialized calciphilous taxa documented by botanists from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle.

Fauna

Faunal assemblages historically included endemics recorded in faunal surveys by the American Museum of Natural History and researchers affiliated with Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo. Reptiles such as species in the genera Anolis and Sphaerodactylus occur alongside amphibians referenced in regional atlases. Avifauna includes species and subspecies noted in BirdLife International assessments and fieldwork around Parque Nacional Los Haitises and Parque Nacional Submarino La Caleta. Mammals include small Caribbean rodents, insectivores, and bat species documented by teams from the University of Florida and the Caribbean Bat Conservation Program. Freshwater ichthyofauna and crustaceans in rivers draining the plains were sampled during surveys supported by Inter-American Development Bank projects.

Human impacts and land use

Human modification began in pre-Columbian times with indigenous Taíno agriculture and intensified after colonization by Spanish Empire and French colonial empire settlers establishing plantations and cattle ranches. Post-independence land tenure systems, policies under regimes such as the era of Jean-Claude Duvalier, and contemporary pressures have driven deforestation for charcoal production, subsistence farming, and export crops like sugarcane near Barahona and coffee in transition zones toward the highlands. Infrastructure projects and urbanization linked to ports like Cap-Haïtien and capital expansion in Port-au-Prince have converted forest patches into settlements. International commodity chains involving companies registered under laws like the Haitian Commercial Code and bilateral trade agreements with partners including the United States and the European Union have indirect land-use impacts. Natural disasters—earthquakes such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake and hurricanes like Hurricane Matthew (2016)—have reshaped both human livelihoods and landscape recovery trajectories.

Conservation and protected areas

Protection includes national parks and reserves established by state agencies such as the Haitian Ministry of the Environment and the Dominican Republic Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources. Designations include Parque Nacional Jaragua, Parque Nacional Sierra de Bahoruco, and smaller municipal reserves around Jacmel Bay and Île à Vache. Conservation NGOs such as Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, and local organizations collaborate with multilateral banks like the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank to support reforestation, community forestry, and sustainable livelihoods. International conventions including the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Ramsar Convention influence policy and donor funding for wetland sites. Protected area effectiveness is challenged by tenure disputes and limited enforcement capacity reflected in reports from United Nations Environment Programme missions.

Research and monitoring

Scientific research is undertaken by regional universities like the Université d'État d'Haïti and international partners including Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and Cornell University. Monitoring programs utilize remote sensing platforms such as Landsat and Sentinel-2 satellites, and biodiversity inventories appear in journals including Biotropica and Conservation Biology. Citizen-science initiatives and NGOs employ protocols from organizations like IUCN and Global Forest Watch to map deforestation and restoration outcomes. Ongoing research priorities include cataloguing endemism, assessing climate resilience in collaboration with agencies like the United Nations Development Programme, and integrating traditional ecological knowledge from local communities documented in anthropological studies by scholars affiliated with Harvard University and Rutgers University.

Category:Ecoregions of the Caribbean