Selva El Ocote is a

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. It includes mid-elevation and highland rain forests and extensive caverns.

Geography

It is located in the state of Chiapas, covering portions of the municipalities of Cintalapa,

Ocozocoautla Ocozocoautla de Espinosa, colloquially Coita, is a town and municipality in the Mexican state of Chiapas. It is located in the western part of the state, 24 km west of Tuxtla Gutierrez covering parts of the Depresión Central (Central Depress ...

, Jiquipilas, and

Tecpatán Tecpatán is a town and municipality in the Mexican state of Chiapas in southern Mexico. As of 2010, the municipality had a total population of 41,045, up from 38,383 as of 2005. It covers an area of 770.1 km². As of 2010, the town of Tec ...

. The reserve spans the La Venta River and the mountains south of Malpaso Reservoir. The mountains extend up to 1500 meters elevation.BirdLife International (2021) Important Bird Areas factsheet: El Ocote. Accessed 5 October 2021

/ref> The geology includes large areas of limestone, including

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

ic caverns and aquifers.

Flora and fauna

The reserve is in the

Petén–Veracruz moist forests The Petén–Veracruz moist forests is an ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest biome found in Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico. Setting The Petén–Veracruz moist forests cover an area of , extending from central Verac ...

ecoregion. The dominant plant communities are tropical evergreen and semi-deciduous forests growing on limestone substrates. The reserve is home to 334 species of birds. The reserves's large size makes it an important refuge for the region's birds, including the limited-range

Nava's wren Nava's wren (''Hylorchilus navai'') is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics Nava's wren was originally treated as a subspecies of ''Hylorchilus sumichrasti'', which at that time was ...

(''Hylorchilus navai''). Other native bird species include

emerald-chinned hummingbird The emerald-chinned hummingbird (''Abeillia abeillei'') is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.HBW and BirdLife Internatio ...

(''Abeillia abeillei''),

sharp-shinned hawk The sharp-shinned hawk (''Accipiter striatus'') or northern sharp-shinned hawk, commonly known as a sharpie, is a small hawk, with males being the smallest hawks in the United States and Canada, but with the species averaging larger than some Neo ...

(''Accipiter striatus''),

roadside hawk The roadside hawk (''Rupornis magnirostris'') is a relatively small bird of prey found in the Americas. This vocal species is often the most common raptor in its range. It has many subspecies and is now usually placed in the monotypic genus ''Rup ...

(''Buteo magnirostris''),

gray-lined hawk The gray-lined hawk (''Buteo nitidus'') is a smallish Bird of prey, raptor found in open country and forest edges. It is sometimes placed in the genus ''Asturina'' as ''Asturina nitida''. The species has been split by the American Ornithological ...

(''Buteo nitidus''),

singing quail The singing quail (''Dactylortyx thoracicus'') is a species of bird in the family Odontophoridae, the New World quail. It is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The singing quail is the only ...

(''Dactylortyx thoracicus''),

bat falcon The bat falcon (''Falco rufigularis'') is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Mexico, Central America, Trinidad, and every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.Remsen, J. V., J ...

(''Falco rufigularis''),

Montezuma oropendola The Montezuma oropendola (''Psarocolius montezuma'') is a New World tropical icterid bird. It is a resident breeder in the Caribbean coastal lowlands from southeastern Mexico to central Panama, but is absent from El Salvador and southern Guatemal ...

(''Psarocolius montezuma''),

chestnut-headed oropendola The chestnut-headed oropendola (''Psarocolius wagleri'') is a New World tropical icterid bird. The scientific name of the species commemorates Johann Georg Wagler, who established ''Psarocolius'', the oropendola genus. Description The male is ...

(''Psarocolius wagleri'', and

plain xenops The Amazonian plain xenops (''Xenops genibarbis'') is a passerine bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family (biology), family Furnariidae. It is found in every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, an ...

(''Xenops minutus'').

Conservation

The core area of the reserve was established in 2000 by the Mexican government. It covers an area of 306.49 km², and is managed as a

Strict nature reserve A strict nature reserve (IUCN category Ia) or wilderness area (IUCN category Ib) is the highest category of protected area recognised by the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), a body which is part of the International Union for ...

(

IUCN protected area category IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

Ia). In 2006

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

designated Selva El Ocote as an international biosphere reserve, including both the core area and a larger buffer zone totaling 1012.88 km²."Selva El Ocote Biosphere Reserve, Mexico". UNESCO, October 2018. Accesesed 29 September 2021

/ref> Economic activities in the reserve include agriculture and animal husbandry, organic coffee growing, animal husbandry, agriculture, and ecotourism.

References

{{reflist Biosphere reserves of Mexico Protected areas of Chiapas Important Bird Areas of Mexico Petén–Veracruz moist forests