Categoría: News

ProAves participated in the meeting of the Golden Wings Alliance at the invitation of American Bird Conservancy with the major objective of developing conservation strategies for the Golden Winged Warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera) in their non-breeding areas.

The meeting took place from May 30 to June 1, 2015 in Virginia, USA and was attended by various conservation organizations from Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and the United States.

During the three days of meetings the initial plans of activities for each country were presented defining the most important zones for conservation, in Colombia 4 major areas where conservation efforts will focus were defined:

The town of Anorí in the Chestnut – capped Piha Bird Reserve, the town of San Vicente de Chucuri where the Cerulean Warbler Bird Reserve is located, the buffer area of Los Nevados National Natural Park and the coffee region of southwestern Antioquia; locations where ProAves has developed conservation processes and works with communities and environmental education.

Likewise, the initial plan of proposed activities in each country and in each locality, these activities were proposed in response to the fulfillment of some goals that aim to minimize the threats identified by area.

These conservation processes focused on migratory species, such as those advanced by the Golden Wings Alliance not only benefit the focal species, also they reinforce processes developed locally and the biodiversity in general of Colombia.

Coming up soon, a comprehensive plan for the conservation of this species will be published.

With the support

Pumas, spectacled bears, pavas, tapirs, deers and antpittas have been captured by the camera traps installed in the ProAves  Andean Parrots Birds Reserve and El Mirador property of the town of Genova. Their presence shows the biological value of protected areas and encourages us to take action to ensure their protection.

ProAves implemented the use of camera traps to record patterns of behavior and activity of the species, foraging, foraging areas, social systems and niche partition; alpha behavior, habitat use and corridors.

The two reserves are part of the Threatened Parrots Andean Conservation Corridor of the Cordillera Central, which is located between the towns of Roncesvalles, Tolima and Genova in Quindio.

The use of photography for the study of wildlife often has increased with research, it not only reduces the effort of fieldwork but also reduces the disturbance to wildlife monitored, unlike other methods such as use of collars, transmitters and capture traps.

In recent years ProAves has increased the use of camera trap research, they are installed in trees near the entrances to burrows or travel corridors of species, their use has allowed better records to be obtained on the wealth of species distributed in protected areas, obtaining images of medium and large mammals, as well as stealthy, nocturnal or difficult to observe species.

It is important to continue this initiative thus obtaining timely and accurate information on the natural history of the species, their distribution range in the reserve areas as well as photographs of good quality.

“Conservation Jewel” is World’s Second-Most Important Site for Threatened Birds and Amphibians

Important habitat for a rare bird, Colombia’s endangered Santa Marta Parakeet, will now be protected following the purchase of a property by ProAves, a leading Colombian conservation organization with support from American Bird Conservancy (ABC), a leading U.S. bird conservation organization.

The 148-acre tract, known as the La Cumbre property, expands the El Dorado Reserve, which was also created by ABC and ProAves, along with Conservation International. In 2006, the reserve was created when the groups partnered to protect 1,600 acres of key parakeet habitat beyond the nearby national park. Additional land acquisitions in 2010 and 2012 enlarged the reserve to its current 2,250 acres.

El Dorado Reserve is located in Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, an ancient and isolated massif in the extreme northern part of the country only a few miles from the Caribbean Sea. It is the only location on earth where this endemic species of parrot resides.

“This property is a conservation jewel,” said Dr. George Fenwick, President of ABC. “It is in an area that is ranked as the second-most important site for threatened birds and amphibians in the world. It also provides critical habitat for more than 40 neo-tropical migratory birds and holds exceptional levels of diversity and high levels of endemism for plants, amphibians, and butterflies,” he added. Santa Marta Bush-Tyrant, also an endangered species, and Santa Marta Warbler are two of the other endemic birds that occur here.

“We have been negotiating this property for about five years,” said Alonso Quevedo of ProAves, “but the effort was absolutely worth it. The property links two forested areas and will allow us to create more breeding and foraging habitat for the parakeet along the San Lorenzo ridge, an area that contains the largest known parakeet population.”

No fewer than 19 endemic bird species and more than 52 subspecies of birds are restricted to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. The full range of tropical wet life-zones condensed along the northern slope of the Sierra Nevada has resulted in extraordinary diversity, with 635 bird species recorded. These mountains are a vital stopover point for declining neotropical migratory birds that breed in the United States and Canada, such as the Cerulean and Golden-winged Warblers. The presence of multiple threatened species found only at this site was recognized by the Alliance for Zero Extinction, a global initiative aimed at halting species loss.

Tragically, only 15 percent of the Sierra Nevada’s original vegetation remains unaltered following decades of colonization and agricultural expansion. Despite the national park, encroachment and deforestation continue to fragment and denude the sensitive montane forest ecosystems at the highest elevations of the massif. Compounding the issue is the fact that many of the endemic species only survive at elevations between 4,300 and 9,500 feet, where their range comprises fewer than 200 square miles. Deterioration of this habitat presents a real risk of extinction for many of these endemics.

While the 148-acre property is only partially forested, it supports an important concentration of the Ceroxylon ceriferum palms (commonly known as Andean wax palm) needed by nesting Santa Marta Parakeets. With continued support from ABC, ProAves will hire an additional forest guard to support parakeet monitoring and habitat restoration in the area where the parakeets feed and roost. ProAves has been successful bolstering the population of parakeets by installing artificial next boxes, supported by Loro Parque Foundation.

The additional forest guard will also be critical to protecting an area that has undergone increased pressure by developers. The presence of ProAves staff successfully repelled a recent incursion on the reserve to build vacation homes, resulting in legal action that will further safeguard this site.

In addition to the Santa Marta Parakeet, the area is a stronghold for several frog species: Atelopus laetissimus(Critically Endangered), Atelopus nahumae (Critically Endangered), Eleutherodactylus ruthveni (Endangered), and Eleutherodactylus insignatus (Endangered).

This project was supported by many organizations and individuals, including World Land Trust, Robert Wilson Trust, Marshall-Reynolds Foundation, Quick Response Biodiversity Fund, the Weeden Foundation, David Harrison, David and Patricia Davidson, Jeff and Connie Woodman, Jeff Peters, Ted Reissing, Nancy Weiss, and Joan Hero.

Con el apoyo de:

15 years after initiating a series of actions to preserve the Yellow-eared Parrot, we are proud to have a strong team of more than 75 people. We protect 23 nature reserves in perpetuity, which hold 15% of the world’s bird species and 85% of all birds recorded for Colombia. More than 14,000 children participate in the ecological “friends of the birds” groups.. The development of a large number of educational and research initiatives position us as one of the stongest and most important conservation organizations in Colombia.