PRESERVING MANGROVES
A key strategy for combating climate change and promoting sustainable fishing
Not many ecosystems rival the carbon storing and sequestering ability of mature primary forests. However, mangroves and coastal wetlands are estimated to capture carbon even faster and store it in larger quantities than tropical forests. Because mangroves’ dense roots prevent soil erosion and help moderate water flow to the coast, these “blue carbon” sinks are being looked to for their potential to protect coastal areas during storms and floods, both of which are expected to increase due to climate change. Mangroves also provide important cultural and economic services to humans, as they serve as critical breeding and nursery habitat for fish. However, many marine areas around mangroves are at risk of being dangerously overfished as commercial fishing fleets compete with local communities for resources. In Colombia’s San Juan River Delta, Nature and Culture is working with the local environmental authority CODECHOCO, the Afro-Colombian community council ACADESAN, the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute, WWF, the Marviva Foundation, and the Wildlife Conservation Society to protect 395,368 acres of marine and coastal wetland. The area is home to 6,741 people, and its declaration will improve communities’ access and rights to fisheries while allowing them to regulate catch seasons and methods without compromising their economies.
The San Juan Delta protected area will also connect with another 775,911-acre coastal and marine protected area in the Bajo Baudó watershed to the north.
2 NEW PROTECTED AREAS
TOTAL 19K ACRES IN NORTHERN PERU
New areas connect with existing protected areas providing wider natural habitat for species
In February, our Peru team celebrated the announcement of two new protected areas. Each area connects with other nearby protected areas creating more habitable space for wildlife and healthier ecosystems overall.
In the Amazonas region, in northern Peru, the newly declared Yasgolca-Santa Lucia Private Conservation Area protects 11,677 acres of montane forest. This area not only secures clean water access for local communities, but it also protects important habitat for threatened species, like the spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), and night monkey (Aotus miconax).
In the nearby region of Cajamarcas, the Utco Private Conservation Area protects 7,562 acres of dry forest. This unique ecosystem is known for being an epicenter of biodiversity and supports endemic birds, reptiles, amphibians, and plants. Thanks to your generous donations, these new protected areas provide critical habitat for many of the species that are only found in this region and would otherwise be vulnerable to extinction.
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Women take a leading role in reforestation
SPRING NEWSLETTER
SO, AN AREA IS DECLARED PROTECTED... THEN WHAT?
Providing technical support for long-term sustainability of protected areas and their resources
In the Bolivian Gran Chaco, oil mining, agricultural expansion, and illegal hunting endanger its ecological integrity and jeopardize access to clean water for local communities.
Life in the Chaco can be volatile. Wildlife, plants, and people within sparse, lowland forest depend on limited water sources, especially during the dry season. One of the most vital water supplies is the Parapetí River which flows northeast from the Bolivian Andes and through the Gran Chaco.
In collaboration with Fundación Natura and with help from donors like you, from 2015 - 2021, Nature and Culture supported the creation of a 1.95 million acre “Water Corridor” in the upper basin of the Parapetí River uniting five municipal protected areas where over 350 different rural farm and Indigenous Guaraní communities live, all dependent on the Parapetí.
Like other protected areas we help create, we are dedicated to supporting the long-term sustainability of Bolivia’s Water Corridor. With your support we will continue to bring our expertise in participatory mapping, governance planning, ranger training, and conservation fund development to help strengthen capacity of local area managers so that water resources are protected for generations to come.
MONITORING THE ENDANGERED JAGUAR FOR OVERALL ECOSYSTEM HEALTH
Nature and Culture technicians are recording species’ behavior in the dry forest
This year, our Mexico team joined the National Census of the Jaguar and its prey (CENJAGUAR), an initiative to determine the status and size of the Jaguar population in Mexico.
We focused our monitoring efforts on detecting jaguar mobility within our Mosaic Sierra - Mar, installing 13 camera trap stations in collaboration with four very knowledgeable park rangers in the region. On this journey, we spotted tracks, prey remains, scratches on trees and resting grounds that confirmed the presence of jaguars, especially in areas near water.
While we hope to spot the elusive jaguar, we are also eager to catch images of other mammal species, birds, or reptiles to learn more about all the species that live in the area. Typically, monitoring stations only stay up for around 5 months, but we are expecting to maintain these stations year-round. Our team will analyze species’ behavior in response to weather conditions and gain a better understanding of how climate change is affecting their habitat.
BOLIVIA MEXICO
Tentayape community
Jaguar documented in first round of monitoirng Park ranger placing camera trap
A view of our Monte Mojino Reserve
NEWLY DISCOVERED SNAIL-EATING SNAKES BRING AWARENESS TO ILLEGAL MINING IN THE AMAZON
We, along with conservationist Leonardo DiCaprio, named two snake species in honor of loved ones to raise awareness about rainforest destruction
The mountainous region of the upper Amazon is one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. However, the area has been increasingly threatened by illegal gold mining operations along the shores of the Nangaritza River, in southeastern Ecuador where these neotropical snail-eating snakes were discovered.
