Greater Antilles mangroves
Mangrove ecoregion in the Greater Antilles islands
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Greater Antilles mangroves is a mangrove ecoregion that includes the coastal mangrove forests of the Greater Antilles – Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.[1]
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American flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber) feeding in a saltwater lagoon surrounded by a mangrove forest in Cuba. | |
 Ecoregion territory (in magenta) | |
| Ecology | |
|---|---|
| Realm | Neotropical |
| Biome | mangroves |
| Borders | |
| Geography | |
| Area | 10,600 km2 (4,100 mi2) |
| Countries | |
| Conservation | |
| Critical/endangered[1] | |
| Protected | 30.5%(2007)[2] |
Geography
Mangroves are estimated to cover 5,569 km2 in Cuba (or 4.8% of the country); 134 km2 in Haiti; 325 km2 in the Dominican Republic; and 106 km2 in Jamaica.[1]
Some ecoregion systems include the Greater Antilles mangroves, Bahamian mangroves, and Lesser Antilles mangroves within a single Bahamian-Antillean mangroves ecoregion.[3]
Protected areas
30.5% of the ecoregion is in protected areas.[2] These include the Zapata Swamp in Cuba,[4] La Cahouane and Three Bays Protected Area in Haiti,[5][6] Los Haitises National Park in the Dominican Republic, and the Piñones State Forest[7] and Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Puerto Rico.[8]
