EEP Crowned pigeon number 4

EEP STUDBOOK CROWNED PIGEONS
of grass, sedges and shrubs. With increasing altitude the forest patches and the trees
themselves become smaller and smaller and finally peter out around 3900 m.
Lowland and hill forests are further subdivided into northern and southern regions because the
central mountain chain which runs from one end of the island to the other forms a barrier as
there are no low altitude passes from north to south. These zones each have some
characteristic animals while other animals are widespread through several zones (Menzies,
1991).
Climate
The climate is tropical and monsoonal with only two seasons, the wet and the dry.
Temperatures vary significantly between the coast (20-35 °C) and the highlands (10-30 °C).
Rainfall varies from 40 inches (40 x 2.54 cm) per annum in port Moresby to over 200 inches
(5 meters) per annum in some localities (UBD, 1997).
Flora
With the generally humid and benign climate, it is not surprising that the native vegetation in
most of the region is rainforest. From extrapolation data available from eastern New Guinea,
it has been calculated that undisturbed native forest cloacks nearly 70 percent of the available
land area (Campbell-Jones, 1995), which is a humid forest, for 58 percent. Savanna makes up
for only 7 percent of New Guinea’s vegetation (Beehler, et al., 1986). Botanists have termed
the flora “Malesian”, because of its part Asian, part Melanesian, origin.
The lowland rainforest is structurally and taxinomicaly complex, usually with a high richness
of species. A typical hectare sample would show dozens of families of trees. Canopy height
reaches 40 m or higher, and vertical structure is complex, with a subcanopy of saplings,
pandanus, palms, lianas, creepers and so on.
Of course, as one ascends to higher altitudes, one finds gradual changes in forest structure and
species composition. In mountainous country, the variables of slope, drainage, and natural
succession brought about by land-slips produce mosaics of vegetatin types.
Apart from these humid forest vegation there are other specialized habitats of restricted
distribution, like the mangrove forests along the coastal areas, seasonal monsoon forests, at
the edges of drier zones, savanna and open woodland wherever there is a long and severe dry
season (Beehler, et al., 1986).
Man-related alteration of the environment, although relatively limited in New Guinea, has
nevertheless produced significant changes. Most prominent are the grasslands, which have
developed in long-settled areas of the highlands and, less frequently, in lowland areas. In
many areas, with increasing development, the tracts of grassland surrounding settlements
continue to expand, with the local forest retreating. Demands for housing material,
commercial timber, and firewood all act to create large areas of open habitat near permanent
settlements. In both the highlands and the lowland grasslands, the bird communities are
impoverished (Beehler, et al., 1986).
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