Cloud forest: what does it really mean?

For some weeks now, on social media, we have been talking about one of the beautiful cloud forests of Guatemala and one of the Private Natural Reserves (PNR) that for over three generations has contributed to its protection. What you see in the photograph above is this magically beautiful cloud forest you are helping preserve with your contribution to our campaign!

But what really is a “Cloud Forest”?

Scientists love to classify things

Species, ecosystems, climatic zones…In Ecology we have A LOT of concepts. Some better defined than others. You’re probably most familiar with the term “Ecosystem”. But where did it come from and where does “Cloud Forest” fit in?

I will not get too technical, or we’d be here forever, but to sum it up: Biogeographic Realm (for example, Guatemala is in the Neotropical Realm) > Bioregion > Ecoregions – Biomes.

Biomes?

A Biome is the distinct biological community within a shared climate. It is basically a classification based on the fauna & flora of a place. Now, to the concept of Biome, add the specific climate and soil characteristics and you have an Ecosystem (to put it somewhat simple).

But some scientists were not okay with this, like Leslie Holdridge, who further classified his “Life Zones” based on 3 main variables: precipitation, biotemperature, & evapotranspiration. He deemed these were the most relevant for the vegetation distribution (and well, vegetation distribution guides animal distribution).

Personally, I like Holdridge’s system. He’s of the first ones to take into consideration latitude and altitude properly, and with it, the entire tropics. Thanks, man, finally!

In Guatemala, we have 14 Holdridge Life Zones.

And where does the “Cloud Forest” come in?

Nowhere. It is actually just a “common name” for a type of forest within two Life Zones: “Tropical Moist Montane Forest” & “Subtropical Moist Montane Forest”.

The thing with cloud forests is they are at a key altitude & in a specific position with the NE trade winds that provide the frequent low-level cloud cover, so you are (almost) always walking within the clouds! And it feels so Jurassic. For me, that’s home.

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