Tumbes National Reserve is a protected area established in 2006 and located in the region of Tumbes,

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

; near the border with

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. It spans an area of and along with

Cerros de Amotape National Park Cerros de Amotape National Park () is a protected area located in the regions of Piura Region, Piura and Tumbes Region, Tumbes in northern Peru. History The national park was officially established on July 22, 1975. Geography Cerros de Amota ...

and El Angolo Game Preserve is part of the Noroeste Biosphere Reserve designated by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

History

In 1957, the Peruvian government created the Tumbes National Forest with an area of 75.102 hectares, to promote the rational exploitation of the forest resources. However, wood extraction was an important activity in the area since the 1940s and the forest was already heavily exploited. In 1974, a law prohibiting wood extraction (except for very mature trees) in Tumbes was passed. UNESCO declared the Tumbes National Forest as part of the Noroeste Biosphere Reserve in 1977. In 1994, the government creates by a decree the Tumbes Reserved Zone in the former area of the Tumbes National Forest. The aims of the creation of the reserved zone were to protect a representative area of the Pacific tropical forest, and its threatened flora and fauna. On July 7 2006, the Peruvian government declared part of the area as the Tumbes National Reserve. The area with the highest conservation priority was merged into

, while the remaining area was declared compatible with traditional land use and defined as spanning .

Geography

The area is characterized by a hilly terrain with some flat areas. It is covered with seasonally dry forest and tropical forest, due to the more humid climate resulting from marine currents and atmospheric factors.

Climate

The climate in the reserve is subtropical influenced some years by the El Niño phenomenon and the average annual precipitation is 1350 mm. Temperatures range from 35°C during summer (peak in February to April), to 15°C in winter (peak in July and August).

Ecology

Flora

The dominant vegetation type in the reserve is the seasonally dry tropical forest. Among the tree species found in this protected area are: hualtaco ('' Loxopterygium huasango''), ceibo (''

Ceiba ''Ceiba'' is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to Tropics, tropical and Subtropics, subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to northern Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to tall ...

trischistandra''), algarrobo (''Prosopis'' spp.), angolo (''

Albizia ''Albizia'' is a genus of more than 160 species of mostly fast-growing subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae. The genus is pantropical, occurring in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, America and A ...

multiflora''), quipo (''

Cavanillesia platanifolia ''Cavanillesia platanifolia'', known as pijio, bongo, pretino, petrino, cuipo, hameli or hamelí in Spanish or macondo, is a flowering plant species in the family Malvaceae. It grows in lowland rainforests in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colom ...

''), guayacán (''

Tabebuia ''Tabebuia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Bignoniaceae.Eberhard Fischer, Inge Theisen, and Lúcia G. Lohmann. 2004. "Bignoniaceae". pages 9-38. In: Klaus Kubitzki (editor) and Joachim W. Kadereit (volume editor) ...

'' sp.) and palo santo (''

Bursera graveolens ''Bursera graveolens'', known in Spanish as palo santo ('sacred wood'), is a wild tree native to the Yucatán Peninsula and also found in Peru and Venezuela. ''Bursera'' ''graveolens'' is found in the seasonally dry tropical forests of Peru, Ve ...

'').

Fauna

Among the mammals protected in the reserve are: the

mantled howler monkey The mantled howler (''Alouatta palliata'') is a species of howler monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central America, Central and South America. It is one of the monkey species most often seen and heard in the wild in Central America. It ta ...

, the

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

, the

margay The margay (''Leopardus wiedii'') is a small wild cat native to Mexico, Central and South America. A solitary and nocturnal felid, it lives mainly in primary evergreen and deciduous forest. Until the 1990s, margays were hunted for the wildl ...

, the

neotropical otter The neotropical otter or neotropical river otter (''Lontra longicaudis'') is a near-threatened (per the IUCN) otter species found in freshwater systems from Mexico and Central America through mainland South America, as well as the island of Trini ...

