The Tropical Andes is northern of the three climate-delineated parts of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

, the others being the

Dry Andes 200px, Map of the climatic regions of the Andes. The Dry Andes are shown in yellow. The Wet_Andes.html"_;"title="Tropical_Andes_are_shown_in_green_and_the_Wet_Andes">Tropical_Andes_are_shown_in_green_and_the_Wet_Andes_in_dark_blue. The_Dry_Andes_ ...

and the

Wet Andes 200px, Map of the climatic regions of the Andes. The Wet Andes are shown in dark blue. The Tropical_Andes.html"_;"title="Dry_Andes_are_shown_in_yellow_and_the_Tropical_Andes">Dry_Andes_are_shown_in_yellow_and_the_Tropical_Andes_in_green. The_Wet_ ...

. The Tropical Andes' area spans .

Geography and ecology

file:Andes_clima.png, 200px, Map of the climatic regions of the Andes. The tropical Andes are shown in green. The

are shown in yellow and the

in dark blue. The Tropical Andes are located in South America following the path of the Andes. They run, mainly, through five countries, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. The land initially was roughly but has decreased to , leaving 25% of the original land. Due to the massive amount of area the landscape is diverse. Diverse landscapes lead to diverse habitats and the ability to provide needed resources for many species. The diverse landscape includes snow-topped mountains down to

canyon A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency to cu ...

s and valleys. The different vegetation as altitude changes includes

tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equator ...

s at ,

cloud forests A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level clo ...

ranging from , and the highest altitudes of contain

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

s up to snow. The most diverse

cloud forest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud ...

s found in Peru and Bolivia covers . Dry forests and woodlands are also found throughout the Tropical Andes. The range is also home to the deepest gorge in Peru at deep and

Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, i ...

, the highest navigable water with an altitude of .

Biodiversity

The Tropical Andes are a

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...

hotspot named the "global epicentre of biodiversity" according to the

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) is a joint biodiversity conservation initiative of l'Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, European Union, Global Environment Facility, Government of Japan, and World Bank. CEPF ...

. The Tropical Andes is an area of rich

. This location contains about 45,000 plant species of which 20,000 are endemic. There are over 3,000 vertebrate species with about 1,500 endemics. Besides plants and vertebrates, 1,666 bird species, 479 reptile species, and 830 amphibian species reside in the Tropical Andes. All hotspots are important for

conservation biology Conservation biology is the study of the conservation of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions. It is an in ...

, but especially the tropical Andes with so many endemic species. The biodiversity within the Tropical Andes is dwindling in numbers due to threats. The diversity between vegetation throughout altitudes was further studied in Colombia. Chengyu Weng studied how pollen diversity is affected by different temperatures due to changing altitudes. The team studied different vegetations, the subandean forest, Andean forest, subparamo and grassparamo located in the Andes. There was more plant diversity as altitude increased throughout the vegetations. Pollen diversity positively correlated with more diversity at lower altitudes. With these findings, they were able to see changes in plant diversity in the past 430000 years. During hot temperatures, pollen diversity increased at higher altitudes, from plant species moving up. Cooler temperatures saw pollen diversity in lower altitudes. The study explains how temperature influences plant diversity.

Ecoregions

The ecoregions in the hotspot include: * Cordillera de la Costa montane forests (Venezuela) *

Venezuelan Andes montane forests The Venezuelan Andes montane forests (NT0175) is an ecoregion in the northern arm of the Andes in Venezuela. It contains montane and cloud forests, reaching up to the high-level Cordillera de Merida páramo high moor ecoregion. The forests are hom ...

(Venezuela) *

Cordillera Oriental montane forests The Cordillera Oriental montane forests (NT0118) is an ecoregion in Venezuela and Colombia along the east slopes of the eastern cordillera of the Andes. The extensive region of submontane and montane forests includes distinctive flora and fauna in ...

(Colombia, Venezuela) * Santa Marta páramo (Colombia) *

Santa Marta montane forests The Santa Marta montane forests (NT0159) is an ecoregion in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, a massif on the Caribbean coast of northern Colombia. The ecoregion covers altitudes from near sea level up to around , where it gives way to Santa Marta ...

(Colombia) *

Northern Andean páramo The Northern Andean páramo (NT1006) is an ecoregion containing páramo vegetation above the treeline in the Andes of Colombia and Ecuador. In the past, when the climate was cooler, the treeline and the páramo units were lower and the units were c ...

(Colombia, Ecuador) * Magdalena Valley montane forests (Colombia) * Northwestern Andean montane forests (Colombia, Ecuador) * Cauca Valley montane forests (Colombia) * Cauca Valley dry forests (Colombia) * Magdalena Valley dry forests (Colombia) * Patía Valley dry forests (Colombia) *

Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air L ...

