We’re delighted to announce that the Buy an Acre programme is now supporting our partner Fundación EcoMinga (EcoMinga) to expand the Olivier Currat Reserve, nestled on the eastern slopes of the Ecuadorian Andes.
This will offer vital protection for a breathtaking landscape home to many highly threatened species. Among these are the endemic and Critically Endangered Punzan Rainfrog (Pristimantis punzan), which long went unnoticed until its discovery by EcoMinga in 2014.
Expanding a refuge
The Olivier Currat Reserve contains everything from mountainous forests and rushing waterfalls to the remote páramo grasslands – a high-altitude grassland habitat unique to Central and South America. With such a varied mosaic of habitats, it is little wonder that this is one of the most biodiverse areas on Earth, falling within both the Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot and the Llanganates-Sangay Corridor Key Biodiversity Area (KBA).
High in the clouds: the protection of the Olivier Currat Reserve plays a key role in preserving the wider Llanganates-Sangay Ecological Corridor. Credit: EcoMinga
But it is also a landscape under threat from agricultural expansion, slash-and-burn clearance, and illegal hunting. The disappearance of forest habitat is also bringing wildlife into closer contact with people, leading to human-wildlife conflict. For the Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus), this often means retaliatory killing by farmers defending their crops and livestock.
This expansion will increase protection for the reserve’s flagship species, the Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus), Credit: Fausto Recalde/EcoMinga
This new Buy an Acre project will enable EcoMinga to expand the Olivier Currat Reserve by an additional 485 hectares (1,198 acres) – adding to its existing 80 hectares (198 acres). Once complete, this will increase connectivity to the adjacent Sangay National Park, strengthening protection for wildlife across the entire landscape.
Your support makes this possible
We are delighted to include this new project in the Buy an Acre programme and cannot wait to share future updates with you from the reserve.
If you have enjoyed this article, please consider supporting our work to protect this remarkable landscape.
