Climate: Precipitation and Wind
Precipitation increases with elevation
- Rainfall increases quickly for the first 300 meters up from sea level and then continues to rise “in a linear fashion.”
- At 700 meters, annual precipitation is 4,700 mm.
- Intensity: El Yunque Forest has many lighter rain showers with only occasional strong storms.
- Heavy rainfall at mountain peaks flows into the beginnings of El Yunque Forest's major rivers. Approximately 20% of the Puerto Rican population gets its water from the Forest.
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El Yunque Rain Forest versus Puerto Rico
- Compared to the rest of Puerto Rico, El Yunque Rain Forest has a much narrower range of rain from one location to another and it also has significantly more rainfall than anywhere else in Puerto Rico (NOAA data).
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Rainfall Varies with the Seasons
Dry Season (e.g., March) Wet Season (e.g., October)
- Dry season (e.g. March): monthly rainfall ranges from 125 mm to
- Rainy season (e.g. October): monthly rainfall ranges from 200 mm to
- Dry periods in the mountains are days and weeks, not months like
(Harris 18)
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Hurricanes
Hurricanes impact plants and animals in the ecosystem:
Increased light can result in higher photosynthesis rate and
different species surviving in that location.
water quality for animals
- Wind: causes nutrient and biomass transfers when trees fall, branches snap, leaves fall
- Example: Hurricane Hugo left a thick layer of leaf litter on forest floor equal to more than a year of normal litter. Defoliation is the most common effect of hurricanes.
Increased light can result in higher photosynthesis rate and
different species surviving in that location.
- Rain: causes landslides, which move objects from where they had been before, changing the landscape and habitats of animals, resulting in changes in food chains, migrations, deaths and adaptations.
water quality for animals