Chongon Colonche Range

The Chongon Colonche Range (Spanish Cordillera Chongon Colonche) is a mountain range on the central pacific coast of Ecuador, located in the provinces of Guayas and Manabi. The range peaks at 800 metres above sea level and together with the Mache Chindul Range is the only major mountain range west of the Andes. Much of the range remains clad in indigenous tropical wet forest, although large areas have been cleared for agriculture. The remaining forest contains high levels of biodiversity and the entire region has been classififed as an "Important Bird Area" by Birdlife International.^{[citation needed]}