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Cauca Valley dry forests
Endemic grayish piculet
Ecoregion territory (in purple)
Ecology
Realm	Neotropical
Biome	tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests
Geography
Area	2,800 km (1,100 sq mi)
Country	Colombia
Coordinates	03°52′13″N 76°21′13″W / 3.87028°N 76.35361°W / 3.87028; -76.35361
Conservation
Conservation status	Critically endangered

The Cauca Valley dry forests is a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion in Colombia.

Location

The Cauca Valley dry forests occupies an area of 7,300 square kilometers (2,800 sq mi), extending in a long, narrow strip along the Cauca River. The Cauca Valley is nestled between the Cordillera Occidental and Cordillera Central in the northern Andes. These ranges create a rain shadow, which makes the Cauca Valley drier than the surrounding forests. The Cauca Valley dry forests lie below 1000 meters elevation; the higher slopes are occupied by the distinct Cauca Valley montane forests. Most of these forests have been cleared for agriculture over the years making it one of the most critically endangered ecoregions in Colombia. Laguna de Sonso Nature Reserve has a small area of protected forest.

Ecology

The ecoregion is part of the 103,000 square kilometres (40,000 sq mi) Tumbesian-Andean Valleys Dry Forests global ecoregion, which holds six terrestrial ecoregions: Tumbes–Piura dry forests, Ecuadorian dry forests, Patía Valley dry forests, Magdalena Valley dry forests, Cauca Valley dry forests and Marañón dry forests. The fauna and flora of the global ecoregion have high levels of endemism.

Flora

The main plant communities are open woodland, deciduous dry forest, evergreen dry forest, riparian forest, arid scrub and wetlands. The natural vegetation has been almost completely displaced by human activities, chiefly agriculture.

Fauna

Three endemic or near-endemic birds found in the ecoregion are the white-chested swift (Cypseloides lemosi), grayish piculet (Picumnus granadensis), apical flycatcher (Myiarchus apicalis).

Human use

The Cauca Valley dry forests have been mostly converted to agricultural fields. The city of Cali lies in the ecoregion.

References

1. Schafer.

Bibliography

• Schafer, Kevin, Tumbesian-Andean Valleys Dry Forests, WWF: World Wildlife Fund, archived from the original on 2017-05-30, retrieved 2017-04-15
• "Cauca Valley dry forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.

v t e Biodiversity of Colombia
General biota	Vertebrates Birds Endemic Mammals Primates Reptiles Lizards Snakes Other Butterflies Non-marine molluscs Flora
Regional biota	Altiplano Cundiboyacense Eastern Hills, Bogotá Invasive (Hippopotamus) Magdalena River
Ecoregions	Tumbes Chocó Magdalena Chocó–Darién moist forests Eastern Panamanian montane forests Esmeraldas–Pacific Colombia mangroves Magdalena Valley montane forests Magdalena–Urabá moist forests Panama Bight Western Ecuador moist forests Tropical Andes Bogotá savanna Cauca Valley dry forests Cauca Valley montane forests Cocora Valley Cordillera Oriental montane forests Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests Magdalena Valley dry forests Northern Andean páramo Northwestern Andean montane forests Patía Valley dry forests Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta Santa Marta montane forests Santa Marta páramo Sumapaz Páramo Other Amazon–Orinoco–Southern Caribbean mangroves Campinarana Caquetá moist forests Catatumbo moist forests Guajira–Barranquilla xeric scrub Japurá–Solimões–Negro moist forests Napo moist forests Negro–Branco moist forests Sinú Valley dry forests
Nature reserves	Arví Park Azufral Bahía Portete–Kaurrele Cerulean Warbler Chamicero de Perijá Colibri del Sol Laguna de Sonso Thomas van der Hammen
Organizations	Alexander von Humboldt Fundación ProAves John von Neumann PNN Proyecto Tití SINAP Sinchi
Portal Natural hazards Natural regions Protected areas

• Ecoregions of Colombia
• Ecoregions of the Andes
• Neotropical dry broadleaf forests
• Andean forests
• Tropical Andes
• Flora of Colombia
• Natural history of Colombia