A Collection of Birds from the Sierra de las Minas, Guatemala
1962; Wilson Ornithological Society; Volume: 74; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1938-5447
Autores Tópico(s)Avian ecology and behavior
Resumo-ROM 7 July 1958 to 3 April 1959, I conducted a field study of the birds Jj71in the Sierra de las Minas and adjacent valleys in eastern Guatemala. I was assisted throughout this period by my wife Margaret and by Larry L. Wolf, and in March by Dr. and Mrs. Richard R. Graber. The activities of the expedition included collecting specimens and gathering, data on ecology, nesting, and behavior. The study area included parts of the departments of Zacapa, Izabal, Alta Vera Paz, and Baja Vera Paz. In the Sierra de las Minas above 3,500 feet elevation, the region covered in this paper, we listed 123 resident and 37 migratory species. Our studies in the humid lowlands north of the Sierra de las Minas (Polochic Valley) and the arid interior to the south (Motagua Valley) will be discussed in future reports. Eighty miles long, 20 miles wide, and rising almost 2 miles above sea level, the Mountain of the Mines extends from San Jeronimo and Tactic in the Vera Paz highlands east to the village of Izabal. Just south of this lowland village it merges with the Sierra del Mico (a minor range reaching eastward 40 more miles before dipping into the Caribbean Sea). Within the last six years two lumber roads were bulldozed up the south slope to elevations of about 7,000 feet. The present effect of lumbering operations on the pine forests is minor and local. Sporadic farming has been more important in destroying the original vegetation. However, virgin forest, or at least mature growth, still occurs throughout most of the mountains. On the north slope of the range only a few foot trails exist. The best of these connects Rio Hondo in the Motagua Valley to Zarco in the Polochic. Geologically the Sierra de las Minas is made up of Paleozoic and Mesozoic deposits. Along with the Chiapas highlands and the altos of western Guatemala, this area formed a refuge for terrestrial life during the early Tertiary when other parts of Central America were inundated. The higher parts of the range have been available to vegetation since the end of the Cretaceous. As might be expected, many ancient forms of life persist here. Daily temperatures vary with elevation from 100 F in the foothills to 50 F or lower on the ridges; there is little seasonal change. The northeast trade winds, which sweep in from the Caribbean continuously, annually deposit as much as 200 inches of rain on the windward side of the mountains. Rainfall is much reduced on the leeward slopes, especially at lower elevations. Five collecting stations were utilized in the highlands. Because of the
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