The Hispaniolan pine forests are a tropical coniferous forest

Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests

Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests are a forest biome. They are located in regions of semi-humid climate at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Most tropical and subtropical coniferous forest ecoregions are found in the Nearctic and Neotropic ecozones, from Mexico to Nicaragua and on the...

 ecoregion

Ecoregion

An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...

 found on the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

 island of Hispaniola

Hispaniola

Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...

, which is shared by Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

 and the Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

. The ecoregion covers 11600 km² (4,478.8 sq mi), or about 15% of the island. The ecoregion lies at elevations of more than 850 m (2,788.7 ft) in the mountains of Hispaniola, extending from the Cordillera Central

Cordillera Central, Dominican Republic

The Cordillera Central is the highest mountain range in the Dominican Republic and in all of the West Indies. Connected to the Massif du Nord in Haiti, it gradually bends southwards and finishes near the town of San Cristóbal on the Caribbean coastal plains. Because of its altitude, cool...

 of the Dominican Republic and into the Massif du Nord of Haiti. It is surrounded at lower elevations by the Hispaniolan moist forests

Hispaniolan moist forests

The Hispaniolan moist forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion on the island of Hispaniola. They cover , around 60% of the island's area.-Geography:...

 and Hispaniolan dry forests ecoregions, which cover the remainder of the island. Annual rainfall is 1000–2000 mm (39.4–78.7 in).

Flora

The natural vegetation of the region consists primarily of stands of pino criollo (Pinus occidentalis

Hispaniolan Pine

The Hispaniolan Pine is a pine endemic to the island of Hispaniola, where it is the predominant species in the Hispaniolan pine forests of Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

). Pines are mixed with other conifers, including sabina (Juniperus gracilior

Juniperus gracilior

Juniperus gracilior is a species of conifer in the Cupressaceae family that is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:* Conifer Specialist Group 1998. . Downloaded on 10 July 2007....

) and Podocarpus aristulatus

Podocarpus aristulatus

Podocarpus aristulatus is a small to medium-sized evergreen tree in the conifer family Podocarpaceae. It is found on the Caribbean islands of Hispaniola and Cuba.-Description:...

(syn. P. buchii). Below 2100 m (6,889.8 ft), the pine forests are interspersed with areas of montane

Montane

In biogeography, montane is the highland area located below the subalpine zone. Montane regions generally have cooler temperatures and often have higher rainfall than the adjacent lowland regions, and are frequently home to distinct communities of plants and animals.The term "montane" means "of the...

 broadleaf forest. Plants at high elevations (2100–3175 m (6,889.8–10,416.7 ft)) include cara de hombre (Lyonia

Lyonia (Ericaceae)

Lyonia is a genus of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae.Species include:*Lyonia elliptica*Lyonia jamaicensis*Lyonia ligustrina*Lyonia maestrensis*Lyonia octandra*Lyonia truncata...

spp.), abey (Cojoba arborea

Cojoba arborea

Cojoba arborea is a leguminous tree of the family Fabaceae found in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America, southward to Ecuador in South America at elevations of...

), yaya fina (Oxandra

Oxandra

Oxandra is a genus of flowering plants in the soursop family, Annonaceae.-Selected species:* Oxandra lanceolata Baill.* Oxandra laurifolia A.Rich.* Oxandra leucodermis Warm.-External links:...

 lanceolata), pajón (Danthonia

Danthonia

Danthonia is a genus of grass species. Grasses of this genus are sometimes referred to as oatgrass, but that common name is not restricted to this genus.Species include:*Danthonia alpina Vest*Danthonia cachemyriana Jaub. & Spach...

 domingensis), Verbena officinalis var. officinalis

Verbena officinalis

Verbena officinalis, the Common Vervain or Common Verbena, is a perennial herb native to Europe. It grows up to a metre/yard high, with an upright habitus...

, and Weinmannia

Weinmannia

Weinmannia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cunoniaceae. The genus includes approximately 150 species of canopy trees and shrubs, ranging across the montane tropics and temperate New Zealand and Chile....

 pinnata.

Threats

More than half of the ecoregion's area has been lost to clearing for agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

, pasture

Pasture

Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...

, or plantations of exotic trees. The Haitian portion of the ecoregion is more deforested than the Dominican portion.