, the Guayaquil squirrel, the

tayra The tayra (''Eira barbara'') is an omnivorous animal from the mustelid family, native to the Americas. It is the only species in the genus ''Eira''. Tayras are also known as the ''tolomuco'' or ''perico ligero'' in Central America, ''motete'' ...

and the

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

. Reptiles found in the reserve include: the

American crocodile The American crocodile (''Crocodylus acutus'') is a species of crocodilian found in the Neotropics. It is the most widespread of the four Extant taxon, extant species of crocodiles from the Americas, with populations present from South Florida, ...

, the

eyelash viper ''Bothriechis schlegelii'', known commonly as the highland eyelash-pitviper, Schlegel's eyelash-pitviper, or eyelash viper, is a species of pit viper in the family Viperidae, native to Colombia. Somewhat small, arboreal snakes, ''B. schlegelii ...

and lizards of genus ''

Dicrodon ''Dicrodon'' is a genus of lizards in the family Teiidae. Commonly known as desert tegus, there are three described species. Geographic range Desert tegus are found in South America, specifically in Peru and Ecuador. Description Desert tegus a ...

''. A total of 175 bird species have been found in the reserve, including: the

grey-cheeked parakeet The grey-cheeked parakeet (''Brotogeris pyrrhoptera''), less commonly known as fire-winged parakeet, is a vulnerable species of bird. It is in the subfamily Arinae of the family Psittacidae, the African and New World parrots, and is found in ...

, the

yellow-faced parrotlet The yellow-faced parrotlet (''Forpus xanthops'') is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. Description Yellow-faced parrotlets are about long and weigh about . Their bodies are mostly dark or olive green with gray washes on the nape an ...

, the

Peruvian antpitta The Peruvian antpitta (''Grallaricula peruviana'') is a Near Threatened species of bird in the family Grallariidae. It is found in Ecuador and Peru. Taxonomy and systematics The Peruvian antpitta is monotypic. It and the ochre-fronted antpit ...

, the

grey-backed hawk The grey-backed hawk (''Pseudastur occidentalis'') is an Endangered species of bird of prey in subfamily Accipitrinae, the "true" hawks, of family Accipitridae. It is found in Ecuador and far northern Peru.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bon ...

, the

magnificent frigatebird The magnificent frigatebird (''Fregata magnificens''), frigate petrel or man o' war is a seabird of the frigatebird family Fregatidae. With a length of and wingspan of , it is the largest species of frigatebird. It occurs over tropical and subtr ...

, the white-tailed jay, the

common black hawk The common black hawk (''Buteogallus anthracinus'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and vultures. Description The adult common black-hawk is long and weighs on average. It has very broad win ...

, the

American yellow warbler The yellow warbler (''Setophaga petechia'') is a New World warbler species. Yellow warblers are the most widespread species in the diverse genus '' Setophaga'', breeding in almost the whole of North America, the Caribbean, as well as northern ...

, the

great-tailed grackle The great-tailed grackle or Mexican grackle (''Quiscalus mexicanus'') is a medium-sized, Social animal, highly social passerine bird native to North America, North and South America. A member of the Family (biology), family Icteridae, it is one o ...

and the

pale-legged hornero The pale-legged hornero (''Furnarius leucopus'') is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Guyana, and Peru. Taxonomy and systematics The pale-legged hornero's taxon ...

Activities

Although no facilities or paths for tourists have been built yet, the establishment of a tourist zone is on the works. The reserve authorities seek to promote activities like

birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescop ...

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

and tour canoeing.

Environmental issues

Wood extraction; wild honey extraction; hunting; river pollution (from gold mines in Ecuador as well as domestic waste from villages near the reserve) and illegal human settlements are the main problems the reserve faces.

References

External links

Profile at protectedplanet.net
Reserved zones of Peru Biosphere reserves of Peru Geography of the Department of Tumbes {{SouthAm-protected-area-stub