Solomon Islands rain forests

Solomon Islands rain forests
Makira Island
The Solomon Islands archipelago, with the nation Solomon Islands in beige and Bougainville (a part of Papua New Guinea) in dun.
Ecology
Realm	Australasia
Biome	Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests
Geography
Area	42,976 km2 (16,593 sq mi)
Countries	Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands
Autonomous region of Papua New Guinea	Bougainville
Elevation	0 - 2635 meters
Conservation
Conservation status	vulnerable
Global 200	Solomons-Vanuatu-Bismarck moist forests
Protected	662 km² (2%)[1]

The Solomon Islands rain forests are a terrestrial ecoregion covering most of the Solomon Islands archipelago. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Geography[]

Included are the islands of Bougainville and Buka, which are part of Papua New Guinea and most of the islands within the nation of Solomon Islands. Excluded are the eastern islands of the nation of Solomon Islands, the Santa Cruz Islands, which lie in the Vanuatu rain forests ecoregion together with the neighbouring archipelago of Vanuatu. Both ecoregions are part of the Australasian realm, which also includes the neighbouring Bismarck Archipelago and New Guinea, as well as New Caledonia, Australia and New Zealand.

The Solomon Islands rain forests are a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion, also known as a tropical rainforest.

Flora[]

The natural vegetation of the Solomon archipelago consists of lowland and montane tropical forests. The major plant communities include coastal strand, mangrove forests, freshwater swamp forests, lowland rain forests, and montane rain forest. Seasonally-dry forests and grasslands are found on the northern (leeward) slopes of Guadalcanal.^[5]

Fauna[]

The islands are home to 47 native mammal species, including bats, murid rodents, and possums, gliders, and cuscuses. 26 species are endemic or near-endemic – 17 species of bats, and nine species of murid rodent.

199 bird species are native to the Solomon archipelago, of which 69 species are endemic.^[6] The ecoregion corresponds to the Solomon group endemic bird area. ^[7]

Conservation and threats[]

The rainforests of this region are under threat as the governments of both Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands rely on logging for revenue, plan to expand farm land and to develop roads.

External links[]

• "Solomon Islands rain forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.
• Solomon group endemic bird area (BirdLife International)

References[]

Coordinates: 7°56′S 157°56′E / 7.93°S 157.93°E / -7.93; 157.93