The Central Afghan Mountains xeric woodlands

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

(WWF ID: PA1309) covers the xeric (dry) eastern and southern slopes of the central mountain range of

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, between the sandy desert to the south and the alpine meadows in the higher, wetter region to the north. Despite the 'woodlands' in the ecoregion name, very little of the territory is forested – less than 1% – but is instead sparse vegetation or herbaceous cover.

Location and description

The central mountain ranges of the Afghanistan are western extensions of the

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central Asia, Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and eastern Afghanistan into northwestern Pakistan and far southeastern Tajikistan. The range forms the wester ...

mountains in the northeast of the country. These subranges center on the

Koh-i-Baba The Baba Mountain range ( Bâbâ Ǧar; Kōh-i Bābā; or Kūh-e Bābā; ''Kōh'' or ''Kūh'' meaning ′mountain′, ''Bābā'' meaning ′father′) is the western extension of the Hindu Kush, and the origin of Afghanistan's Kabul, Arghandab ...

(Baba Mountain Range) the Koh-e Paghman Mountains. The mean elevation is , with a highest peak being Kuh-e Kokzaro Zaghicha at the northeastern extreme of the ecoregion.

Climate

The climate of the ecoregion is '' Humid continental climate - Hot, dry summer sub-type'' (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

Dsa), with large seasonal temperature differentials and a hot summer (at least one month averaging over , and mild winters. The driest month between April and September does not have more than 30 millimeters of precipitation.

Flora

According to satellite analysis, 65% of the ecoregion is bare or sparse vegetation, and another 27% is "herbaceous cover". There are communities of wild pistachio trees (''

Pistacia atlantica ''Pistacia atlantica'' is a species of Pistacia, pistachio tree known by the English language, English common name Mt. Atlas mastic tree, Atlas pistachio, Atlantic pistacio, Atlantic terebinth, wild pistachio, and Cyprus turpentine tree. ''P. a ...

'') at altitudes of 1,150-1,800 meters. Precipitation at these altitudes averages 250-400 mm/year. Higher, at 2,000-2,800 meters, Almond trees of genus ''

Prunus ''Prunus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs from the family (biology), family Rosaceae. The genus includes plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots and almonds (collectively Drupe, stonefruit). The genus has a cosm ...

'' mark a transition zone to the higher sub-alpine vegetation.

Fauna

Of conservation interest in the ecoregion is the critically endangered Paghman mountain salamandar (''

Afghanodon mustersi Paradactylodon mustersi is a species of salamander endemic to Afghanistan. It is also known as the Afghanistan brook salamander, Paghman Mountain Salamander, Afghan brook salamander, Afghanistan mountain salamander, Paghman mountain salamander, a ...

''). A large saline lake,

Ab-i Istada Ab-i Istada ("standing water") is an endorheic salt lake in the Nawa District of Ghazni Province in Afghanistan. It lies in a large depression created by the Chaman Fault system in the southern foothills of the Hindu Kush, west of Ghazni. Des ...

in the ecoregion, is an important migratory stop in the Spring for waterfowl traveling between

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

and the

Ganges Plain The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the Northern Plain or North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain spanning across the northern and north-eastern part of the Indian subcontinent. It encompasses northern and eastern India, eastern Pakist ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The site has a significant breeding population of American flamingos (''

Phoenicopterus ruber The American flamingo (''Phoenicopterus ruber'') is a large species of flamingo native to the West Indies, northern South America (including the Galápagos Islands) and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is closely related to the greater flamingo and Chi ...

'').

Protected areas

There are no protected areas in this ecoregion.

References

External links

* {{Palearctic desert and xeric shrubland ecoregions Palearctic ecoregions Ecoregions of Afghanistan