Swamps of the Ciénaga de Zapata
In the marshes, processes of accumulation of plant residues and peat formation occur due to different processes associated, among other aspects, with systematic flooding. The vegetation is mainly made up of grasslands made up of isolated seedlings of Cortadera de dos Filos (Cladium jamaicense) that reach up to 2 meters in height, and Yana (Conocarpus erectus), isolated, that can reach 3 meters in height, as well as Macío (Typha domingensis), Junco de Ciénaga (Eleocharis interstincta), Guano Prieto (Acoelorraphe wrightii), Junco Fino (Eleocharis cellulose), Arraigan (Myrica cerifera) Guano Cana (Sabal maritime) and Yanilla Blanca (Ilex cassine). There are also patches of swamp thickets, palm groves, savanna zones, intermittent lagoons and the mangrove variants that are more common at the edges of the water bodies.
In the areas with permanent flooding live the Cuban Crocodile (Crocodylus rhombipher), the American Crocodile (Crocodylus acutus), the Jicotea (Trachemys decussata), the Biajaca Criolla (Nandopsis tetracanthus), the commonly called Guajacones and the Manjuarí (Atractosteus tristoechus) the latter, an endemic fish from Cuba, considered a living fossil, with a primitive body structure, which allows it to absorb gases directly from the atmosphere as if it had "auxiliary lungs" and for this reason they can survive in the mud during the dry periods when The water level drops and the flood areas decrease considerably.
Sediments and organic matter accumulate in certain areas of the marshes and when they exceed the water level, the aquatic vegetation is replaced by species from the mainland and the petenes are formed, forest cays in the middle of the marsh formed by timber trees, palms and ferns, surrounded by large expanses of grasslands and savannas, where the typical fauna of these ecosystems and forests find a natural refuge.
The petenes can be seen in very few places in the world and in ours, generally, the elegant Palma Real (Roystonea regia) stands out.
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