Colombia: Alto de San Miguel, the refuge of endangered species and biodiversity

The female tiger, Tigrilla Lanuda, collected by the Alto de San Miguel reserve in Colombia.

Alto de San Miguel Reserve

Text by: Najet Benrabaa Follow

6 min

The Alto de San Miguel reserve, located about an hour's drive from Medellín, measures 1,622 hectares and contains 16% of the country's biodiversity.

It has become a refuge for endangered or endangered species such as the forest puma and the feline tigrillo lanudo.

The history of this nature reserve linked to the armed conflict did not guarantee it a flourishing future.

Twelve years later, his teams save animals and welcome the public.

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When she arrived at the reserve's animal reception center at the end of 2019, she was so small that she got lost in the hands of the caretakers.

This little feline looking for the extended bottle is a

tigrilla lanuda

or

leopardus tigrinus,

that is to say a leopard tiger.

In this month of January 2020, the female of a few months is presented to the media.

His small ears and large eyes are eye-catching, while his coat is intriguing, as it has no stripes and is completely black.

This is an anomaly, which makes this feline an exception.

After several examinations, veterinarians, zootechnicians and biologists confirm that the

tigrilla

has melanoma.

Andrés Alberto Gómez, member of the wildlife team in the Aburra Valley metropolitan area explains: “ 

We tried to return the baby to its mother.

But it has not been found and the habitat where it had left has been damaged.

So we decided to take care of it

.

"

Six months of learning in the wild

According to locals who brought it to the reserve, the feline was lost, meowing in search of its mother near a coffee-growing field.

Leopardus tigrinus

is one of the six species of felines living in Colombia.

According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, it is an endangered species because its habitat, limited to moors and fog forests, is threatened by human intervention.

She is also a victim of hunting and illegal keeping as a pet.

After six months of caring for and learning in the wild, she was released to the reserve last May.

Luis Felipe Molina, the coordinator of the reserve explains: “ 

regular rescues, especially of snakes or birds such as the orvert emerald hummingbird [Colibri verde esmeralda, Editor's note] because they are injured by bumping into the walls or the windows of the houses around the reserve

.

»Across the entire Aburra Valley.

Andrés Alberto Gómez also confirms: “ 

puppies of mammals such as tigers, jaguarondi, kinkajou, foxes, raccoons, gray-headed marten, opossums and rodents, among others, are constantly arriving both in Corantioquia and in the Metropolitan Area of the Aburrá Valley, mainly from the rural area, because they are removed from the forest by people who think that these puppies are abandoned.

However, usually its mother is looking for food nearby and leaves them in burrows that people find.

 "

¡Recibimos un tigrillo lanudo melánico!



Este cachorro tiene una condición genética poco común, in that, por un exceso de pigmentación, se ve casi completamente negro y no amarillo como es normalmente 🐯 @ Corantioquia @UniversidadCES pic.twitter.com/HN8nZZCchE

  Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (@Areametropol) January 14, 2020

A story linked to armed conflict

Felipe Molina confides that during the armed conflict, the reserve was abandoned.

“ 

When there were criminal gangs and armed groups in the territory, we couldn't do anything.

We did not have access to the site.

Suddenly, it remained wild.

For twelve years now, we have reclaimed space and rehabilitated the habitat to meet the needs of animals.

 "

The reserve has about 85 species of mammals, 289 birds, 250 types of butterflies and 700 plants, or 16% of the country's biodiversity on a single site.

Sandra Muñoz Mejia, Director of the Environment Secretariat at Medellín City Hall, says: “ 

Our main goal has been to preserve the environment to save endangered species.

In fact, ecological restoration has been the priority.

So far we have managed to protect 814 hectares.

 "

The Alto de San Miguel Reserve is the best-preserved site in the Aburra Valley.

It is also rich in water, because the sources that form the region's river are on its land.

Despite everything, climate change and human exploitation (intensive breeding, logging and river exploitation) remain obstacles.

According to the director, “ 

the greatest danger is deforestation.

We are losing the habitat of thousands of species.

People do not value Colombian biodiversity.

 "

Natural heritage protection law

Since 1993, Colombia has protected its natural heritage with Law 99. This law allowed the creation of the national environmental system, the Sina.

It stipulates that the public sector should take responsibility for the management and conservation of the environment.

According to the

World Wide Fund for Nature

(WWF), 407 of the 1,023 species of fauna and flora threatened or endangered in Colombia are animals.

In the Alto de San Miguel wildlife reserve, ten employees are busy all year trying to save them (two forest rangers, a biologist, six guides and an activities coordinator).

Colombia is the second richest country in biodiversity in the world.

Its more than 114 million hectares are home to 58,312 animal and plant species.

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  • Colombia

  • Animal health