The Guianan lowland moist forests stretch across the northeastern shoulder of South America, spanning Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana along with adjoining parts of Venezuela and Brazil, and form one of the largest continuous tracts of relatively intact lowland tropical rainforest left on Earth. These multi-tiered evergreen forests rise to roughly 40 meters and are built around classic Neotropical tree families such as Lecythidaceae, Fabaceae, Sapotaceae, Moraceae, and Lauraceae, with common genera including Protium and Parkia, grading into marsh forest along rivers and scattered savannas. The climate is hot and humid year-round, shaped by the trade winds and the Intertropical Convergence Zone, with annual rainfall between about 2,000 and 4,000 millimeters falling in two wetter seasons. Botanical richness is exceptional, with an estimated 8,000 vascular plant species of which roughly half may be endemic, and the region remains a stronghold for wildlife such as the Guianan cock-of-the-rock, harpy eagles, and giant otters. Though still largely intact, the forests face growing pressure from illegal gold mining and logging.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 4.3°N, 56.4°W.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
13a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.4°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 8 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Neotropic
Approximate area
184,703 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome
Warm, wet, highly productive forests — including tropical rainforests — with closed canopies, near year-round growing seasons, and the richest terrestrial biodiversity on Earth. Low seasonality and high rainfall sustain dense, layered vegetation from canopy to forest floor.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
No catalog plants intersect this ecoregion's zone range. As the catalog grows to cover this region's climate band, suggestions will surface here.
Collections for this ecoregion
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregions to explore: