Reserva Las Tangaras

Our Reserve is famous for its birds. However, there are many interesting mammals that make their homes here as well. Below I have outlined a few of our favorites (in no particular order).

Central American Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) – Local name: guatusa. One of the most frequently seen mammals on the Reserve. Agoutis are large rodents, about the size of a jack rustle terrier, but with much longer legs and dainty lil’ paws. When alarmed, they thump their paws on the ground and make a series of grunts. Agoutis can jump about 6 feet horizontally, and when we startle them on the trails they often appear as a blur as they rocket themselves into the brush. As seed predators, agoutis will cache seeds when they find more than they can eat, making them important forest seed dispersers (Kritcher 1999). We regularly observe agoutis calmly foraging behind the Cabana without noticing us.

Ecuadorian White-Fronted Capuchin (Cebrus aequatorials) – A critically endangered species. Ecuadorian white-fronted capuchins are endemic to northern Peru and Ecuador and have lost 99% of their habitat in the last few decades. The lowland Chocó-Manabí region has largely been deforested and habitat converted to agriculture/ranch land. Large tracts of forested land are needed to sustain their foraging troupes as they have home ranges of 500 hectares (Abrams 2019). Occasionally, a troupe of capuchins will travel through the Reserve in the search for fruiting forest trees.

Southern River Otter (Luntra longicaudis) – In the past, these otters were intensively hunted for their fur and are not often seen (Emmons 1990). We were lucky and got to see an individual playing and foraging in the rapids at one of our favorite swimming holes. After it got out of the water, it sauntered past Mary without noticing her. While this was happening, I was running back to the cabana for my camera. By the time I returned to the beach, I was only able to get a blurred shot of it as it departed. Luckily, Mary took some good iPhone videos of the encounter. They are posted on RLT’s social media https://fb.watch/aVhl9dELo9/

Nine-banded Armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) – Mostly nocturnal, armadillos frequently forage for insects in the soil along our trails. They have poor eyesight, and it is sometimes possible to get a close look at them before they notice you.  When startled, they jump straight up into the air, then trundle speedily into the undergrowth. Armadillos’ defense is their armored bands, not their stealth, so they often move very noisily through the bush. If you hear something crashing through the undergrowth beside you at night, it is probably just an armadillo. If there was a jaguar next to you in the bush, you wouldn’t hear a thing.

Squirrels – Belong to the order Rodentia, which is the largest order of mammals worldwide. Squirrels are seen frequently all over the Reserve. We have two species:

• Western dwarf squirrel (Microsciurus mimulus). Seen regularly around the Reserve, just cute as a button. I don’t have any interesting facts, I just wanted a reason to include a photo in the blog.

• Red-tailed squirrel (Sciurus granatensis). A larger and significantly less cute squirrel. No photo needed.

Bats – Belong to the order Chiroptera, the second largest order of mammals worldwide. Bats make up 39% of neotropical mammals. Bats are very beneficial to ecosystems, as they eat large quantities of insects and are important pollinators for many plant species including balsa, chicle, and calabash. In a given neotropical forest, there are likely as many species of bats as there are all other mammals combined (Emmons 1990). We see them frequently in low light, and it can be difficult to determine their species. We do have one very special bat that roosts near the toolshed inside our cabin. We’ve named the bat ‘squeakers’ and it uses a cardboard box to do its business.

Kinkajou (Potos flavus) –The largest arboreal mammals we have at the Reserve. Kinkajous are a member of the raccoon family (Procyonidae) and are nocturnal. One can find kinkajous with a bright flashlight as they have incredibly bright orange eyeshine that will reflect the light back to you. During the day you might see their tails sticking out of their dens high in a tree.

Spectacled Bear (Tramarctos ornatus) – Once ranging from California to the eastern seaboard and all of Central America, the spectacled bear now has a limited range in North-East South America. The spectacled bear has been hunted relentlessly and has lost much of its former habitat to deforestation (Kritcher 1999). Since 2014, spectacled bears have only been observed once at the Reserve. During Katie & Nick’s tenure (winter 2021), a mother and cub walked right up the back stairs of the Lodge. Sightings like these remind us of why it is so important to preserve large areas of tropical forest.

Sources

Abrams, Sylvie. Ecuadorian White-Fronted Capuchin. New England Primate Conservancy. Web 2019 https://www.neprimateconservancy.org/ecuadorian-white-fronted-capuchin.html

Emmons H. Louise, Neotropical Rainforest Mammals: A Field Guide. 1990, University of Chicago Press

Kricher, John. A Neotropical Companion. 1999, Princeton University Press

Usually Reserva Las Tangaras is a quiet place. At lower altitudes the dominant sound is the rushing of the river, while up on the trails the buzzing of insects and croaking of frogs provide a constant but soft white noise broken only by the occasional raucous mixed flock. This month was different. The quiet cabana and peaceful trails were bustling with the arrival of 13 visitors for the biannual Reserva Las Tangaras birding expedition. 

First to arrive were five Ecuadorians to help run the project: two men experienced in local bird ID, mist netting, and bird banding, two wonderful cooks, and their six-year-old daughter who never failed to entertain us with her drawings, card games, and questions about our favorite colors and animals. Next arrived an enthusiastic, bird-savvy group of volunteers from North America led by Dr. Dusti Becker, Co-Director of Life Net Nature and the Reserve’s owner. Over the next two weeks the group would conduct standardized surveys and mist net and band birds in order to assess avian community composition around the reserve and contribute to the long-term dataset from previous years’ expeditions. 

We jumped into work the very first day. After a classic Ecuadorian lunch of soup followed by rice and lentils, accompanied by fresh juice, we went outside to review the basics of mist netting and bird banding.  

So, as you might have guessed by this month’s topic, it’s Mary writing this month’s blog (yes, I know, yet another post about birds). However, as bird banding has been a primary aspect of all my jobs over the past few years, I was excited to use this month’s expedition as an opportunity to write a bit more about bird banding and its importance to avian research. But before we jump into how mist netting and bird banding are used in avian research, let’s review the basics: what even are mist netting and bird banding?

Mist nets are a tool commonly used in avian field research to safely catch birds. Similar to a giant volleyball net, a mist net consists of two upright poles with a large net strung between them. The fine mesh of the net is difficult to see so birds fly into it and become trapped in its pockets. Once in the net, birds can be safely removed and banded. Bird banding involves placing a small metal ring on a bird’s leg. The metal bands are extremely lightweight and sized and placed so as not to be painful or cumbersome to the bird. Each ring has a unique combination of numbers so that individual birds can be identified if they are recaptured in the future. Along with receiving a band on its leg, captured birds are often measured (weight, wing length, bill length, etc.), checked for breeding condition or ectoparasites, and in some studies feather or blood samples are taken.

So great, now we’ve got a bird with a little metal band on its leg and we have some numbers representing the bird’s size, mass, and general body condition. However, given all the work involved in setting up and taking down mist nets (especially challenging on the muddy hills around Las Tangaras, as any of the volunteers would surely tell you!), extracting birds from nets, banding and measuring birds, and entering and managing data, what is the point of all this? Without a doubt, it’s an incredible experience to hold a bird in one’s hand and to see the wonderful details not visible from a distance. However, far beyond seeing pretty feathers up close, bird banding is a crucial tool in avian field research. Below are the primary ways in which bird banding is used in bird research:

• It may seem obvious, but a main point of bird banding is to provide us with basic information about birds. With a bird in the hand, we can take various body measurements, feather and blood samples, and check for ectoparasites. It is important to know this basic information about a species in order to understand its anatomy and physiology. Furthermore, blood and feather samples can tell us about energy sources and relatedness of individuals, which is important for understanding social interactions and energy needs. 

• Another purpose of banding is to understand species distributions. Mist netting is a valuable tool for determining what species are present in a given area. It can be especially helpful for detecting species that are quiet and rarely seen, thus less likely to be detected with other survey methods. For example, during our two-week expedition we caught a Plain Xenops, a species we haven’t yet seen or heard during our 2.5 months at the reserve. By capturing the Plain Xenops in the nets, we know this species is present in the area surrounding the reserve. 

• Mist netting is also a great way to gather demographic data on bird populations. Recapturing a previously banded bird gives us information on how long birds of that species live. In addition, certain characteristics, such as plumage, skull development, and breeding condition, can help biologists determine a bird’s age and sex. Examining trends in age and sex ratios of a population can allow biologists to determine demographic trends and possible mechanisms of any changes. For example, if researchers have been collecting data at a given site for multiple years, they can determine a normal age ratio (number of juveniles compared to adult birds). Seeing changes in this ratio can give researchers an idea about where in birds’ life cycles these changes are taking place. Fewer juveniles can indicate a decline in reproductive success, which suggests more research conducted on the breeding grounds may reveal the cause of the decline. Fewer returning adults during spring migration may indicate problems on the species’ migratory route or wintering grounds. Such information can help researchers decide where to allocate research time and money. 

• Mist netting is also a helpful tool for bird tracking efforts. Recapturing a previously banded individual, either at the same banding station or another location, lets us know where a bird is during that time of year. Mist netting is also valuable as a way of capturing birds to put tracking devices on them. Tracking birds is especially valuable for conservation because it gives us information on where a species goes during its full annual cycle. This is important for preserving habitat throughout a species’ range.

• Finally, bird banding is valuable as an educational tool. While seeing birds in their natural habitat is a great way to foster in people an interest in birds and the environment, seeing birds up close is a wonderful opportunity to educate people about aspects of bird anatomy that are not so easily seen from a distance. Seeing a bird in the hand, or getting the opportunity to hold and release a bird, can spark a whole new appreciation for these incredible feathered critters. From the beautiful details on individual feathers to marveling at how such a light animal can travel such huge distances, banding provides an opportunity to gain a new perspective on birds. Many banding stations are open to the public and provide a place for school field trips and scientists alike to learn about and appreciate birds and bird research. 

Many of these valuable aspects are incorporated in the banding efforts at Las Tangaras. Through the Reserve’s research, we are collecting valuable biometric and demographic data on many tropical species. Not only do the Reserve’s banding efforts sample what species are present in the area around Las Tangaras, but by mist netting in different habitat types during the two-week project, we are sampling how avian community composition varies by habitat type. Capturing the same individuals multiple years in a row also gives us information on survival and site fidelity (that is, the likelihood of an individual to return to a previously occupied location). Finally, by incorporating volunteers, the banding project serves as an educational opportunity to teach people a valuable tool used in avian research. 

From setting up mist nets on the first afternoon to participating in the Mindo Christmas Bird Count on the final day, this year’s expedition was a great success. During the two-week project, we detected a whopping 183 species. Furthermore, we are grateful for all that we learned from both the volunteers and Ecuadorian staff. It is inspiring and heartwarming to know that there are such talented, passionate people working to preserve the planet’s biodiversity.

The Reserve is quiet again. The sound of chopping from the kitchen and conversation from the front porch have been replaced by katydids in the lawn and Three-striped Warblers in the bushes around the cabana. But some reminders of this December’s project remain. We frequently see banded birds around the cabin. Perhaps they will be caught in July during the next banding expedition, contributing just a bit more data to the long term dataset here at RLT. 

We have been here living la vida loca since the start of May. It feels like no time at all, but soon we’ll be leaving this magical place and passing the baton to the next stewards. It’s only now that we’ve realised we neglected to fully introduce ourselves!

So! We are Jack & Meg, a couple from the UK. Meg is a Wildlife Researcher, showing itself in her day-to-day life, practically all of her hobbies and her kindle. Show me an animal that she hasn’t attempted to watercolour. She recently returned from India where she was studying bat bioacoustics and otter behaviour. Jack jestingly describes himself as ‘a man of the world’ but Meg would agree. He’s a dab hand at knocking up a water system and a dinner to rival the very best. He spends his spare time here playing guitar and fixing things.

We thought we’d use the next two blogs to blather on about things that are close to our heart. I’ll begin today, and next time Jack will be writing of one of his passions… compost toilets (actually building them, but you get the idea).

With the IPCC 2021 Climate report coming out last month and various ‘we’re doomed’ articles having been published worldwide, I’m sure that climate change and species loss are no stranger to any readers of this blog. BUT before you wearily sigh and scroll to exit the page, instead of discussing already vastly-addressed and miserable facts and figures, I’m here to present you with a positive and innovative solution, a technique that has recently been creating huge waves in the conservation world, and better yet – in most cases it takes minimal effort to achieve maximum results. Sounds too good to be true, right?

One of the reasons I was so eager to work here was that the reserve is such an example of this methodology. Rewilding. Letting nature do it’s own thing by relinquishing overbearing management. Reserva Las Tangaras was once livestock-heavy pasturage, used mainly to breed cows to sell for meat in Quito. The short-cut grazing of the cattle will have meant that minimal vegetation could subsist there, and the wildlife that did inhabit areas surrounding the pasture would have been restricted by fences, specifically designed to prevent creature entry or exit. LifeNetNature saw the rewilding potential for the 50-hectare farmland and sought to purchase it. Now after 20 years, this once-farmland is a bustling mix of primary & secondary forest, on one side neighboured by 20,000 hectares of the protected forest ‘Bosque Protector Mindo Nambillo’ and thus, teeming with life. Any boundaries were removed to let wildlife move freely through the surrounding landscape. For years now, steward’s (such as ourselves) jobs have been to protect the space and the abundance of species therein, from harm or extraction. This removal of control has allowed natural processes to take over throughout the reserve and thus restored food webs, natural dispersal and resilience to disturbances.

As a result of this thriving Wildlife Sanctuary, LifeNetNature and teams of volunteers are able to utilise the Reserve twice a year to study the abundant and diverse birdlife and the impacts that different environments have on their diversity. Sharing this space with likeminded visitors, and the sheer authentic wilderness it provides them, gives proof that if nature is given chance to heal, it can bounce back.

In evidence of the bounce-back here at the reserve, we recently found a ‘Blue-groin Rain Frog’ on one of our trails that explores secondary forest. Secondary Forest is a woodland area that has regrown after human disturbance, and is usually characterised by a minimal canopy structure, less diversity and smaller trees. It was particularly exciting as this specific rain frog has historically been closely tied to Primary Forest (pristine, untouched forest that still exists in its original condition) on account of that habitat’s complexity. Finding the Blue-groin Rain Frog in this new area is definitely something to celebrate as it shows the development of our Secondary Forest and it’s progression to more complex systems.  

In the Reserve’s case, the rewilding has come without much effort. The Bosque Protector forest spread quickly onto this land once fields had ceased to be cleared for cattle, with its seeds dispersed by birds or the wind, from which followed small mammals like Neotropical Squirrels and Nine-banded Armadillos attracting the larger predators such as Pumas and Ocelots, whilst the freshly grown vegetation attracted the larger vegetarians like the Spectacled Bears and White-tailed Deers. Seemingly simple. However, the tools that are employed to rewild can range widely in scale and from place to place. They can be applied incrementally over years, or solely once but they are expressed differently everywhere as different countries have different ecological histories, cultural attitudes towards nature, conservation traditions and thus different approaches for achieving the best results.

Nevertheless in 2016, a general classification of the four main rewilding approaches was formed to give a synthesis of acquired information and a light framework from which to work upon ₁, namely:

Trophic Rewilding

This is defined as ‘restoring big wilderness areas based on the regulatory role of large predators’. In a number of ecological cases it has been shown that if the carnivores at the ‘top of the food chain’ are reintroduced or preserved into degraded habitats, then their large impact will cause smaller positive impacts to trickle down the food chain (this is called a trophic cascade) and therefore benefit a broad assemblage of genera, producing a healthy and functioning ecosystem.

Yellowstone National Park is a key example of this rewilding initiative; in the mid-1990s Grey Wolves were reintroduced into YNP after many decades and showed startling effects on the area. Before this, the over-grazing of elk was causing the decline of upland woodland habitats and coyote populations were increasing exponentially which resulted in the decline of many smaller species, their prey. The beneficial impacts of the wolves were almost immediately evident – elk populations were controlled which allowed declining species of tree to recover such as cottonwood, aspen and willow. The recovery of willow lead to the recovery of the park’s dwindling aquatic ecosystems. This, in turn, supported the resurgence of beavers which had similarly become extinct in the region. The new wolf pack also displaced many coyotes, allowing red foxes who shared the same prey base to recover. Furthermore, the elk carcasses that the wolves discarded were found to benefit an extensive range of scavenger species such as cougar, wolverine, grizzly bear and raven. This shows the far-reaching impact that one species can have.

