PERU: Río Napo, Part 2

By Renold Capocasale

The Napo rainforest is centered around the Rio Napo watershed in westernmost Amazonia. The average annual temperature is 26 °C and can range from 12 to 38 °C. This ecoregion receives the highest annual rainfall in the Amazon, with up to 4,000 mm in the west and 2,500-3,000 mm in the east.

Three main types of vegetation occur in this rainforest ecoregion: terra firme forest, várzea forest, and igapó swamp forest. In general, these are tall moist evergreen tropical rainforests. Várzea forest and igapó swamp forest types are water-saturated and support a diverse vegetative layer with plants and trees that are adapted to the watery conditions.

Despite the existence of fish inventories and studies in the Amazon region, there are still many gaps in information related to the ichthyofauna of this ecoregion. However, several studies indicate that the Napo River basin would have up to 680 species of fish.

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