Inter - Andean Valleys  

This mountain region is the elevated part of Ecuador which lies between the two Andean Cordilleras and drops from the paramo down to the bottom of the valleys, separating the two ranges, which run parallel and close together. The altitudinal range of this broad ecosystem begins at around 3600m and drops to about 2200m. This region was home to indigenous people from the beginning of human settlement in Ecuador and presently around 6 million people, about half of Ecuador's population, live there. Therefore this area underwent a profound change due to human intervention and the major components of the present fauna and flora has very limited likeness to the former natural one.

The interior flanks of the Andes was once covered by a primary mountain forest, from which virtually nothing is left anymore. You may find some tiny pockets like the private reserves of Pasochoa and Guandera but on the whole the forest had to yield to agricultural land and pastures. But also for a long time, wood was the only available fuel for cooking and heat and therefore it was cut in great quantities. Nowadays if you take a drive through the Inter-Andean valleys, you encounter forests of pine trees and eucalyptus but those are alien species, which were introduced in the last centuries for economic reasons and are the trees with the most commercial values in the Andes.

The valley bottoms with its rich volcanic soils are entirely used for farming. Native crops like potatoes and corn are grown together with introduced ones, like wheat and barley. A large portion was put to pastures for raising dairy cows and other European domestic animals. The once dominant llamas are gone from the wild and only found as another domesticated species. In the last years many greenhouses sprang up in the valleys to cultivate roses and other flowers for export, further changing the landscape and natural environment.

But of course the biggest negative influence to the environment are the large cities with their modern infrastructure. More and more land gets converted into building sites and the air gets more and more polluted by the increasing traffic and factories. Ecuador has a population growth of 2 % and many people abandon remote areas to settle in the cities.

The climate of the valleys is temperate with a mean year round temperature of 15°C. No frosts or snow disturb the spring-like weather. The only variables are the rainy season and the dry season.

 Plants reach numbers of over 8000 in this ecosystem with many introduced species present. Some of the interesting native ones are shrubs like the Guantug, trumpet flower specie which was used by the indigenous people for its medicinal and hallucinogenic qualities. Some agave plants like the cabuya are used to produce natural fibers and native taxo, a passion flower and mora, a berry are liked for their fruits. A tree called locally cascarilla, produces the quinine, used for a long time as a malaria prophylaxis and is still an ingredient of the real tonic water. A wide range of flowers are present with species of orchids, fuchsias, bomareas, calceolaria, bromeliads and many others.

Mammals native to the Andean valleys and having survived the changes to their habitat are small deer, foxes, opossums, various species of bats, skunk and of course various rodents. Other mammals, who were present in the past but had to yield to the human invasion include the mountain lion or puma, spectacled bear and mountain tapir, which cannot be found anymore in this ecosystem.

Birds present in the Inter-Andean valleys include various species of Hummingbirds, Pigeons & Doves, finches, flycatchers, thrushes, mountain tanagers and many more.

The most common  amphibian found is the green frog and reptiles are represented by a few species of snakes.

People, who are not so much interested in explications but like to see and enjoy pictures of animals and plants, should check out the nature section of our visual companion site called Ecuador-Images.net.