CHUMBES PROGRAM

The Chumbes program covers a region where there is a unique blending of wet Chocó ecosystems with Tumbesian and Andean dry forests. Like its ecosystems, the Chumbes name itself is derived from combining the Chocó and Tumbes names together. The Rio Jubones carved a 2,000-meter-deep gorge through the middle of this region, creating a barrier to wildlife. The resulting islands in the sky host unique species that have been isolated for millennia. The pressures from agricultural expansion and mining here are severe.
 

There are no national parks in this region, so our work here is extremely important. At our Cerro de Arcos Reserve, we protect páramo habitat home to the only population of the Blue-throated Hillstar, a hummingbird discovered recently that only nests in caves. 

After several years of expansion, our Buenaventura Reserve now covers an altitudinal gradient from 1,300 feet (400 m) up to 7,300 feet (2,250 m) in elevation. Why does this matter? The climate is changing. As temperatures warm, species dependent on cool cloud forests move farther up the slope, including the endangered El Oro Parakeet. If we do nothing, these species will run out of habitat. Protecting land at higher elevations throughout Buenaventura is not enough, however. We also must plant the forests of tomorrow. Most of the land in the reserve at higher elevations had previously been cleared for pastures. In the coming years we will reforest this land with tens of thousands of native trees. By acting now, we are restoring the forests that will be the climate refuge for numerous endangered species decades from now. We are preventing the extinction of many rare plants and animals clinging to life at Buenaventura.

 

 
 

We expand nature protection where it matters most!

OUR PROGRAMS