Climate.—Climatic conditions in Ecuador are very largely contingent on altitude, and the transition from one climate to another is a matter of only a few hours’ journey. Although the equator crosses the northern part of the republic, only 15 m. north of the city Of Quito, a very considerable part of its area has the temperature of the temperate zone, and snow-crowned summits are to be seen every day in the year from its great central plateau. In addition to the climatic changes due to altitude, there are others caused by local arid conditions, by volcanic influences and by the influence of mountain ranges on the temperature and rainfall of certain districts. These influences are not general; on the contrary, they often affect very limited areas. For instance, Guayaquil has a hot humid climate and mangrove swamps line the shores of Guayas down to the gulf; at Santa Élena, about 60 m. due west, arid conditions prevail and vegetation is scanty and dwarfed; at Salango island, 50 m. north of Santa Élena, there is an abundance of moisture and vegetation is luxuriant; 33 m. farther north, at Manta, the country is a desert; and at Atacames bay, 135 m. north of Manta, the rainfall and vegetation are again favourable. On the plateau similar conditions prevail. There is no great display of arboreal vegetation anywhere except in the valleys and lower passes where the rainfall is abundant, but in general terms it may be said that the rainfall and vegetation which characterize the Quito basin soon disappear as one proceeds southward, and are substituted by arid conditions. Even here there are local modifications, as at Ambato, where a shallow depression, surrounded by barren, dust-covered ridges exposed to cold winds, is celebrated for its warm, equable climate and its fruit. It is to be noted that the Gulf of Guayaquil separates the humid, forest-covered coastal plain of Ecuador from the arid, barren coast of Peru, the two regions being widely dissimilar. The mean annual temperature, on this plain, according to an official publication, is 82.4° F., and the range is from 66° to 95°. The heat is modified at many points on the coast, however, by the cold Humboldt current which sweeps up the west coast of South America from the Antarctic seas. The year is divided into a wet and dry season—the former running from December to June, and the latter from July to December. The rainy season, or invierno, is broken by a short period of dry weather, called the veranillo (little summer), shortly after the December solstice; otherwise it rains every day, the streams overflow, land traffic is suspended, and the air is drenched with moisture and becomes oppressive and pestiferous. The dry season, which is called the verano, or summer, is also broken by a short rainy spell called the inviernillo (little winter) or “cordonazo de San Francisco,” which follows the September equinox. Apart from these the two seasons are sometimes broken by cloudless skies in winter, and a drizzling mist, called the garua, in summer. In the inter-andine region the variations in temperature are frequent and the averages comparatively low. An official estimate gives the mean annual temperature as 64° to 68° between 6000 and 11,000 ft. In Quito the mean annual temperature is 58.8°, the diurnal variation 10°, the annual maximum 70°, and the annual minimum 45°. Other returns give the mean annual temperature at 55°. It is said that pulmonary tuberculosis is unknown in these altitudes, though it is common in the coast districts. Catarrhal complaints are common, however, and leprosy is widely prevalent, it being necessary to maintain three large hospitals for lepers. In the higher altitudes there are wide variations in the snow-fall and intensity of the cold even on the same mountain. The line of permanent snow is much higher on the plateau side in both ranges, the precipitation being greater on the outer sides—those facing the forested lowlands—and the terrestrial radiation being greater from the barren surfaces of the plateau. In some instances the difference in the elevation of the snow-line has been found to be fully 1000 ft. Moreover, no two summits seem to retain the snow permanently at the same altitude. For instance, in 1880 Whymper found permanent snow on Cotocachi at 14,500 ft., while near by Imbabura was bare to its summit (15,033 ft.); Antisana was permanently covered at 16,000 ft., and near by Sara-Urcu, which is drenched with rains and mists from the Amazon valley all the year round, at 14,000 ft.; Sincholagua had large beds of permanent snow at 15,300 ft., Cotopaxi was permanently covered at 15,500 ft. on its western side, Corazon had daily snowstorms down to 14,500 ft., but no permanent beds of snow on its east side (elevation 15,871 ft.); and Chimborazo had deep snow at 15,600 ft. on its north-east and south sides in June—July. The eastern range was found to receive the heaviest snowfall. The elevation at which human residence is possible seems to be unusually high in Ecuador. Many of the towns and villages of central Ecuador lie at altitudes ranging from 8606 ft. (Ambato) to 9839 ft. (Machachi). The capital city of Quito is 9343 ft. above the sea, and is celebrated for its agreeable temperature, and also for its healthiness in spite of prevailing unsanitary conditions. Above these towns are a number of farms and herdsmen’s habitations, where men live the whole or a part of the year with less discomfort from low temperature than is experienced in northern Europe and northern United States. According to Whymper, the tambo of Chuquipoquio, at the foot of Chimborazo, is 11,704 ft., and the hacienda of Pedregal, near Iliniza, 11,629 ft., both being permanently occupied. The hacienda of Antisana, 13,306 ft., and the herdsmen’s hut of Cunayaco on Chimborazo, 13,396 ft., are occupied only for a part of the year. The highest elevations are generally covered with ice and snow, and glaciers, according to Whymper, are to be found upon no less than nine of the culminating peaks, and possibly upon two or three more. These serve to modify the temperatures of the plateau, which is swept by cold winds at all seasons of the year. The prevailing wind is that of the north-east and south-east trade winds, broken and modified on the plateau and western lowlands by mountain barriers. Westerly and north-west winds are sometimes experienced, but are not permanent.
Flora.—The flora of the Quito basin has been well studied by various European botanists, more especially by Dr William Jameson (1796-1873) of the university of Quito, who began the preparation of a synopsis of the Ecuadorean flora in 1864-1865 (Synopsis plantarum Quitensium, 2 vols., Quito, 1865). The flora of the forested lowlands on both sides of the Andes has not been studied and described so fully. From the Pacific coast upward to a height of about 3000 to 4000 ft. the vegetation is distinctively tropical, including among its economic products cacao, cotton, sugar, tobacco, rice, maize, yucca (also known as cassava and mandioca), peanuts, bananas, sweet potatoes, yams, arracacha (Conium moschatum, H.B.K., or Arracacha esculenta), indigo, rubber (Castilloa), ivory-nuts, cinchona and bread-fruit. Most of these become rare at 3000 ft., but a few, like sugar-cane, are cultivated as high as 8000 ft. The alluvial valley of the Guayas, above Guayaquil, is celebrated for the richness of its vegetation, which, in fruit alone, includes cacao, coffee, coco-nuts, pine-apples, oranges, lemons, guayavas (Psidium pomiferum), guavas (Inga spectabilis), shaddocks (or grape-fruit), pomegranates, apricots, chirimoyas (Anona Chirimolia), granadillas (Passiflora quadrangularis), paltas (Persea gratissima, otherwise known as “alligator pears”), tunas (Cactus), mangoes (Mangifera Indica), pacays (Prosopis dulcis), aji (Chile pepper), and many others of less importance. Besides rubber, the forests produce a great variety of cabinet and construction woods, ivory-nuts (from the “tagua” palm, Phytelephas macrocarpa), “toquilla” fibre (Carludovica palmata) for the manufacture of so-called Panama hats, cabbage palms, several species of cinchona, vanilla and dyewoods. Among the large trees which are valued for their timber are redwood (Humiria balsamifera), Brazil-wood, algarrobo, palo de cruz (Jacquinea ruscifolia), guaiacum or holy wood, rosewood, cedar and walnut. From 6000 to 10,000 ft. above the sea, the indigenous species include the potato, maize, oca (Oxalis tuberosa), and quinua (Chenopodium quinoa), and the exotic species, wheat, barley, oats, alfalfa (Medicago sativa), and most of the fruits and vegetables of the northern temperate zone. Wheat does not form a head below 4500 ft., nor ripen above 10,500. The larger forest trees are rarely seen above 10,000 ft., and even there only on the outer slopes of the Cordilleras. The Escallonia myrtalloides, however, is found at an elevation of 13,000 ft., and the shrubby Befarias 400 or 500 ft. higher. A characteristic growth of the open plateau and upland valleys is the cabulla, cabaya or maguey (Agave americana), whose fibre is much used by the natives in the manufacture of cordage, sandals (alpargatas) and other useful articles. In the treeless region lying between 11,600 and 13,800, or in other places between 12,000 and 14,000 ft., the similarity of the vegetation to that of the corresponding European region, according to Wagner, is especially striking. On the paramos of Chimborazo, Pichincha, Iliniza, &c., the relation of characteristic genera to those identical with genera in the Alpine flora of Europe is as 5 to 4; and the botanist might almost suppose himself in the Upper Engadine. Of the flora of the highest Andes, Whymper found 42 species, of various orders, above 16,000 ft., almost all of which were from Antisana and Chimborazo; 12 genera of mosses were found above 15,000 ft., and 59 species of flowering plants above 14,000 ft., of which 35 species came from above 15,000 and 20 species from above 16,000 ft. The highest specimen obtained was a lichen (Lecanora subfusca, L.) on the south side of Chimborazo, 18,400 ft. above sea-level. Mosses (Grimmia) were found on Chimborazo at 16,660 ft., ferns (Polypodium pycnolepis, Kze.) at 14,900, and specimens of Gentiana rupicola, H. B. K., Achyrophorus quitensis, Sz. Bip., Culcitium nivale, H. B. K., at 16,300; Phyllactis inconspicua, Wedd., at 16,600, Astragalus geminiflorus, H. B. K., at 14-15,000, Geranium diffusum, H. B. K., at 16,000, Malvastrum phyllanthos, Asa Gray, at 16,500, Draba obovata, Benth., at 16,660, and Ranunculus praemorsus, Kth., at 16,500—all on Chimborazo. Fuchsia loxensis, H. B. K., was found on the slope of Sara-Urcu at 12,779 ft., and currant bushes (Ribes glandulosum, R. & P.), on Chimborazo, at 14,000. On the eastern slopes of the Andes, where the rainfall is continuous throughout the year and the atmosphere is surcharged with moisture, the forest growth is phenomenal. It is similar to that of the Colombian and Peruvian montanas, modified, if at all, by the excessive humidity which prevails in this region.
Fauna.—The fauna of Ecuador is comparatively poor in mammalia, but the birds and still more the insects are very numerous. The Quadrumana are represented by a large number of species, the eastern forests being very much like the other parts of the great Amazonian basin in this respect. The Carnivora include the puma (Felis concolor), jaguar (F. onca), ocelot (F. grisea), bear (Ursus ornatus), fox, weasel and otter. A small deer and, in southern Ecuador, the llama (Auchenia) with its allied species, the alpaca, guanaco and vicuña, represent the ruminants. The rodents are numerous and include most, if not all, of the Amazonian species—the capybara (Hydrochoerus capybara), cavia (C. aperea), paca (Coelogenys paca) and cutia (Dasyprocta aguti), all amphibious and having an extensive range. Tapirs are to be found in the eastern forests, the peccary in more open woodlands, and the opossum in nearly every part of the country. Cattle, horses, asses, sheep and swine were introduced by the Spaniards, and thrive well in some of the provinces. Excellent horses are reared in the uplands, as well as mules and cattle, the pasturage on the mountain slopes being good, and alfalfa being grown in abundance in many districts. The Reptilia include countless numbers of alligators in the Guayas and its tributaries and in the tide-water channels of many of the smaller rivers; many species of lizards, of which Mr Whymper found three in the Quito basin; snakes of every description from the huge anaconda of the Amazon region down to the beautifully marked coral snake; and a great variety of frogs and toads. Bats also are very numerous, especially in the eastern forest region, where the vampire bat is a serious obstacle to permanent settlement. The avifauna of Ecuador is distinguished for the great variety of its genera and species, among which are many peculiar to the Amazon valley, and others to the colder uplands. Among the Amazon species may be mentioned the parrot, macaw (Macrocercus), toucan (Ramphastos), curassow (Crax), penelope, trogon, and horned screamer (Palamedea cornuta). There are also herons, ibises, storks and cranes, including the great black-headed white crane, Mycteria americana, which ranges from northern Argentina to Colombia. One species of ibis, the Theristicus caudatus, is to be found, it is said, only on the slopes of Antisana. Species of the pheasant and partridge are not uncommon, and the “guácharo” (Steatornis caripensis), once believed to inhabit Venezuela only, is found in Ecuador also. The Raptores are well represented by a large number of genera and species, which include the condor, eagle, vulture, falcon, hawk and owl. The condor (Sarcorhamphus gryphus) is commonly found between the elevations of 6000 and 16,000 ft., rarely, if ever, descending to the lowland plains or rising above the lower peaks. It preys upon the smaller animals and inflicts much loss upon stock farmers through the destruction of calves, lambs, &c., but it very rarely ventures to attack man or any of the larger animals. The eagle common to Ecuador is the Morphnus taeniatus, and possibly the M. guaianensis on the eastern slopes of the Andes. The harrier-eagle (Herpetotheres cachinnans) is also to be found throughout this part of the continent. An eagle with buzzard-like habits, the Leucopternis plumbea, is likewise common in Ecuador. Among the vultures the turkey-buzzard group (Rhinogryphus or Cathartes), including the R. aurus, burrovianus and perniger, is common everywhere. The carrion crow, or black vulture (Catharista atrata), is also common to every part of the country, and is the general scavenger. The carrion hawks are represented by the Polyborus tharus, popularly called the “caracara,” and the Phalcobaenus carunculatus; the falcons by the Aesalon columbarius; and the kites by the Gampsonyx swainsoni. The Ecuadorean owl is the Bubo nigrescens. An interesting species of the song birds is popularly known as the “flautero” (flute-bird), which inhabits the eastern forests. Its notes are marvellous imitations of “the most mellow, sweet-sounding flute,” but the singer itself, according to Mr Simson, is “a very insignificant-looking little, greyish-coloured bird,” which “always dies in captivity.” The most