Program Coordinator: Vanesa Serrudo; vserrudo@armonia-bo.org
Program Area: Apolobamba, Madidi and Cotapata National Parks
Tiny remnants of Polylepis pepei forest restricted to remote valleys at around 13,000 feet in the Andes of Bolivia and Peru are the only habitat for two highly specialized and threatened birds: Royal Cinclodes and Ash-breasted Tit-Tyrant, which are listed as Critically Endangered and Endangered, respectively. Their habitat, already all but lost, continues to be reduced and degraded through cutting for firewood and building materials, burning and overgrazing. As a result, the populations of both species are severely fragmented and local populations extremely small.
With the on-going support of the Olewine Family, Vanesa Serrudo together with an educator and agronomist are working with three communities – Puina, Keara and Pongo – to integrate forest conservation and community development with actions such as forest restoration, community tree plantations to provide an alternative source of wood, implementation of more efficient wood-burning stoves, environmental education, composting latrines and ecotourism.
Presently we are seeking $8,000 USD to complete a tourist information center and construct an interpretive trail in Pongo, located in Cotapata National Park, and also begin a forest restoration project with Pongo school children. $7,000 USD is needed to further Polylepis forest conservation in Puina and Keara, in Apolobamba and Madidi, through building stone walls to protect forests from fire as well as exclude cattle and sheep.
