The Hispaniolan dry forests blanket the southern and western coastal lowlands of Hispaniola, spanning both the Dominican Republic and Haiti and accounting for roughly 20 percent of the island's vegetation. This is a low-elevation landscape, running from sea level to about 700 meters, where natural cover is dominated by the cactus family and by drought-adapted shrubs and trees such as mesquite (Prosopis juliflora), guaiac wood, Spanish elm, and the endangered American mahogany, alongside agaves, columnar cacti, and Bursera. Rainfall is sparse and seasonal and temperatures hover around 26 degrees Celsius, favoring thorny, water-thrifty plant communities. The ecoregion is a stronghold for endemic reptiles, with the critically endangered Ricord's rock iguana serving as its flagship species, though it has lost more than half of its original habitat and only a fraction of its area is protected. For gardeners in hot, dry climates, its native agaves and Bursera offer sculptural, heat-tolerant material well suited to xeric planting.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 18.4°N, 71.2°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)
13a-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.1°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Neotropic
Approximate area
5,981 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Recover (Dinerstein NNH 3)
About the tropical & subtropical dry broadleaf forests biome
Tropical forests that pass through a pronounced dry season, when many trees drop their leaves to conserve water. They hold high biodiversity but are among the most threatened tropical habitats, sensitive to fire and to clearing for agriculture.
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 dry broadleaf forests ecoregions to explore: