Colombia has a great variety in its ecosystems, it ranges from jungles to moors, its specific characteristics allow the variety of presence of organisms, due to its great variety of landscapes it represents a Latin American country very visited by tourists, in the following article they are going to It presents the main characteristics of the Ecosystems of Colombia and its great attractions.
Ecosystems of Colombia
An ecosystem consists of a set of biological systems made up of organisms that maintain a relationship with each other, so that they have to share the same habitat, which have a series of physical characteristics as well as chemical characteristics. They are distributed throughout the planet Earth, so each country has specific ecosystems according to its location; they may even have nearby ecosystems which are also known as biomes.
In the ecosystems of Colombia, the jungles, the mangroves, the marine prairies and also the moors can be highlighted; the importance they have in nature is due to all the services they offer to increase their vitality and their applications by human beings. Some of these services that can be named refer to the reduction of soil erosion, as well as a carbon sink, so they are essential in our life on Earth.
Ecosystems are currently in danger due to their conditions, they are in a critical state, so they have lost their stability in nature and do not provide all the services and benefits that they originally provided; This is due to the activity of human beings who have destroyed this natural habitat with chemical and industrial products.
Colombia has 98 kinds of ecosystems which are based on coastal and marine areas; Among them, 74 types belong to ecosystems that are natural; the other 24 types are ecosystems that were transformed; while there are approximately 8000 ecosystems that are distributed among terrestrial, insular, marine, coastal and aquatic, which provide great diversity throughout the Colombian territory.
Through several studies, it has been possible to approximate or estimate the number of species that live in these specific habitats distributed in terrestrial and aquatic areas. It was established that there are 467 species of mammal class so they are distributed in terrestrial ecosystems, likewise they are made up of more than 1800 species of birds.
In the case of amphibians, there are more than 600 amphibians that live in freshwater areas and forests; More than 3200 kinds of fish are found in aquatic ecosystems, thus also providing great diversity in coastal areas. There are also approximately 520 species of reptiles which also share different biomes and habitats.
Types of Ecosystems in Colombia
Colombia is a country that presents different types of ecosystems, which are distributed in a specific way and that correspond to different classes; Depending on its biological system, it can be classified by its characteristics. They are made up of living beings, which is why it is the ideal and natural habitat for various species. Colombia is considered one of the countries that presents the greatest variety in its ecosystem, due to this, a list of the types it contains along with its main characteristics will be shown below; so that you can see the importance they have in nature and in turn in the coexistence of the human being with the environment:
Terrestrial ecosystems
This ecosystem is divided into different sectors, which consist of moors, savannahs, also tropical forests and desert areas. Each one of them has specific characteristics which allow to have the adequate conditions for the different species that inhabit these biomes. Colombia is characterized by presenting a great variety of species in this type of ecosystem; Due to this, it is considered one of the most biodiverse countries in the world. This also brings benefits to the country in reference to its nature, since it can ensure stability in its biological system, as well as a variety of plants and plains that constitute this type of ecosystem.
The savannah consists of a specific environment described as zones with a great wealth of legume species as well as types of herbaceous grasses. They can also be mixed with the trupillos that are one of the types of trees found in this ecosystem, in the same way it is made up of scattered bushes, which gives a visual variety in this sector, they are generally found in small groups in the which allow better conditions for all species that are in the savannah.
In the savannah there is a warm climate, that is, it has high temperatures, however it has almost no rainfall, this is due to the type of soil that constitutes it, since these do not have groundwater. The animals that are generally found in this sector are cougars, herons and hawks, these are usually the most common. Another sector of this ecosystem is the moors, which are characterized by being mountain types, their climate is very cold, so they do not have water at all times, but only in specific periods of the year.
It is located in Andean territories, its vegetation consists mainly of herbaceous; Regarding its fauna, rabbits, foxes, also pumas, field mice, deer and even curies can be highlighted. There is also another sector of this ecosystem based on tropical forests which are mainly characterized by being made up of large amounts of forest mass, it can be described by means of its vegetation which is preserved in green tones throughout the year demonstrating its great development regarding this specific biome.
Likewise, it occurs near Ecuador, which corresponds to the Pacific and Amazon areas; Due to this, its climate is very specific, in which there are large rainfalls and also high temperatures. This climate does not vary during the year, so it can be considered that it remains constant at any time of the year, this is due to the vegetation that is constituted, which require abundant water and high temperatures.
In its vegetation, the ceiba can be highlighted, also the platanillos, the ferns are included, in this way there are adequate conditions for various species of animals, so different types are achieved. On the other hand, in desert areas it is totally different, because rainfall is very scarce, for this reason other kinds of species and vegetation inhabit.
They have low water saturation, adopting the environment in extreme conditions that the species must live; A typical example are the cacti that live in this type of area, since they can store water in their leaves, which allows them to coexist in this sector where they do not have large amounts of water. In the case of animals, the eagles stand out. which can withstand high temperatures without any problem.
