Ecuador Flora and Fauna

The breathtaking landscapes of Ecuador are home to one of the world’s most diverse collections of plant and animal life. The rainforests of the Amazon Basin host half of the world’s two million known plant and animal species. Thousands of animal species thrive beneath this thick canopy, including piranhas, dolphins, howler monkeys, bats, tapirs, jaguars, guatusa, capybaras, and three-toed sloths.

The mountainous cloud forests covering the upper slopes of the Andes are remarkable for their combination of cool, moist air, fairy-tale flora, and masses of endemic species. Wizened trees are covered in bright moss and colorful mushrooms. The spectacled bear, the only species of bear found in South America, resides in this Highlands Region, as does the alpaca. Ornithologists were astounded in January 1998 when a previously unknown species of bird was discovered in an area near the Parque Nacional Podocarpus. Mainland Ecuador alone has 1600 bird species—more than twice as many as all of North America. Home to corn, potatoes, lima beans, common beans, various peppers, and tobacco, the Highlands are also one of the few world crop-gene centers. However, like the Lowlands rainforests, these forests are quickly being destroyed. Higher up in the Andes, the less threatened páramo landscape takes over with colorful springtime hues of the tabacote, Indian paintbrush, lupinus, and sage. Meanwhile, Andean condors and royal eagles soar above rabbits and shrews.

The Ecuadorian coast is home to the tagua nut (used to make buttons), the paja toquilla (for the famed Panama hats), and endangered mangrove forests. In the Galápagos, six zones of vegetation support mangroves, cacti, ferns, orchids, coffee plants, pineapple trees, and much more. Thirty endemic species of birds, iguanas, sea lions, penguins, and the endangered giant tortoise, from which the archipelago derives its name, comprise its animal kingdom.

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