Ecuadorian biologist Alejandro Arteaga discovered the newly described Welborn’s Snail-eating Snake (Dipsas welborni) named after Nature and Culture’s long-time board member David Welborn to raise awareness around the threats of mining in the area. These species have a unique lifestyle that makes them particularly prone to the effects of gold mining. First, they are arboreal, so they cannot survive in areas devoid of vegetation, such as in open-pit mines. Second, they feed exclusively on slugs and snails, a soft-bodied type of prey that occurs mostly along streams and rivers and is presumably declining because of the pollution of water bodies.
“These new species of snake are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of new species discoveries in this region, but if illegal mining continues at this rate, there may not be an opportunity to make any future discoveries,” concludes Alejandro Arteaga.
As a supporter of Nature and Culture, you continue to save the snake’s habitat from the emerging gold mining frenzy. Protecting this region is the only way to save the snakes from extinction.
HAVE YOU HEARD OF THE STINGLESS BEE?
Producing honey to protect tropical forests in southern Ecuador
Unlike the commonly known honeybee (Apis mellifera), native stingless bees, or tribe Meliponini, are a tropical forest bee species that have a stunted stinger, but that doesn’t stop them from producing delicious honey and supporting important ecological processes in tropical forests.
In Ecuador, more than 200 species of native stingless bees have been identified, 89 of which are concentrated in the tropical forests of southern Ecuador. However, their habitats are in danger due to the felling of trees in the area.
To prevent these important pollinators from facing extinction, the Commonwealth of Meliponiculturist in the South of Ecuador hosted the First Festival of Native Bees. In this experience-sharing event, bee experts from Ecuador and Peru exchanged innovative meliponiculture processes to optimize the honey harvest and protect native bees.
”Bees have always lived here, since the beginning of time they’ve lived freely in the field. But now, we house them in little boxes to protect them from the trees being cut down”, said one of the meliponiculturists, “planting blooming trees like orange, lime, or coffee, restores their natural habitat and enhances the production of honey,” she added.
The festival was part of Nature and Culture’s initiative to protect and restore 176.26 acres of tropical forests as part of the management strategy of the Municipal Puyango Reserve, in the Biosphere Reserve Bosque Seco by improving the production and commercialization of honey from 13 types of native bees.
“Through this process, 326 households have received technical support to continue practicing meliponiculture while pursuing the conservation of the Bosque Seco Biosphere Reserve”, said Bruno Paladines, Nature and Culture Bosque Seco Mosaic Coordinator.
HERE to read about the recent appearance of a female jaguar, in Sonora, Mexico. ECUADOR
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SAVING WILD PLACES: A letter from Lleydy Alvarado YOUR LEGACY FOR CONSERVATION
Protecting the most biodiverse landscapes on the planet in partnership with local communities
Thank you for exploring our Spring Newsletter! These stories illustrate just a few of the ways you’ve supported community-based conservation with us recently.
Together, we employ many different strategies to protect wild places. One of these methods, the creation of private conservation areas, is especially meaningful to me. Since I joined the Peru team in 2013, I have been working closely with local governments, public organizations, and local and Indigenous communities to protect some of Peru’s most biodiverse ecosystems.
Our participatory process is designed to strengthen community organization and capacity in a way that ensures the continued sustainability of protected areas long after they are declared.
On behalf of my colleagues and our partners throughout Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, Bolivia, and Colombia, thank you for including local people in the conservation of their vibrant landscapes – for the well-being of our entire planet.
Gratefully,
Lleydy Alvarado, Project Leader, Amazonas Region Nature and Culture International
CLICK HERE to continue supporting projects like these.
P.S. — In honor of my ten-year anniversary with Nature and Culture, please join me in celebrating Peru’s newly declared private conservation areas!
Help projects like these succeed for generations to come
Have you considered naming Nature and Culture International as a beneficiary of your IRA, trust, or will? By making a planned or estate gift, you help us ensure the threatened ecosystems and local cultures we support today are planned for tomorrow. We also accept gifts of appreciated stock.
If you’ve already included us in your legacy plans, please let us know so we can recognize and celebrate your wonderful gift in life!
Contact Laura Meagher at 858-259-0374 or lmeagher@ natureandculture.org for more.
www.natureandculture.org
@naturecultureinternational
@natureculturintl
PROTECTED
25.7 Million Acres STORED
GET IN TOUCH
MEASURING OUR IMPACT
3.4 Billion Tons of Carbon SUPPORTED 20 Local & Indigenous Communities PRESERVED BIODIVERSITY In 5 Countries in Latin America PROTECTED Key Water Sources