(Colombia, Ecuador, Peru) * Marañón dry forests (Peru) * Peruvian Yungas (Peru) * Cordillera Central páramo (Peru) *

Central Andean wet puna The Central Andean wet puna is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion in the Andes of Peru and Bolivia. Setting This ecoregion occurs above and consists of high-elevation, wet, montane grasslands amid lakes, plateaus, valleys, and high mo ...

(Bolivia, Peru) *

Central Andean puna The Central Andean puna is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion in the Andes of southern Peru, Bolivia, and northern Argentina. Setting The landscape in this ecoregion consists of high mountains with permanent snow and ice, meadows, l ...

(Bolivia, Peru) * Bolivian Yungas (Bolivia, Peru) * Bolivian montane dry forests (Bolivia)

Hotspots

A hotspot can be identified as an area with great biological diversity with high endemism. The location must also have lost a significant amount of land and threatened species, according to the fourth edition of the ''Essentials of Conservation Biology''. The term "hotspots" was used by

Norman Myers Norman Myers (24 August 1934 – 20 October 2019) was a British environmentalist specialising in biodiversity and also noted for his work on environmental refugees. Biography Myers was born in Whitewell (Lancashire, then Yorkshire) and was r ...

written to describe ten tropical forests. The forests contained the characteristics of high levels of plant endemism and

loss of habitat Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

s. Myers went on to add eight more hotspots by 1990. The Conservation International reassessed Myers definition of a hotspot and by 1999 criteria for a hotspot developed to be used globally. A hotspot needs 1,500 endemic vascular plant species and a loss of at least 30 percent of its original land. With these criteria, 25 hotspots were identified in 1999 and published in the journal ''Nature''. They contained at least 44 percent of earth's endemics plants and 35 percent of land vertebrates. The combined area between the 25 hotspots used to cover 11.8 percent of land. The total amount of land has reduced from 17 million km² to 2 million km², or about 85% of the land. This leaves this great biodiversity limited to about 1 percent of Earth's land surface.

Research

There are a little over 30 hotspots now recorded and used for research. A few other hotspots include the

Caribbean Islands Almost all of the Caribbean islands are in the Caribbean Sea, with only a few in inland lakes. The largest island is Cuba. Other sizable islands include Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago. Some of the smaller islands a ...

Himalaya The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

, and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. Due to a hotspot's great diversity and endemic species,

and many other sources conduct research in these locations. Research is also needed considering the amount of threatened species in hotspots. Researchers have the opportunity to preserve many species along with their habitats within hotspots. Some organizations that use hotspots for research are World Conservation Monitoring Centre, Birdlife International, Conservation International, and World Wildlife Fund. Research is also done on humans' impact to the hotspots land and species that reside in them. Funding for hotspot conservation has been estimated at $750 million accumulated over the past fifteen years. By focusing research on hotspots, many species can be helped at once. One specific research studies fire's impact on vegetation in Northern Ecuador of the Tropical Andes. This location's variety of vegetation includes different forests, land used for agricultural and páramo, or tropical alpine found at 4,500 meters. Páramo is dominated by grasses but still high in diversity. The article "Fire Ecology and Conservation in the High Tropical Andes: Observations from Northern Ecuador" looks at páramo's ability to withstand disturbances such as fire. Humans have lived in this location for 7,000 years, and the páramo has been through fires and grazing. The writer believes that policies used to implement fire suppression are not probable or beneficiary to the plant.Keating, Philip. ''Fire Ecology and Conservation in the High Tropical Andes: observations from Northern Ecuador''. Journal of Latin American Geography; 2007, Vol. 6 Issue 1, p43-62. Policies instead should be written up according to specific plant species and impact on natives living there. This is a small example of research in the Tropical Andes that could make a big impact to saving diversity. Further research is also processed on looking into the decrease in avian populations, focusing in hotspots due to its massive diversity. The study focuses in Endemic Bird Areas or EBAs in order to understand why they become extinct and possible conservation plans. there were 218 EBAs, with over 30 percent of bird species threatened. EBAs located in hotspots interfere with many human activities, leading to habitat loss in 51 percent of EBAs. According to the article's chart, five EBAs with habitat loss are located in the Tropical Andes. By studying the effect of human activities on EBAs that are losing avian populations, plans to help the future of other EBAs are possible. Their results showed that if a species has habitat specificity and is large in size, the chance of extinction increases. Habitat loss will impact those with habitat specificity greatly.

Conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...

goals need to look into human activities and the bird's habitat specificity in order to make a positive impact. An example of research on a specific threatened species in the Tropical Andes is the rare '' Tremarctos ornatus'', also known as Andean (or spectacled)

bears Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the No ...

. Two males were captured, and radio collars were attached in order to track and study their habits and movement. They portrayed similar patterns compared to many other bear species. These findings contrasted with the belief of spectacled bears being nocturnal and no change in patterns between seasons because only slight change in temperature. The radio collars proved these spectacled bears to be diurnal. The bears were in motion from sunrise to sunset with periods of rest in between. There was a small change in level of activity between seasons, with an increase during the dry season. Due to the technology of radio collars, hypotheses about these bears were tested. By knowing their habitat and lifestyle, we can better understand and help threatened species.

Rich diversity

The Tropical Andes is said to be the most diverse of the world's scientific hotspots of diversity. The journal ''Nature'' contained an article by Norman Myers comparing the 25 hotspots with land and species in 2000. At the time, the Tropical Andes was recorded to have 45,000 plant species with the next closest hotspots recorded to have 25,000 plant species. Actually a sixth of all plant species can reside in the Tropical Andes. The Tropical Andes also has the most endemic plant species at 20,000, while the next hotspot contains 15,000. The Tropical Andes has a lot of land compared to other hotspots, but is not the largest. That the large land area shows the Tropical Andes can provide for biodiversity with diverse landscape. Many endemic plant and animal species are currently threatened in the Tropical Andes. An example of a threatened plant species is the Andean bromelilad, an endemic plant that takes up to 100 years to mature and a common diet for species that forage. Other plants species include many crops such as tobacco and potatoes. Some endemic animals include the

Andean condor The Andean condor (''Vultur gryphus'') is a giant South American Cathartid vulture and is the only member of the genus ''Vultur''. Found in the Andes mountains and adjacent Pacific coasts of western South America, the Andean condor is the larg ...

, which almost became extinct from hunting. Thanks to a conservation reintroduction program, their numbers are growing. Another threatened endemic bird in the Tropical Andes is the

yellow-eared parrot The yellow-eared parrot (''Ognorhynchus icterotis'') is an endangered parrot of the tropics in South America. It is found in the Andes of Colombia. This species was thought to be extinct up until April 1999, when a group of researchers that we ...

. One threat this species faces is the loss of the vulnerable wax palm. The yellow-eared parrot uses the wax palm for nesting and roosting. However, humans, especially in Colombia, are removing the vulnerable wax palm from the wild for

Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Palm Sunday marks the first day of Hol ...

. Some conservation programs are helping the situation to educate churches to use other resources besides the vulnerable wax palm. The yellow tailed monkey is another endemic animal being endangered. They are one of the rarest mammals, with a recorded population of 250 found in the cloud forests of Peru. They are threatened by humans causing habitat loss and fragmentation of their habitat. Their slow maturity and low population densities do not help. Programs have tried to relocate them to secondary forests, but attempts have failed. Many species reside in the Tropical Andes but are threatened severely.

Habitat degradation threats

There are many threats that the Tropical Andes faces every day. One of the main threats is human activities, especially with increasing population. Some activities include mining, logging, and construction. Humans also use land for agriculture and keep relocating once the land is used up. Valleys are severely degraded due to humans living there. Hydroelectric dams have also been put in the Tropical Andes and negatively pressured cloud forests. The 25 percent of land that is protected is still poorly managed with little help from the public from lack of education. Invasive species have also been a threat to the Tropical Andes' land and species, possibly brought in by humans. Invasive species include the

American bullfrog The American bullfrog (''Lithobates catesbeianus''), often simply known as the bullfrog in Canada and the United States, is a large true frog native to eastern North America. It typically inhabits large permanent water bodies such as swamps, p ...

and certain grasses used for cattle. Humans have the ability to cause habitat loss and

habitat fragmentation Habitat fragmentation describes the emergence of discontinuities (fragmentation) in an organism's preferred environment (habitat), causing population fragmentation and ecosystem decay. Causes of habitat fragmentation include geological process ...

for species. The forest habitats that are threatened in the Tropical Andes are modified and destroyed 30 percent faster than lower tropical areas.Cuervo, Andrés. ''PersistentAssemblage and population-level consequences of forest fragmentation on bilateral asymmetry in tropical montane birds''. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society; 2007, Vol. 92 Issue 1, p119-133 Fragmentation causes a separation within species and decreases the diversity of genes. There is the possibility of inbreeding to increase as well. An article also looked at fragmentation causing certain phenotypes to arise in organisms. By studying feathers of 2,500 individual bird species within nine forests, observation showed asymmetry linked with fragmentation. Asymmetry was lowest if the forest continued and highest with small or medium fragmentation. They suggest asymmetry of bird feathers influenced by the stress of fragmentation and changing environments. That is one outcome from fragmentation in the Tropical Andes. A study by Niall O'Dea looks at bird communities in general and how habitat degradation impacts them. He compared the bird communities that reside in primary forests, secondary forests, edge habitat and agricultural land, all modified by humans. Most diversity was found in secondary forests and edge habitats but different species. The agricultural land and primary forest held the lowest diversity. This study suggests that within Andean montane forests, preserving secondary forests offers most benefit for these threatened birds. Another serious threat to the Tropical Andes is

global warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

, the effect of too much of greenhouse gasses trapped in the air that hold in heat. Some locations are increasing in temperature and others decreasing. The change in temperatures has a major effect on the Tropical Andes; some say that this is more negative than deforestation. One serious issue is the melting of the

glaciers A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

in the mountains. It is estimated that 80 percent of freshwater comes from mountains and with them melting about half of the Earth's population will be affected.Mark, Bryan, ''Tracing Increasing Tropical Andean Glacier Melt with Stable Isotopes in Water.'' Environmental Science & Technology; 2007, Vol. 41 Issue 20, p6955-6960 All over the world glaciers are melting, but the mountains in the Tropical Andes are very susceptible. It is said that a quarter of the Tropical Andes glacier has already begun retreating. These glaciers make up many species water supply, and the location could be in crisis if they melt away. Glaciers in the Andes provide two main functions; decrease seasonal discharge variability and provide greater specific discharge. The article by Bryan Mark predicts an increase in discharge as glaciers melt, with the ability to trace glacier water melting into watersheds using isotopes. Global warming can lead to the extinction of many species, especially in hotspots. A study done by Jay Malcolm predicts that less than 1 percent up to 43 percent of endemic biota will become extinct due to global warming. He also believes the Tropical Andes is in the top six vulnerable hotspots, with the possibility of plant extinction exceeding 2000 species.Malcolm, Jay. ''Global Warming and Extinctions of Endemic Species from Biodiversity Hotspots.'' Conservation Biology; 2006, Vol. 20 Issue 2, p538-548. Global warming is also causing an increase in diseases among amphibians. Considering that the Tropical Andes is recorded to have the most amphibians, some restricted to this location, diseases could decrease the diversity greatly. Another factor is that 400 of the amphibian species are already threatened. These deadly fungi have actually been linked to the extinction of dinosaurs.Associated Press. 'Amphibian Ark' aims to save frogs from fungus. NBC News website. 2007. Accessed 12/8/07.
/ref> One chytrid fungus that is infecting amphibians is the

batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ''Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis'' ( ), also known as ''Bd'' or the amphibian chytrid fungus, is a fungus that causes the disease chytridiomycosis in amphibians. Since its discovery in 1998 by Lee Berger, the disease devastated amphibian popula ...

. This fungus will impair the amphibian's skin and reduce its ability to absorb. One example of an amphibian in the Tropical Andes is the genus ''

Atelopus ''Atelopus'' is a large genus of Bufonidae, commonly known as harlequin frogs or toads, from Central and South America, ranging as far north as Costa Rica and as far south as Bolivia. ''Atelopus'' species are small, generally brightly colored, ...

'', with 56 of the species Critically Endangered. Due to increase in temperature, the fungus has the ability to spread rapidly and thrive on living amphibians. A new threat that is being researched is the effect from nitrogen deposition. Studies done in Europe have shown diversity among plants decreased due to nitrogen deposition. Current models are estimating what could happen to hotspots across the world if nitrogen deposition keeps increasing. By comparing to past research, nitrogen deposition has already increased 50 percent since the 1990s. The estimation for the future shows an increase by 100 percent in 2050. Considering the great plant diversity in the Tropical Andes, especially so many endemics, nitrogen deposition could be a severe threat. The decrease in plant diversity could cause a chain reaction on other species that depend on the plants. These are just few threats the Tropical Andes faces on a daily basis. The impact on the land is shown by a 75 percent decrease from its original mass. Species affected are decreasing in numbers, and the number of species listed on the Endangered Species Act is increasing. The situation is worse when threatened species are endemic to the Tropical Andes. 14 endemic mammals and 110 endemic birds are threatened in the Tropical Andes. Two species from the Tropical Andes have already become extinct.

References

External links

Enever, Andrew. Andes conservation goes cross-border. BBC News World Edition. 2002. Accessed 12/8/07

* [https://archive.today/20041117223441/http://www.iucn.org/themes/ssc/red_list_2004/casestudies_EN.htm The World Conservation Union. The IUCN Redlist of Threatened Species: Local action-saves globally threatened parrot. 2006. Accessed 12/8/07]
Biodiversityhotspots.org—Conservation International: Tropical Andes
{{Biodiversity of Colombia Andes Ecoregions of the Andes Ecoregions of South America * Ecoregions of Bolivia Ecoregions of Colombia Ecoregions of Ecuador Ecoregions of Peru Ecoregions of Venezuela Natural history of South America Regions of South America Neotropical realm