Among other species found in this desert area are insects, which have the appropriate characteristics that allow them to live in this sector, as well as arachnids who do not require large amounts of water; any invertebrate species has the properties to coexist in that environment, as they are distributed throughout this territory, there are no problems in having each one with its specific space.
Aquatic ecosystems
In the ecosystems of Colombia are those that are in the marine sectors, for which it is called an aquatic ecosystem. This sector is also divided into different zones which have different characteristics and properties, due to this they are made up of a set of specific species which require certain conditions to inhabit a characteristic environment.
The divisions of this ecosystem consist of coral reefs, also seagrass beds, mangroves and pelagics; They are generally found in the coastal territories of the country, as well as on the islands and on the coasts. Its distribution consists of its marine properties, so you can find a wide variety of fish and species with similar properties.
With the division of the coral reefs that are characterized by being immense barriers of sponges; Their structures are composed of calcium carbonate, which is why they are characterized by having a high resistance. Due to this, it offers a large number of services that are used by human beings, it is generally used to provide greater protection on the coastline, as well as for tourist resources.
Another of its uses is tourism in Colombia, so that visits to the country are increased, allowing a higher income. Its function is to be a food for fish, as well as to support to condition the habitat for different marine species; however, they do not resist sudden changes, so they can adopt different formations, in the Colombian territory they can be found in the Rosario Islands.
Among these ecosystems, the aquatic sector includes seagrass meadows, which are located on the coastlines and also in shallow waters that are up to 25 meters high; It is composed of a large amount of green algae that are characterized by being very tall, due to this it has long roots that are responsible for holding the aquatic substrate.
In the same way, it is established as a food source for the different marine species as well as a refuge that animals can use to protect themselves from any predator, in this way there is a natural security in these marine sectors, in which groups of octopuses live, fish, also snails, as well as starfish, among others.
One of its virtues is its contribution to avoiding the corresponding erosion of the coast, that is, it prevents the erosion of the surface located in the coastal zones, but specifically in the Caribbean, for this reason it is closely related to the coral reefs, of In the way that they constitute a biome, they increase its biological system and its impact on the ecosystems of Colombia.
With respect to the pelagic ecosystem, it consists of the mass of water specifically from the sea where it develops without the need for any contact with the bottom, likewise it does not have dependence on the sea floor due to height. It has a base of microscopic algae which are structured by a food chain; they can be of different types, since this depends on the depth of the light wave that it can receive.
This also depends on its length, this determines its shape and amount of mass that develops, the importance of this process is that in these ecosystems of Colombia a source of food is provided to small invertebrate species, as well as various types of fish, even marine mammals are offered food with the right properties. Other of the ecosystems of Colombia in the aquatic sector consist of the mangroves which are based on forests that are part of their structure in the water. One of its characteristics is that they have a high level of tolerance to salinity, this is due to the vegetation that constitutes this ecosystem, since it has tolerance to large amounts of salt.
They are also composed of aerial roots, because these come out from the substrate upwards, for this reason they were called aerial. They generally have the ability to have roots that exceed the water level; its properties are very varied, so it is a habitat for different species of birds and different kinds of fish. One of the services that they provide as a biological system is that it prevents the erosion of the coast, that is, it prevents any wear that is generated on the surface. Gives a contribution to the development of slime as well as its formation; It gives support to all the species that inhabit this environment, taking into account birds, fish and a wide variety of invertebrates.
Danger of the Colombia Ecosystem
The ecosystems of Colombia are very important for the nature of the country, however at present it has been seen that they have come to present critical states, which is why they are in danger, that is, they are in conditions where their properties can be lost, thus eliminating its ecosystem; Due to this, several types of studies have been carried out where the number of biomes and ecosystems that are in danger are exposed.
Through the report carried out by Colombia Viva in 2017, it was possible to study the state of all the ecosystems that make up the country, presenting a summary that indicates that 21% of these biological systems are in danger, while 25% of ecosystems they are in a critical state, the rate being a bit high, so a way has been sought to reduce it and provide help to these biological systems.
The organization that was in charge of exposing this report is in charge of demonstrating the importance of the ecosystems of Colombia, and how it can harm the loss of one, for which it places the value and quality that these have in biodiversity, likewise they emphasize the services that are used either for the tourism sector or for the health sector. It seeks to reduce the critical states of the ecosystems of Colombia, since these represent a well-being for the human being; but due to forestry and industrial activities, each of these natural environments have been harmed, also due to selfish actions as human beings we carry out, they can damage these important natural areas.
Due to this, various ideas have been implemented that can be used to preserve these environmental zones, thus overcoming the critical state and the state of danger that some ecosystems in Colombia present. Several companies have devoted themselves to this purpose, which is why many important sites have been conditioned in the biomes. It is important to remember that each action that can be done will have an effect on nature.
Through COP19, which refers to the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in 2013, parameters were established that developing countries must meet to persevere environmental systems, as well as monitoring forest actions to have a study of the amount of carbon on the surface of given ecosystems.
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