interesting group of the smaller birds is that of the hummingbirds, of which the number and variety is astonishing. Some of these have a very wide range, while others are apparently limited to a small district, or to a certain altitude. The best-known fish of Ecuador is the insignificant Pimelodus cyclopum, the only fish found in the streams and lakes of the plateau region. Its fame rests on Humboldt’s publication of the tradition that great numbers of this tiny fish had been thrown out during the eruptions of Imbabura and other volcanoes. Mr Whymper’s explanation of the phenomenon is that the fish are scattered over the land by the sudden overflow during volcanic eruptions of the rivers and lakes which they inhabit. The rivers of the eastern plains are probably stocked with the fish found in the Amazon. On the coast, the Ancon de Sardinas bay is so named from the multitude of small fish (sardinas) which inhabit its waters. Elsewhere there are no fisheries of importance, except those of the Galapagos Islands.
The insect inhabitants of Ecuador, like the birds, include a large number of genera and species, but no complete entomological survey of the country has ever been made, and our knowledge in this respect is insufficient to warrant a detailed description. In one ascent of Pichincha in 1880, Mr Whymper collected 21 species of beetles, all new to science, between 12,000 and 15,600 ft. elevation. On Cotopaxi, at elevations of 13,000 to 15,800 ft., 18 species of the genus Colpodes were collected, of which 16 were new. This may be considered a fair illustration of the situation in Ecuador so far as natural history exploration is concerned. Of the Machachi basin, near Quito, which he calls a “zoologist’s paradise,” Mr Whymper writes (Travels amongst the Great Andes of the Equator): “Butterflies above, below and around; now here, now there, by many turns and twists displaying the brilliant tessellation of their under-sides.... May-flies and dragon-flies danced in the sunlight; lizards darted across the paths; and legions of spiders pervaded the grass, many very beautiful—frosted—silver backs, or curious, like the saltigrades, who took a few steps and then gave a leap. There were crickets in infinite numbers; and flies innumerable, from slim daddy-long-legs to ponderous, black, hairy fellows known to science as Dejeaniae; hymenopterous insects in profusion, including our old friend the bishop of Ambato (possibly Dielis), in company with another formidable stinger, with chrome antennae, called by the natives ’the Devil’; and occasional Phasmas (caballo de palo) crawling painfully about, like animated twigs.” This description refers to a fertile sub-tropical oasis on the partially barren plateau; below in the forested lowlands, where tropical conditions prevail, the numbers and varieties are many times greater. The Coleoptera are especially numerous; Mr Whymper took home with him 206 species which had been identified and described up to 1892, most of them from the uplands and most of them new to science. The total number of species in Ecuador is roughly estimated to be 8000. The Hymenoptera are also numerous, but less so than the Lepidoptera, with which the mountain slopes and sunny, open spaces seem to be literally covered. Of moths alone Mr Whymper took away with him specimens representing no less than 23 genera, with a probable addition of 13 genera more among his undescribed specimens, the largest of which (an Erebus odora) was 7¼ in. across the wings. Among the Diptera, which includes a very wide range of genera and species, are some of a highly troublesome character, though on the whole, Mr Whymper did not find the flies and mosquitoes so. His explorations, however, did not extend to the eastern region, where the mosquitoes are usually described by travellers as extremely troublesome. Sand-flies are common, and in the eastern forests the tiny piúm fly (Trombidium, sp.?) is a veritable pest. Of the insects which infest dwellings and prey upon their human inmates, such as fleas, bed-bugs, roaches, &c., Ecuador has more than a bountiful supply. Lice-eating is a widely prevalent habit among the Indians and mestizos, and demonstrates how numerous these parasites are among the people. A good illustration of the prevalence of house-infesting animals and insects is given by Mr Whymper (op. cit. p. 391), who made a collection of 50 different specimens of the vermin which infested his bedroom in Guayaquil.
