Description: Under imminent threat from habitat destruction, the northern Cordillera Vilcabamba in the Andes is one of Peru's biologically richest areas. This report presents the results of two recent ecological surveys of this little-known region.
Investigating both high and low elevation sites, the surveys discovered several species new to science. For instance, nearly a third of all the butterfly and moth species studied were previously unknown, and a large arboreal rodent species collected may even represent a new genus. This report also provides critical recommendations for effective conservation in the Vilcabamba, as well as a detailed anthropological assessment of resource use by local communities.Brief description:
Corine Vriesendorp is a conservation ecologist and botanist with Environmental and Conservation Programs at The Field Museum, Chicago.
Thomas S. Schulenberg is a conservation ecologist and ornithologist with Environmental and Conservation Programs at The Field Museum, Chicago.
William S. Alverson is a conservation ecologist and botanist with the Environmental and Conservation Programs at The Field Museum, Chicago.
Debra K. Moskovits is Senior Vice President of Environment, Culture, and Conservation at the Field Museum, Chicago.
José-Ignacio Rojas Moscoso is a freelance biologist in Tambopata, Peru.