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Macaws
Released in Nicoya Peninsula
Macaws
Released in Nicoya Peninsula
(InfoWebPress) – Recently, a group of 15
pairs of scalet macaws was released in the
Nicoya Peninsula, thanks to the support of
the Scarlet Macaw Conservation Association (ASOPROLAPA)
and as part of a project that this group has
been conducting for the past 13 years.
This is the second release of this
endangered bird species conducted by the
association, and this time the colorful
feathered creatures were outfitted with
chips so researchers can follow up their
movements, even if they happened to be taken
into captivity. The first release done by
ASOPROLAPA took place in 2007, when five
pairs of macaws were returned to the wild.
ASOPROLAPA’s goal is to release a total of
200 macaws so that their population can
increase and have a chance at survival.
Scarlet macaws have the greatest variety of
colors of all macaw species. They live from
Mexico to South America. Two sub-species
inhabit forests from Mexico to Costa Rica:
Ara Macao Cyanoptera, which has a large
yellow stripe on its wings, and Ara Macao
Macao, which features small yellow spots on
its wings.
In Costa Rica, macaws are part of two main
populations, both on the Pacific coast: one
in the Osa Peninsula, where some 700 scarlet
macaws still exist in the wild; and a
smaller population in the surroundings of
the Carara National Park and the Guacalillo
Mangrove Research. Scarlet macaws can also
be found, in smaller numbers, in the Palo
Verde National Park and in the La Amistad
Conservation Area in Guanacaste.
In addition to ASOPROLAPA, the National
Biodiversity Institute (INBio) is promoting
a series of scarlet macaw conservation
strategies in the Central Pacific area.
This project began in August 1990 with the
monitoring of macaw populations that
traveled from their overnighting site (Guacalillo
mangrove) to the Carara National Park and
surrounding areas. In 1994, after 555 counts
during 58 consecutive months, experts
calculated that the population of almost 300
birds there was declining by about eight
individuals per year. Such a decline was
attribute to illegal poaching of youngsters
for the exotic species trade. However,
between 1995 and 1996, researchers noted an
increase of 37 birds. Since 1996, the
scarlet macaw population in the Central
Pacific has remained stable.
In 1995, the LAPPA conservation organization
was created by 25 community leaders, local
business people, local government officials,
academicians and park rangers in the Central
Pacific region. Since then, LAPPA has
coordinated macaw conservation efforts along
with state and private officials. Two
regional conservation workshops in 1995 and
1996 helped set the goals, conceptual model,
objectives and other activities that would
guide this initiative. LAPPA has utilized
the knowledge obtained about natural history
of macaws to implement applied management
(nesting, growth of hatchlings, habitat use,
annual patterns, diet, etc.) together with
local human populations. |
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