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LifeNetNature are currently trying to protect the YNP wolves, by lobbying for a safety buffer area to prevent the trophy hunting and trapping that is occurring as the wolves occasionally leave the boundaries of the National Park. If you would like more information on this, don’t hesitate to contact https://lifenetnature.org/

Pleistocene Rewilding

This type of rewilding describes the efforts to restore the ecological potential of ecosystems that existed before the demise of megafauna (animals of more than 45kg that lived during the Pleistocene) 10,000-15,000 years ago (which suspiciously coincides with the expansion of Homo sapiens and our carnivorous diets…). This type of rewilding is typically carried out by introducing relatives or ‘equivalent’ species of the extinct megafauna species. You might have heard of the potential to recreate the Woolly Mammoth using unearthed DNA.. yeah, rewilding isn’t advocating those extremes just yet – this only means using large wild cattle species to replace the magnificent aurochs which used to roam the plains of the world. The large cows would have a similar ecological impact as the Aurochs on the environment (specifically in terms of variable grazing, earth compaction and disturbance) and thus allow the ecosystem which many other species are ultimately and historically evolved for, to flourish.

Translocation Rewilding

This is defined as ‘reintroducing extant (surviving) species to restore dysfunctional ecological processes’. This method is for locations that have lost species that still exist in other areas of the world. A good example of this is currently underway here in South America, where they are reintroducing species such as Giant Anteater, Tapir, Peccary and Jaguar, which have been wiped out from regions by hunting.  

Passive Rewilding

This is defined as ‘the release of ecological processes through reducing human control of landscapes.’ This is what is occurring at the moment at Reserva Las Tangaras and spontaneously in many other regions of the world, through abandonment of cultivation land, small farming and traditional herding practices. This method inspires the inherent natural resilience that nature was so famed for. 

To conclude, they are the four main schemes that are being explored right now, but not all of us have enough space to begin releasing wolves, beavers, lynx or woolly mammoths into our back gardens… the best part is that every little goes a long way.

Here are a few examples of rewilding that you can contribute, at home in your garden or in your daily life which make a difference:

• Only planting native flowers in your garden / sew a wildflower mix
• Let the weeds grow! (Who decided they were weeds in the first place?!)
• Ensure there are wildlife corridors in gardens, such as small hedgehog-sized holes underneath your fences to promote wildlife dispersal
• Create a log pile or an ‘insect hotel’ for bugs and spiders to enjoy
• Get educated! There are many wonderful books on the subject which I will include in the notes

I seriously had to cut this blog down, and I wish I could have rambled on forever. There is a booklist below if you wish to explore the topic further. I hope this blog has given you a small insight into this new and exciting prospect and inspired you to look into it yourself! Thank you and hasta la proxima,

Meg

“Rewilding is also about the way we think. It is about understanding that we are one species among many, bound together in an intricate web of life that ties us to the atmosphere, the weather, the tide, the soil, the fresh water, the oceans and all of the living creatures on this planet.”

Global charter for rewilding the earth

• Feral – George Monbiot
• Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm – Isabella Tree
• Rewilding: The Radical New Science of Ecological Recovery – Paul Jepson & Cain Blythe
• Rebirding: Rewilding Britain and its Birds – Benedict Macdonald
• Grazing Ecology and Forest History – Frans Vera
• Rewild Yourself: 23 Spellbinding Ways to Make Nature More Visible – Simon Barnes
• ₁ – Rewilding is the new Pandora’s box in conservation. D Nogués–Bravo, D Simberloff, C Rahbek, NJ Sanders. Current Biology 26 (3), R87-R91, 2016.

Gazing out over the vista from the cabaña it is clear to see why Ecuador is famed for its bio-diversity. Like a giant muddled tapestry of green that blankets this country, the flora is one of the most striking and obvious components that hosts and hides Ecuador’s bountiful fauna. With an estimated 20,000-30,000 plant species, with more being added daily, it represents some 10% of the world’s species. Therefore it seemed only befitting, given the opportunity, to write about the medicinal and useful plants that surround us in the cloud forest.