Population.—The indigenous population of Ecuador was originally composed of two distinct races—the Quitus and Caras, the former being the older, and the latter presumably of Quichua origin. The Caras, according to tradition, entered the country from the coast, and had thoroughly established themselves there long before the conquest by the Inca rulers Tupac-Yupanqui and his son Huayna-Capac. This conquest was comparatively easy because the Caras spoke a dialect of the same language, and were not greatly unlike their conquerors in manners and customs. The present Indian population of Ecuador, excepting those of the trans-Andean region, may be considered as descendants of these two races. They are subjected to incredible abuses under Spanish colonial rule, their numbers being reduced to a fraction of the former population, and even yet they are subjected to a kind of debt-bondage which is slavery in all but the name. Notwithstanding all this they still represent from two-thirds to three-fourths of the actual population of Ecuador. East of the Andes the forests are inhabited by tribes of what are termed “aucas” or “infieles” (infidels)—Indians who are independent of both church and political control. Missions have been established among some of the tribes, but their influence reaches only a small part of the wild inhabitants of this extensive region.
The principal tribes are the Quijos or Canelos, who are settled about the headwaters of the Napo, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, and are in great part grouped about the missions; the Jivaros who inhabit the valley of the Pastaza; the Zaparos who occupy the forest region between the Pastaza and Napo; the Piojes of the middle Napo, and eastward to the Putumayo; and the Iquitos and Mazanes of the lower Napo and Tigre, chiefly in territory occupied by Peru. The Jivaros are the best known of these tribes because of their successful resistance to the Spanish invaders. They are still independent of political control, live in permanent settlements, till the soil (producing Indian corn, beans, yucca and plantains), and have developed some rude manufactures. The Zaparos are less homogeneous, some of their hordes living in a state of complete savagery. They are classified with the Guaranis of Brazil, whom they resemble in many particulars. The Piojes live in permanent communities and cultivate the soil. The total number of “aucas” or uncivilized Indians in the republic has been estimated at about 200,000, but this estimate covered a larger area than Ecuador actually occupies and is evidently too high. Their settlements are usually small and very much scattered, and their aggregate number is evidently much under the earlier estimates. An official estimate given to Mr Whymper in 1880, however, places the population of Oriente (the eastern territory) at 80,000, which is probably more nearly correct.
No general census has ever been taken in Ecuador, and estimates are little better than vague conjectures. One of these estimates, that published by P.F. Cevallos for 1889, which has been generally accepted, gave the total population as 1,272,161, and these figures have been used with but slight changes for various later estimates. A later official estimate appeared in 1900 in La République de l’Équateur et sa participation à l’Exposition Universelle de 1900, which gives for the provinces practically the same figures as those of Cevallos, and at the same time assumes the total for the whole republic to be 1,500,000. The white population is estimated at 100,000 to 120,000, which probably includes many of mixed ancestry, and the mixed bloods at 300,000 to 450,000. The tendency is for the mestizo who dwells in Indian communities to revert to the Indian type, and it is probable that the larger estimate is nearer the truth. On the other hand mestizos who live among the whites and form new alliances with them eventually class themselves as whites wherever their social condition has been improved. As a rule, the mestizos of Ecuador are ignorant, indolent and non-progressive. As in Colombia they are the artizans and small traders and the Indians are the farm labourers. The land is held by a few proprietors, and caste sentiment is strong among those who claim unmixed European descent; consequently the mestizos have limited opportunities to improve their condition.
The whites form an exclusive governing caste, as in Chile. The territory of the republic is divided among a very few of them, and its government is in their hands.
In the hot seaboard districts there are a small number of negroes, and a somewhat larger number of their crosses with the other two races. The majority of these are to be found in the northern provinces. There are comparatively few negroes and mulattoes on the colder plateaus. Villavicencio estimated their numbers at 7831 pure negroes and 36,592 mixed bloods, which is probably not far from the correct totals.
The foreign population is small, the total being estimated at about 6000, of which 5000 are natives of the neighbouring Latin republics, 700 Europeans and Americans, and 300 Chinese.