Purus várzea
| Purus várzea | |
|---|---|
Purus River to the north of the Mapinguari National Park | |
Ecoregion territory (in purple) | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Neotropical |
| Biome | Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests – Amazon |
| Geography | |
| Area | 177,414.18 km2 (68,500.00 sq mi) |
| Countries | Colombia, Brazil |
| Coordinates | 2°23′35″S 66°02′20″W / 2.393°S 66.039°W |
The Purus várzea (NT0156) is an ecoregion of seasonally flooded várzea forest in the central Amazon basin. It is part of the Amazon biome. The ecoregion is home to a vegetation adapted to floods of up to 12 metres (39 ft) that may last for eight months. There is a great variety of fish and birds, but relatively fewer mammals. Ground-dwelling mammals must migrate to higher ground during the flood season. Threats include logging, cattle farming, over-fishing and mercury pollution from gold mining.