The Northeast Brazil restingas trace a roughly 400-kilometer coastal strip along the Atlantic shore of northeastern Brazil, spanning the states of Maranhão, Piauí, and Ceará. This is restinga habitat: coastal vegetation rooted in sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soils of marine origin laid down parallel to the sea, ranging from pioneer dune plants such as beach morning glory and Iresine through dwarf-palm shrublands to medium-sized trees, with grey, white, and button mangroves fringing the coast. The climate is tropical and maritime, marked by relatively even year-round temperatures and a pronounced dry season. Notably, much of this flora shows affinities with the Amazon biome, which sets it apart from the Atlantic Coast restingas to the south, and the wetlands and inter-dune lakes shelter the brilliantly colored scarlet ibis as a flagship species. A large share of the region is protected within Lençóis Maranhenses National Park, famous for its vast dunes and dune-lakes, together with the Delta do Parnaíba protected area.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 2.8°S, 43.2°W.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
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: +3.1°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 Moist Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Neotropic
Approximate area
3,882 sq mi
Conservation tier
Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 1)
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: