Monte Alegre várzea
Monte Alegre várzea
The Monte Alegre várzea is a seasonally flooded forest ecoregion of the central and lower Amazon basin in northern Brazil, following the Amazon, Madeira, and Purus rivers, with an isolated patch along the Mamoré River on the Brazil–Bolivia border. These várzea forests grow along whitewater rivers, which carry heavy sediment from the Andes and rise by roughly 6 to 12 meters to inundate the land for as long as eight months each year, shaping a mosaic of flood-adapted trees, palms, shrubs, herbs, and tall riverside grasses. Characteristic plants include palms such as açaí (Euterpe oleracea), Mauritia flexuosa, and Astrocaryum jauari, hardwoods like Virola surinamensis and Calycophyllum spruceanum, and fruit-bearing species such as Vitex cymosa, alongside cane grasses like Gynerium sagittatum. The climate is equatorial and consistently warm and wet, with annual rainfall generally lower in the east and higher toward the western Madeira. The region supports about 200 mammal species, including jaguar, tapir, and the endemic Santarém marmoset, plus well over 600 bird species, yet the WWF classifies it as Critical/Endangered owing to gold-mining contamination and clearing of floodplain forest for cattle pasture.
RESOLVE 482
Neotropic
25,804 sq mi
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Landscape type
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Plant region
Neotropic
Region footprint
25,804 sq mi
Habitat pressure
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
Source & care
Sponsored
Plotwright may earn a commission from purchases made through these links, at no extra cost to you.
Use this as the broad planting pattern for the region: Warm, wet, highly productive forests - including tropical rainforests - with closed canopies, near year-round growing seasons, and the richest terrestrial biodiversity on Earth. Low seasonality and high rainfall sustain dense, layered vegetation from canopy to forest floor. For garden decisions, narrow by your site's light, water, soil, and mature-size constraints.
Plants that can handle this region
Plotwright does not have climate-fit plant matches for this region yet. As the catalog grows into this climate band, suggestions will appear here.
Similar planting regions
Browse other regions in the same biome. Their plant lists can suggest species and combinations worth comparing.
Where this ecoregion reaches
The countries, US states, and Canadian provinces this ecoregion touches, from a spatial join of its RESOLVE polygon against Natural Earth boundaries.
Countries
Educator packet
Region packet
Monte Alegre várzea educator packet
The Monte Alegre várzea is a seasonally flooded forest ecoregion of the central and lower Amazon basin in northern Brazil, following the Amazon, Madeira, and Purus rivers, with an isolated patch along the Mamoré River on the Brazil–Bolivia border. These várzea forests grow along whitewater rivers, which carry heavy sediment from the Andes and rise by roughly 6 to 12 meters to inundate the land for as long as eight months each year, shaping a mosaic of flood-adapted trees, palms, shrubs, herbs, and tall riverside grasses. Characteristic plants include palms such as açaí (Euterpe oleracea), Mauritia flexuosa, and Astrocaryum jauari, hardwoods like Virola surinamensis and Calycophyllum spruceanum, and fruit-bearing species such as Vitex cymosa, alongside cane grasses like Gynerium sagittatum. The climate is equatorial and consistently warm and wet, with annual rainfall generally lower in the east and higher toward the western Madeira. The region supports about 200 mammal species, including jaguar, tapir, and the endemic Santarém marmoset, plus well over 600 bird species, yet the WWF classifies it as Critical/Endangered owing to gold-mining contamination and clearing of floodplain forest for cattle pasture.
Realm
Neotropic
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Approximate area
25,804 square miles
States / provinces
Not recorded
Climate descriptor
Not recorded
Classroom prompts
- Which climate and biome facts explain why this region supports its characteristic plants?
- How do native-plant and wildlife-support claims differ from a species-presence claim?
- Which source-backed facts would you cite before using this region in a classroom map activity?
Use the Sources & citations section below for page citation styles and region source links.
Sources & citations
Cite this page
For lesson plans, articles, or regional planting notes that use this Plotwright page. To cite the underlying ecoregion framework or a specific editorial profile, use the source cards below.
Plotwright. (n.d.). Monte Alegre várzea (Monte Alegre várzea). Retrieved 2026, August 20, from https://plotwright.com/regions/resolve-482
Sources for this region
This page cites Plotwright first for the compiled view, then lists the upstream framework, climate, and editorial source pages so readers can cite the original material directly.
RESOLVE 2017 Terrestrial Ecoregions (Dinerstein et al.)
Primary ecoregion framework






