The Munchique National Natural Park ( es, Parque Nacional Natural Munchique) is a

national park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individua ...

located in the

Cauca Department Cauca Department (, es, Departamento del Cauca) is a Department of Southwestern Colombia. Located in the southwestern part of the country, facing the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Valle del Cauca Department to the north, Tolima Department ...

in the Cordillera Occidental range in the Andean Region of Colombia. There are 30 streams and rivers, and 40 waterfalls in the area. The diversity of thermal levels makes the park a paradise for birds, especially

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics ar ...

General

It is located in El Tambo, on the western slopes of the Cordillera Occidental, 61 km from the city of

Popayán Popayán () is the capital of the Colombian department of Cauca. It is located in southwestern Colombia between the Western Mountain Range and Central Mountain Range. It has a population of 318,059 people, an area of 483 km2, is located ...

. It shares borders with the municipalities of Lopez, and

Morales Morales is a Spanish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alfredo Morales (born 1990), American footballer * Alvaro Morales (disambiguation), several people * Amado Morales (born 1947), Puerto Rican javelin thrower * Bartolomé Mor ...

Cajibio. It was declared a national park in May 1977 and covers and area of . The park takes its name from the Munchique Mountain, located in the southeast part of the area. Many of the rivers in the area are

tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

to the San Juan de Micay River, one of the largest rivers in the Colombian Pacific Basin, that eventually reaches the Pacific Ocean. It is currently in danger due to illegal crops and other ecological threats.

Climate

There are several climate levels in the area, shifting with elevation: warm, –

above mean sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the Vertical position, vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric h ...

; temperate, –; and cold, –. Average temperature is 24 °C at the lower elevations, and 8 °C at the highest. Average yearly rainfall is 3000 mm in the higher parts and it significantly increases with decreasing height up to 5000 mm in the lower areas. The largest precipitation occurs in December and minimum in June–August. The heavy rains results in a

relative humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity dep ...

, 87%.

Flora and fauna

In the warm and temperate zones it is possible to find trees reaching above . The number of trees diminishes as elevation increases and epiphytes becomes more common. The park has one of Colombia's highest biodiversity indices and a high number of endemic and endangered species, this due to low human activity in the area and diversity of thermal levels. Some 500 species of birds have been recorded in the area, 37 of which are hummingbirds. Noteworthy birds include

long-wattled umbrellabird The long-wattled umbrellabird (''Cephalopterus penduliger'') is an umbrellabird in the Cotingidae family. Its Spanish names include ''pájaro bolsón, pájaro toro, dungali'', and ''vaca del monte''. The long-wattled umbrellabird is considered ra ...

and the colorful puffleg, the latter being endemic to the region. The park is also home to 182 mammals, among them spectacled bears,

puma Puma or PUMA may refer to: Animals * ''Puma'' (genus), a genus in the family Felidae ** Puma (species) or cougar, a large cat Businesses and organisations * Puma (brand), a multinational shoe and sportswear company * Puma Energy, a mid- and d ...

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the thi ...

s, northern pudú,

South American coati The South American coati (''Nasua nasua''), also known as the ring-tailed coati, is a coati species and a member of the raccoon family (Procyonidae), found in the tropical and subtropical parts of South America. An adult generally weighs from ...

, scaly-footed small-eared shrew,

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...

s and three species of

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southw ...

. Other species include 71 amphibians, 70 bats and 55 butterfly species (all belonging to the subfamily

Satyrinae The Satyrinae, the satyrines or satyrids, commonly known as the browns, are a subfamily of the Nymphalidae (brush-footed butterflies). They were formerly considered a distinct family, Satyridae. This group contains nearly half of the known diver ...

). Western Andes toad is only known from the park. In 2003 a new species of

wren Wrens are a family of brown passerine birds in the predominantly New World family Troglodytidae. The family includes 88 species divided into 19 genera. Only the Eurasian wren occurs in the Old World, where, in Anglophone regions, it is commonl ...

was found in the area and named

Munchique wood-wren The Munchique wood wren (''Henicorhina negreti'') is a member of the wren family ( Troglodytidae) that was described as new to science in 2003. It is found in the Western Andes of Colombia. Taxonomy and systematics The Munchique wood wren wa ...

after the park.

Footnotes

References

* * *

External links

*
The park's page at Parques Nacionales Naturales de Colombia
{{authority control National parks of Colombia Protected areas established in 1977 Geography of Cauca Department 1977 establishments in Colombia Tourist attractions in Cauca Department