Away in the Clouds
Hello friends, my name is Aloka and this is my naughty but nice dog Pippin. He goes with me everywhere and we have wonderful adventures together. I just find the term “Cloud Forest” so mystical and magical, don't you? Are they forests in the sky or are they forests made of clouds? Let’s find out!
A cloud forest is a tropical, evergreen forest constantly covered by clouds. Due to the unusual cloud cover being low within the forest, the vegetation found is usually moss-like, and sometimes these forests are also referred to as mossy forests. In comparison with the typical tropical forests, cloud forests show a reduced tree stature combined with increased stem density and generally the lower diversity of woody plants. Trees in these regions are generally shorter and more heavily stemmed than in lower-altitude forests in the same regions, often with gnarled trunks and branches, forming dense, compact crowns. Their leaves become smaller, thicker and harder with increasing altitude. The high moisture promotes the development of a high biodiversity of endemic plants. An important feature of cloud forests is that tree crowns can intercept the wind-driven cloud moisture, part of which drips to the ground. Due to the high water content of the soil, with the reduced interference from the sun, and therefore the low rates of decomposition and mineralization, the soil in these areas are mineral-rich. The cloud forests of Sri Lanka are found in the mountain tops, such as Pidurutalagala, Kikilimana, Meepilimana, Agrabopaththalawa, Adam's Peak and Hakgala. They contain many unique and threatened species. Less than 5% of Sri Lanka’s original cloud forests remain due to widespread clearing of forests for cultivation of commercial crops, primarily tea. These forests are the only home in the world for at least 20 endangered and critically endangered species, and provide critical habitat for a total of 30 species threatened with extinction. Although Cloud Forests make up about 2.5 percent of the world’s tropical forests, they contain a disproportionately large number of the world’s species. The wealth of biodiversity includes the wild relatives and sources of genetic diversity of many of our staple crops, like beans, potatoes and coffee, according to the Cloud Forest Agenda.