Den var ikke set siden 1898 og så kom den lige så fredeligt luntende på et gelænder få meter fra 2 lamslåede forskere i et reservat i Colombia, som – med rette – er kaldt den “ultimative Noahs Ark”
Washington D.C., 18 May 2011: A unique and mysterious guinea-pig-sized rodent (gnaver på størrelse med et marsvin), not seen since 1898 despite several organized searches, bizarrely showed up at the front door of an ecolodge at a nature reserve in Colombia, South America.
The magnificent red-crested tree rat (rødtoppet trærotte – Santamartamys rufodorsalis), stayed for almost two hours while two research volunteers took the first photos ever of a creature the world thought would never be seen again.
The charming nocturnal (nataktive) rodent made his re-debut to the world at 9:30PM on May 4, 2011 at the El Dorado Nature Reserve in the far north of the country.
The animal was rediscovered by Lizzie Noble and Simon McKeown – two volunteer researchers with ProAves monitoring endangered amphibians (padder). It posed for photographs – including close-ups – before calmly proceeding back to the forest.
– He just shuffled up the handrail (gelænder) near where we were sitting and seemed totally unperturbed (uanfægtet) by all the excitement he was causing. We are absolutely delighted to have rediscovered such a wonderful creature after just a month of volunteering with ProAves. Clearly the El Dorado Reserve has many more exciting discoveries waiting, said Lizzie Noble from Godalming, England.
The Reserve was established in 2005 by Fundación ProAves – Colombia’s foremost bird conservation organization -with support from American Bird Conservancy, World Land Trust-US, the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, Fundación Loro Parque and Conservation International.
– We are so proud that our El Dorado Nature Reserve has provided a safe haven for this enigmatic (gådefulde) little guy to survive. The discovery exemplifies why we buy forested properties known to be important for endangered wildlife yet at imminent risk of being destroyed. We are also proud that our volunteers made the discovery of the decade, and hope future ecotourists will see the mammal (pattedyr) at the reserve, said Lina Daza, Executive Director of ProAves.
– The El Dorado Nature Reserve represents the ultimate Noah’s Ark, protecting the last populations of many critically endangered and endemic flora and fauna; a living treasure trove (skattekiste) like no other on Earth, said Dr. Paul Salaman, the scientist from the World Land Trust-US who confirmed the identity of the species.
– Had we not worked with our partners to establish this reserve, it is reasonable to believe this species would still remain something that was only talked about in science journals. Now we need to work with our partners to take steps to see that this species continues to be a part of our world, said George Fenwick, President of American Bird Conservancy.
The red-crested tree rat will now likely be designated as Critically Endangered under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List of Threatened Species criteria. What is most concerning, however, is that much of the tree rat’s potential remaining range is inundated (oversvømmet) with introduced feral cats (vildkatte) that prey on native fauna.
In 2005, Dr. Louise Emmons of the Smithsonian Institution examined the only two skin specimens of the tree rat known at that time. She identified a number of unique characteristics, and assigned the species to its own genus (slægt) Santamartamys.
It is 18 inches (ca. 40 centimeter) long from head to the tip of the tail and is distinguished by a mane-like band of reddish fur around its neck and a black and white tail.
The 2.000-acre (knapt 1.000 hektar) El Dorado reserve is named after the legendary lost city of gold, and is internationally known as a unique destination for ecotourists. It is situated in cloud forests at 5.900 feet (ca. 2.000 meters højde), just two hours’ drive from the popular coastal tourist city of Santa Marta.
The reserve and adjacent (tilstødende) lands host the highest concentration of continental, range-restricted bird species found anywhere in the world, including the endangered Santa Marta Parakeet, Santa Marta Bush-Tyrant, and Santa Marta Sabrewing, all of which have their entire or major stronghold populations there.
It also holds one of the highest concentrations of endemic and threatened amphibian species in the world. The reserve is listed as an Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) site, establishing it among the world’s highest priorities for conservation, yet remarkably little is known about the area.
– This discovery marks the beginning of a major effort to save the red-crested Tree rat and heralds the start of a global initiative in search of lost mammal species, said Dr. Salaman.
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You can download photos of this red-crested tree rat from the American Bird Conservancy on http://www.abcbirds.org/newsandreports/red_crested_tree_rat_photos.html
Fundación ProAves (www.proaves.org) is a Colombian non-profit organization that focuses on the study and conservation of our biodiversity, especially birds at risk of extinction and their habitats, in partnership with local communities. ProAves’ objective is to support and promote the protection of Colombia’s incredible but endangered natural heritage with the ultimate aim of benefiting the planet and humanity.
American Bird Conservancy (www.abcbirds.org) conserves native birds and their habitats throughout the Americas by safeguarding the rarest species, conserving and restoring habitats, and reducing threats while building capacity of the bird conservation movement.
The World Land Trust-US is a nonprofit organization established in 1989 to save rainforests and other threatened tropical habitats that are critical for preventing immediate species extinctions.
Conservation International (CI) — Building upon a strong foundation of science, partnership and field demonstration, CI empowers societies to responsibly and sustainably care for nature, our global biodiversity, for the long term well-being of people. Founded in 1987, CI has headquarters in the Washington, DC area, and nearly 900 employees working in more than 30 countries on four continents, plus 1.000+ partners around the world. For more information, visit www.conservation.org
Kilde: Conservation Internationals hjemmeside
