100 ‡ Monumentos Naturales de Chile
FAUNA
FLORA
Pudú. Scientific name: Pudu puda. Conservation status: Vulnerable. Notes: This is the smallest deer in the world. Its population has diminished for loss of habitat. It is attacked by dogs, run over by automobiles and hunted.
Yerba Loza. Scientific name: Gleichenia quadripartita. Conservation status: Vulnerable on continental Chile, out of danger on Juan Fernández Island. This fern grows from Concepción to Magallanes, and in the Juan Fernández islands, up to 1,600 meters above sea level.
Luzuriaga radicans
Ulmo. Scientific name: Eucryphia cordifolia. Conservation status: Low risk. An impressive tree that flowers profusely in springtime. Its white flowers fill the forest with an incomparable scent that attracts insects and honey bees. “Ulmo honey” is very famous in Chile. Quilineja. Scientific name: Luzuriaga radicans. Notes: An evergreen vine that clings to tree trunks with its roots. The stalks are used for weaving baskets and for making tools. Conservation status: Low risk. Tineo. Scientific name: Weinmannia trichosperma. Conservation status: Not evaluated. This tree is endemic to the forests of southern Chile and Argentina. It has several qualities that make it useful to people: its bark has tannins good for curing leather, its flowers are visited by honey bees, and its wood has both decorative and functional value. Elsewhere in the world it is cultivated as an ornamental tree. In its natural ecosystem the fruit, seeds and flowers are eaten by forest animals.
Gleichenia quadripartita
Güiña. Scientific name: Leopardus guigna. Conservation status: Vulnerable from Region X to the north. Almost threatened towards the south. Notes: The size of a domestic cat, this wild animal hunts at night in forested areas and is the smallest of America’s felines. It lives in forests or scrublands from the Coquimbo Region to Aysén. It is in risk largely because of the loss of habitat to pine and eucalyptus plantations. And because it is hunted to safeguard poultry operations. Chilean Skunk. Scientific name: Galictis cuja. Conservation status: Not evaluated. This carnivore hunts all kinds of small vertebrates and birds. It complements its diet with fruit and eggs. Its versatility allows it to live in a wide range of territory, from southern Peru to Magallanes. It is a natural control for European rabbits. Slender Billed Parakeet. Scientific name: Enicognathus leptorhynchus. Conservation status: Endangered north of its range in Region VII, vulnerable between the Bío-Bío River and Chiloé Island, and with Low risk in the Aysén Region. It lives in humid forests in colonies including various dozens of individuals. It eats seeds and native forest fruits, and also forages on the ground.
Enicognathus leptorhynchus
Little Mountain Monkey. Scientific name: Dromiciops gliroides. Conservation status: Almost threatened. This is a small marsupial that moves around in treetops during the night. It nests in bamboo and has a mutually beneficial relationship with the quintral plant. Leopardus guigna