Meullín-Puye Nature Sanctuary is a protected area in

Aysén Region The Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region (, , '), often shortened to Aysén Region or Aisén,Examples of name usage1, official regional government site refers to the region as "Región de Aysén"., Chile's official meteorological ...

of southern Chile. The sanctuary is in the basin of the Cuervo River, and protects an expanse of primary

Valdivian temperate rain forest The Valdivian temperate forests (NT0404) is an ecoregion on the west coast of southern South America, in Chile and Argentina. It is part of the Neotropical realm. The forests are named after the city of Valdivia. The Valdivian temperate rainfores ...

, along with lakes, wetlands and grasslands. It is managed by the Fundación Kreen (Kreen Foundation).Meullín-Puye Nature Sanctuary
Fundación Kreen. Retrieved 2 May 2023.

Flora and fauna

65% of the sanctuary is forested, principally with old-growth primary forest. There is no evidence of logging, human-caused fires, or introduced

salmonid Salmonidae (, ) is a family of ray-finned fish, the only extant member of the suborder Salmonoidei, consisting of 11 extant genera and over 200 species collectively known as "salmonids" or "salmonoids". The family includes salmon (both Atlantic a ...

s in the sanctuary. Trees include Magellan's beech (''

Nothofagus betuloides ''Nothofagus betuloides'', Magellan's beech or ''guindo'', is a tree native to southern Patagonia. In 1769, Joseph Banks, Sir Joseph Banks collected a botanical specimen, specimen of the tree in Tierra del Fuego during James Cook, Captain Cook's ...

''), lenga beech (''

Nothofagus pumilio ''Nothofagus pumilio'', the lenga beech (from the Mapuche language), is a deciduous tree or shrub in the Nothofagaceae family that is native to the southern Andes range, in the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina to Tierra del Fuego, from 35 ...

''), Chiloé's coigue (''

Nothofagus nitida ''Nothofagus nitida'' (Chiloé's coigue) is an evergreen tree, native to southern Chile and Argentina. It is found from latitude 40° S to Última Esperanza ( 53° S). Description Up to 35 m (115 ft) height and 2 m (6.5 ft ...

''), tepa (''

Laureliopsis philippiana ''Laureliopsis'' is a genus of flowering plants with just one species, ''Laureliopsis philippiana'', known as tepa and wawán, endemic to Chile and the narrow neighboring strip of Argentina (35 to 45°S). In Chile it is found from Maule Region, M ...

''), Guaitecas cypress (''

Pilgerodendron uviferum ''Pilgerodendron'' is a genus of conifer belonging to the cypress family Cupressaceae. It has only one species, ''Pilgerodendron uviferum'', which is endemic to the Valdivian temperate rain forests and Magellanic subpolar forests of southern Chil ...

''), ñirre (''

Nothofagus antarctica ''Nothofagus antarctica'' (''Antarctic beech''; in Spanish ''Ñire'' or ''Ñirre'') is a deciduous tree or shrub native to southern Chile and Argentina from about 36°S to Tierra del Fuego (56° S), where it grows mainly in the diminishing tempe ...

''), winter's bark (''

Drimys winteri ''Drimys winteri'', also known as Winter's bark, foye and canelo, is a slender species of tree in the family Winteraceae, growing up to tall. It is native to the Magellanic and Valdivian temperate forests of Chile and Argentina, where it is a ...

''), tineo (''

Weinmannia trichosperma ''Weinmannia trichosperma'', the ''tineo'', is an evergreen tree in the family of Cunoniaceae, it is native to Chile and Argentina: 35 to 47°S. endemic (ecology), endemic to laurel forest habitat. Description ''Weinmannia trichosperma'' grows ...

''), and mañío de hojas punzantes (''

Podocarpus nubigenus ''Podocarpus nubigenus'' (also known as ''P. nubigena'') is a species of podocarp, endemic to the Valdivian temperate forests of southern Chile and adjacent southwestern Argentina. It is the southernmost podocarp in the world. It grows from 38 ...

''). The sanctuary also protects areas of Andean temperate deciduous scrub. The predominant shrub is ñirre (''Nothofagus antarctica''), and the sanctuary is home to 13% of Chile's population of the species. 77 species of birds, 11 amphibians, and 21 mammals are native to the sanctuary. These include the

Magellanic woodpecker The Magellanic woodpecker (''Campephilus magellanicus'') is a species of large woodpecker found in southern Chile and southwestern Argentina; it is resident within its range. This species is the southernmost example of the genus ''Campephilus'', ...

(''Campephilus magellanicus''),

Magellanic snipe The Magellanic snipe (''Gallinago magellanica'') is a bird in tribe Scolopancinai and subfamily Scolopacinae of family Scolopacidae, the sandpipers and relatives.HBW and BirdLife International (2022) Handbook of the Birds of the World and Bird ...

(''Gallinago magellanica''),

peregrine falcon The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known simply as the peregrine, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (raptor) in the family (biology), family Falconidae renowned for its speed. A large, Corvus (genus), cro ...

(''Falco peregrinus''),

southern pudú The southern pudu (''Pudu puda'', Mapudungun ''püdü'' or ''püdu'', , ) is a species of South American deer native to the Valdivian temperate forests of south-central Chile and adjacent Argentina. It is classified as Near Threatened in the IUCN ...

(''Pudu puda''),

southern river otter The southern river otter (''Lontra provocax''), or South American river otter, is an otter species that lives in much of Patagonia. It is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as an endangered species. Description A medium ...

(''Lontra provocax''), and

Darwin's frog Darwin's frog (''Rhinoderma darwinii''), also called the Southern Darwin's frog, is a species of frog of the family Rhinodermatidae. It was discovered by Charles Darwin during his voyage on HMS ''Beagle''. on a trip to Chile. In 1841, French ...

(''Rhinoderma darwinii''). The native fish puye grande ('' Galaxias platei'') inhabits the rivers and streams of the sanctuary.

References

Protected areas of Aysén Region Nature sanctuaries of Chile Valdivian temperate forests 2022 establishments in Chile Protected areas established in 2022 {{DEFAULTSORT:Meullín-Puye Nature Sanctuary