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Biodiversity
The Santa Lucia reserve's lands consist
of over 650 hectares of montane cloud forest, ranging in altitude
from just above 1600 meters above sea level to over 2500 meters.
This wide range of altitudes extends over several different life
zones and habitat types, accounting for the very high diversity
of plant and animal life. The variety of plants in Santa Lucía
is estimated at more than 2000 species, including many which
are endemic and/or endangered. These include Sangre de Drago
("Dragon's Blood"), Cedro and a wide variety of orchids,
bromeliads and other epifytes. Among the estimated 45 species
of mammals in the area can be found coatimundi, tigrillo (ocelot),
puma, and a small population of the endangered spectacled bear.
BirdlistTo see a local birdlist (html version), click here. A report by Robert Planqué of his birding experiences at Santa Lucía is also available here. To download a birdlist in PDF click here. (124K) You can downlod a free copy
of Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this file from Adobe. Plants of Santa LuciaBritish botanist and artist Marjorie Powell is producing a set of botanical illustrations of the varied plant life in Santa Lucia´s cloud forest, to be published. A checklist of plants for the area was developed by Webster and Rhodes (Webster, Grady L. and Robert M. Rhode, 2001. Plant Diversity of an Andean Cloud Forest- University of California Press) and can be seen on the University of California, Davis Herbarium site.
photos by Robert Planqué drawings by Marjorie Powell
Copyright Mary Finn 2002 Last Updated June 24, 2006 |
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The area surrounding Santa Lucía,
including the pueblos of Nanegal and Mariantias, is located in
the southern part of the Choco Bioregion. this is recognized
as one of the areas of highest biodiversity in the world. Much
of the local cloud forest is still in its primary virgin state,
so much of the original flora and fauna still remains. The goal
of the the Santa Lucía and Colibrís cooperatives
is to continue to conserve this heritage of diverse cloud forest.
This area is a paradise for bird-lovers,
with over 300 species, including several which are endemic to
the area, such as the Plate-billed Mountain Toucan and the Toucan
Barbet. A wide range of tropical species such as parrots, cotingas,
guans, ant birds and colorful tropical tanagers are regularly
sighted. Santa Lucía is particularly known for the variety
of hummingbirds, including species like the Violet-tailed Sylph,
Booted Racket-tail and Sparkling Violet-ear. The area also contains
several "leks" of species in which the male "displays"
himself in a courtship ritual. These include the Andean Cock
of the Rock, Golden Manakin, Club-winged Manakin, and the Little
Hermit hummingbird.
