A scientific foray up into the rugged cloud forests of the Bolivian Andes – a relative stone’s throw from the capital city La Paz – has uncovered an all-around treasure trove of biodiversity, including 20 previously undescribed species and a number of organisms that had been feared lost.
The area explored was Chawi Grande in the Zongo Valley, set within waterfall-flumed Andean highlands, partly fed by clouds blossomed out of the Amazon Basin, and an important source of drinking water and hydroelectricity for nearby La Paz. The two-week trek covered several thousand metres of elevation and documented better than 1,200 species, more than half of which were recorded in the watershed for the first time.
Among the newly described species is an amphibian running a mere 10mm from nose to rump: the aptly named Lilliputian frog, which has apparently eluded scientific gaze not only because of its vanishingly small proportions but on account of its “habit of living under tunnels beneath the thick layers of moss and humus” that cloak its cloud-forest haunts.
Also uncovered in this remarkably fruitful expedition was the mountain fer-de-lance – a pit viper – and the Bolivian flag snake, so-named because of its red, yellow, and green outfit.
Vertebrates weren’t the only lifeforms brand-new to science logged in the study: Four kinds of butterflies came on the radar, as did a number of plants – including a bamboo thus far not formally described but well known to native communities as qulqunch’awa, employed to make musical instruments.
Just as exciting as the new-to-science species, a number of organisms not documented for many years were “rediscovered.” Those called-back-from-the-brink creatures included the devil-eyed frog, with its dark skin and red peepers, until now known only from one specimen recorded more than two decades ago: The survey reckoned the species as “relatively abundant” in the Bolivian Andean cloud forest assessed. “Its elusive nature,” a Conservation International press release on the discoveries reads, “may be partly due to its habit of hiding beneath the thick moss and humus surrounding the roots of bamboo.”
Some 22 species tallied in the assessment land on the IUCN Red List as “threatened,” from the channel-billed toucan to the spectacled bear.
Conservation International announced the findings this week, stemming from fieldwork involving 17 researchers and co-led by the organisation’s Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) director Trond Larsen and the Municipal Government of La Paz’s Conservation and Wildlife Management head Claudia Cortez. The expedition came about through support from the National Museum of Natural History of Bolivia, the Bolivian National Herbarium, the Global Conservation Fund, the Andes Amazon Fund, and the La Paz government.
“As a haven for many newly discovered species and the source of water producing 11 percent of the electricity of the country, the importance of protecting the Zongo Valley is clearer than ever,” La Paz Mayor Luis Revilla said in a press release. “As La Paz continues to grow, we will take care to preserve the nearby natural resources that are so important to our wellbeing.”
New Species
New Species
New Species
