Monteverdia horrida
Overview
A detailed profile for this species is sourced from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as assessments become available.
Monteverdia horrida faces severe pressure from agricultural expansion and cattle ranching throughout its limited range in Central America's cloud forests. Deforestation for coffee plantations and pastureland has fragmented its habitat into isolated patches, while climate change threatens to shift the narrow altitudinal zones where this endemic shrub can survive. The species' slow growth rate and specialized pollination requirements make recovery particularly challenging once populations decline.
Habitat
Monteverdia horrida inhabits montane cloud forests and humid premontane forests at elevations between 1,200-2,400 meters. The species requires consistently moist conditions and partial shade, typically growing in the understory of primary and well-developed secondary forests with persistent cloud cover.