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Rio Canande
photos by David Agro
The Rio Canande Reserve protects an area of exceptional biogeographic importance--the Choco region of western Colombia and north-west Ecuador. The reserve is situated along the beautiful Rio Canande, pictured here at low water during the "dry" season.
The Choco area is characterized by wet forest, where, with up to 16,000 mm of rain per year in some areas, it is probably the wettest place on earth. The Choco has one of the world's richest lowland biotas, with exceptional richness and endemism in many groups of plants and animals. In the case of plants, over 10% (8-9,000) of species recorded from the entire Neotropics have been found here and it has been suggested that 25% of these are endemic.
Dozens of Choco endemic bird species live in the reserve, of which the Long-wattled Umbrellabird is one of the most spectacular. The area is also home to Jaguars and Baird's Tapirs.
Unplanned human colonization following the completion of roads and extensive logging concessions are major threats to the Choco forest. Since 1960, over 40% of the forest area has been cleared or heavily degraded, and deforestation rates are increasing. Forest destruction is most severe in the coastal plain and foothills below 2,000 m.
Very little lowland Choco forest has been protected, and all is under threat from total clearance for agriculture. The Rio Canande Reserve is ideally located at an elevation of approximately 500 m and away from extensive human development. Our goal is to increase the size of the Rio Canande Reserve to 10,000 ha (2,500).
The Rio Canande Reserve was expanded in 20