Tropical Dry Forests: Geography
Tropical dry forests are found in Central and South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia.
Distribution of Tropical Dry Forests
Tropical Dry Forests are disappearing fast.
Dry forests are the most threatened of all of the tropical forests, even more than the rainforests! One of the main reasons for the fast disappearance of the dry forests is fire. The woody vegetation can be cleared without much difficulty for farming or grazing using fire as a tool, and then these small fires can easily escape control.
In Madagascar, for example, Axel found that 6% of the primary tropical dry forest in the Kirindy Mitea National Park burned within just 3 months in 2013 due to fires that were started outside of the park to improve grazing conditions for cattle but then escaped control.
Agricultural expansion is often associated with the clearing of tropical dry forests.
Tropical dry forests are disappearing due to charcoal production in areas where people have little or no access to electricity or gas for cooking and boiling water so that it is safe to drink. The timber is needed for building houses, furniture, and in southwestern Madagascar, the small and large boats that are critically important for fishing, transportation, and cultural identity.
