Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 5.6 The caatinga vegetation is scrubby with scattered trees. (Photo courtesy of
Antonio Carlos de Barros Correa, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil.)
The caatinga has been inhabited for more than 10,000 years with low popula-
tion density. Cattle ranching has been the main economic activity during the past
300 years with cattle roaming freely for most of that time. At least 50 percent of the
caatinga has been either completely converted from its native vegetation or signifi-
cantly modified. Centuries of overgrazing have resulted in large-scale modification
of the region. Unsustainable timber extraction and extensive, uncontrolled fires
have degraded the caatinga. More recently, conversion to cotton cultivation is lead-
ing to the nearly complete destruction of caatinga in some areas. Other crops
grown in the area include rice, sugarcane, sisal, cocoa, corn, and beans. The caa-
tinga is highly threatened with very little (less than 1 percent) protected in parks or
reserves.
Animals of the Neotropical Seasonal Forest
The seasonal forest's structure, habitats, and abundance and diversity of plants,
flowers, fruits, and seeds provide resources for a great diversity of animals, many
on a seasonal basis. Most have developed adaptive strategies to live with the sea-
sonal fluctuations in resources. Vertebrates can be exclusive to this biome or a
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