dry ecosystems in Colombia, little known and cared
Most dry ecosystems go unnoticed to the casual observer, who sees as mere minor road or river. When you think about biodiversity always come to mind images of jungle and tropical forests, but also dry ecosystems play a vital role in the ecological balance. A group of biologists graduates of the National University of Colombia created the foundation five years ago Dry Ecosystems in Colombia whose aim is to study, preserve and build support for this kind of landscape care.
Gina Rodriguez, a biologist at the university and director of the Foundation, is convinced that for the new generation of biologists is a vast field for the study of dry forests. "We want to generate knowledge about these ecosystems, which are the most degraded, least kept and most unknown. Scientists tend to focus more on areas such as wilderness. "
the situation in the world is not the best at present is only 1.5 percent of the original cover. In Colombia the protected area of \u200b\u200bdry ecosystems in the National National Park is only 0.8 percent. "That's nothing, there is a whole work ahead to improve sheltered areas and create biological corridors connecting the remaining small pockets," emphasizes the young biologist.
dry ecosystems include tropical dry forests, such as those seen on the tour road between Bogota and Melgar, also on the sides of the tracks on the Atlantic coast, where tours to Cartagena, Barranquilla and Santa Marta (including the Tayrona park), as well, where there are very dry scrub cactus. Andean dry systems such as Villa de Leyva (Boyacá), all part of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, deserts such as the Tatacoa (Huila) and La Guajira.
"These natural areas have many goods and services. In these ecosystems there is a high variety of timber species are becoming extinct. They are places we have to repopulate to have sustainable forests. These soils are very fertile dry forests. There are many plant species are endemic. To complete, lives a high variety of medicinal species that little is known, "says Rodriguez.
One of the key strategies in which the Foundation works to create conservation areas. To achieve this requires further field studies. At the time, 90 percent of I develop NGO jobs are derived from people from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia interested in the issue, although there are professionals from other universities.
According to the Foundation, the region most heavily beaten the dry ecosystem is the Atlantic Coast, by the expansion of the agricultural and ranching. Also, the cundiboyacense plain and dry enclaves along the Magdalena River.
"We want to create a project bank. Students of the University who are interested can contact us to extend this research. In Colombia there are very few entities interested in preserving these ecosystems, in part because there is little literature and few studies, "he says Gina Rodriguez.
Posted on (month / day / year) 01/07/2009
Source: UN News Agency - http://www.agenciadenoticias.unal.edu.co - Bogotá, Colombia
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