At Atuncela, an additional 3,200 acres of vital bird habitat are now protected. Atuncela, like much of the tropical Andes, is rich in biodiversity. More than 130 bird species have been recorded in the newly expanded area, and Atuncela overall is home to no fewer than three Endangered bird species, two Critically Endangered frog species, and several Endangered tree species. The expansion brings much-needed protections for the Endangered Purple Quail-Dove, a terrestrial and mostly solitary bird.
Photo credit: CORFOPAL
An additional 3,262 acres (1,320 hectares) of tropical forest habitat are now under protection following a recent designation by the Valle del Cauca, Colombia environmental authority, Corporación Autónoma Regional del Valle del Cauca (CVC). This brings the total area protected in the Distrito Regional de Manejo Integrado (DRMI) Enclave Subxerofítico de Atuncela to 5,767 acres, or about the size of Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.
Conserva Aves is a regional Initiative to create and expand subnational protected areas in Latin America. It is led by American Bird Conservancy (ABC), Audubon, BirdLife International, Birds Canada, and the Network of Environmental Funds in Latin America and the Caribbean (RedLAC).
Conserva Aves has innovative implementation mechanisms, either as Direct Investments or Calls for Proposals, both of which represent effective ways for the Initiative to advance its conservation objectives. Under the modality of direct investment, Corporación Ambiental y Forestal del Pacífico (CORFOPAL), an ABC partner, has been working on the expansion of the protected area on the western slopes of the Colombian Andes since 2022. Atuncela’s original 2,506 acres (1,014 hectares) of dry shrubland first received protected status in 2007. The additional acreage included in the expansion creates a gradient of protected habitat, with shrubland transitioning to humid tropical forest as the elevation climbs. The expansion of the protected area was supported by the direct investment funds of the Conserva Aves Initiative and Rainforest Trust.
“Thanks to this designation, more than 3,200 acres of tropical forest habitat in Colombia will now be protected. We congratulate our partners at CORFOPAL on this great achievement,” said Eliana Fierro-Calderón, International Conservation Project Officer for ABC. “The expansion at Atuncela brings vital habitat across multiple ecosystems under protection, contributing to a brighter future for a number of threatened species like the Endangered Purple Quail-Dove and Banded Ground-Cuckoo, and migratory birds like the Canada Warbler and Swainson’s Thrush.”
The decision to approve the expansion was made by the CVC at the request of the local community. An existing Local Co-management Committee made up of the CVC, local government, producers’ and environmental associations, and community members grew as the protected area expanded. Its members underwent training to build their capacity for overseeing the management of the reserve. Atuncela is classified as an Integrated Management Regional District (or its Spanish acronym, DRMI), a habitat management approach that falls under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Management Category VI. Category VI management areas prioritize the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems while allowing for sustainable use of natural resources, often for cultural values or the continuation of traditional resource management systems. This flexibility makes it possible for locals in the area of Atuncela, who are primarily subsistence farmers, to continue to manage their own small operations.
Extra Acreage, Brighter Futures for Endangered Birds
Atuncela, like much of the tropical Andes, is rich in biodiversity. More than 130 bird species have been recorded in the newly expanded area, and Atuncela overall is home to no fewer than three Endangered bird species, two Critically Endangered frog species, and several Endangered tree species. The expansion brings much-needed protections for the Endangered Purple Quail-Dove, a terrestrial and mostly solitary bird. The Purple Quail-Dove’s plumage resembles a watercolor painting, with deep purple hues transitioning to marine blue and chestnut, with flashes of iridescent gold on its neck. It numbers fewer than 2,500 individuals and is endemic only to a thin strip of humid lowland and submontane forest from northwest Colombia to northwest Ecuador.
The Endangered Banded Ground-Cuckoo darts about in wild zigzag patterns chasing arthropods in the humid Chocó forests. The species is elusive, requiring undisturbed forests for nesting and foraging and maintaining a large home range, which has become increasingly challenging as deforestation has accelerated in the region. The newly protected area is also the habitat of the Endangered Black-and-chestnut Eagle, an imposing, distinctive eagle that soars above the forests of the Andes. Like other species in the area, habitat loss has led to its rapid decline.
Atuncela is also an Alliance for Zero Extinction site, one of 899 locations across the globe home to the only populations of Endangered or Critically Endangered species. The trigger species at Atuncela is Stenocereus humilis, an Endangered succulent shrub that grows in the seasonally dry shrubland covering the lower portion of the protected area.
Engaging Communities for Long-Term Conservation Success
Though the final designation of Atuncela’s expansion was made by a governing body, the process involved a high degree of community input and participation, which continues as CORFOPAL assists locals in setting up a plant nursery. Community members collect seeds and tend to saplings that will eventually be planted to further reforestation efforts. CORFOPAL has built capacity within the community for monitoring key species. Locals attended workshops to hone their species identification skills, gain insight into methodology, and understand best practices for collecting and then analyzing data. Their insights will help conservationists understand how species are faring in the protected area in the long term.
Local farms are playing a part in restoring habitat connectivity. Working with CORFOPAL, farmers planted more than 1,200 trees, including avocado, lime, and plantain, on several farms in Atuncela to create agroforestry systems. This land management approach allows bird habitat to flourish while people grow crops for subsistence or for sale. It also helps connect valuable patches of habitat, increasing the amount of contiguous forested area available for birds.
CORFOPAL and other stakeholders, including the local communities within Atuncela, also created a communication strategy to let the world beyond the protected area know about the impressive biodiversity and beautiful landscapes that await. With Atuncela’s growth, the community is preparing to welcome ecotourists eager to experience a unique region of the tropical Andes, where endangered species now have protection and stability