As a self-confessed food-aholic, I herald food as the epitome of culture. I use travel as an excuse to sample the food on offer in the world and as such I found myself walking through the jungle eagerly trying to spot something palatable. Jungle raspberries were one of the first and most obvious things to find and a quick consultation of one of the reserves plant books confirmed that these were indeed edible. They have since become a favourite porridge topping of ours.

However, it quickly became evident through reading and research that the plants here don’t just offer a source of food for animals and humans but they are also the source of many compounds used in medicinal purposes. A quick stroll down one of the many senderos here at the reserve will unveil a multitude of analgesic, astringent, diuretic, emollient and many other useful plants. We have such a limited knowledge of what is on offer in these environments (about 1% of known plant and animal species have been examined for their medicinal properties). It is easy to forget when popping a pill or applying a cream that most if not all of these medicines were at one point derived from natural sources. For example, the blueprint for aspirin is derived from extracts of willow trees found in the rainforest. 70% of plants with anti-cancer properties are found solely in the Amazon. Treatments for malaria, Parkinson’s disease and leukaemia in modern medicine also come from plants found in the Amazon. Therefore it is evident that the protection of these environments is paramount to preserving and discovering the answers to many human diseases.

Whilst it would appear nearly all the plant life surrounding the reserva pertain some use or are consumable, there are a few on our backdoor step which I’d like to draw particular attention to, not only for their beauty but for the numerous usages they hide.  A particularly striking perennial herb that is also a favourite of tanagers for its fruits is the Candlestick Ginger “Caña Agria”. The uses of this plant are seemingly endless. Young plants are crushed and the juice extracted for the treatment of internal fever and bronchitis. The sap is a hypoglycaemic agent used for controlling diabetes. A decoction from the root can be used to treat stomachaches and snakebites. It is also known as a cure for gonorrhoea, one Indian group even making a douche from the flowers to treat vaginal infections. Other known uses are as an application for skin ailments, a treatment for intestinal worms, and an anti-dysenteric. If that wasn’t enough, the sap can also provide a refreshing drink!

Equally distinctive and found anywhere from roadsides to dangling from the jungle canopy: Angels Trumpet – also known locally as Campaña, Toé, or its Latin name Brugmansia suaveolens. A member of the nightshades family, it produces large, showy, pendant shaped flowers. The leaves of this plant are cultivated and use for a variety of applications. Ranging from the treatment of general aches and pains to relieving tension and anxiety, it is also an ingredient in the preparation of the hallucinogenic drink ayahuasca and as a component of the arrow poison curare.

For those of you that haven’t heard of the aforementioned concoctions, read on!

Ayahuasca refers to the ritualistic hallucinogen that has been employed by Amerindians for centuries in communal rituals. It is has been used by shamans in order to communicate with the spirit world to help diagnose illness or to seek answers to tribal crises. There is growing interest and research into its treatment for mental health issues. Ayahuasca also known as banisteriopsis caapi is a giant vine plant found in tropical forest regions of northwest South America. A drink is prepared out of the bark of the B. caapi, sometimes alongside other ingredients such as the Angel Trumpet in order to lengthen and intensify the experience as well as improve the flavour of the beverage.

Curare (or curaré) on the other hand is an arrow and dart poison used throughout northern South America for hunting and killing game. The contents of the poison vary from region to region. Generally the bark of the source plant is scraped, pounded, and then filtered with cold water through a rolled palm leaf. Other notable extracts for curare come from famed the poison-dart frog (genus Dendrobates) or from the venom of large stinging ants. Curare works by inhibiting neuromuscular activity in the target, resulting in paralysis and eventual death. Due to the fact that curare does not affect the heart, it found its way into widespread medical applications, most notably as a muscle relaxant during surgical operations.

Not only do the plants of the Amazon serve as an important carbon dioxide sponge for the planet (absordbing 15% of CO2 in the atmosphere) but they are also clearly vital resources for the eradication for disease. The current pandemic only further highlights the need for greater research into this area. The rate of deforestation in this region of the world threatens much of the primary habitats of these floras. The future health and welfare of humanity will be determined, to a great extent, by the fate of the rainforests. Mother nature has provided the bare necessities of life, it is up to us to use them and conserve them.