New Species of Owl in Colombia
Santa Marta Screech Owl Found In Sierra Nevada's Reserva El Dorado
In an area rich with endemic and threatened species, a new owl has been added to the growing list of reasons to protect the endangered wildlife of this unique ecosystem.
Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, a short trip from the city of Santa Marta, is home to the Reserva El Dorado. And the Reserva El Dorado is home to an amazing number of endemic species of plants and animals, many of them endangered. A new species of screech owl is being added to that list.
Why is The Reserva El Dorado so important?
The forest here is an isolated ecosystem with many of the plants and animals having evolved separately from their relatives in the other mountain ranges of Colombia. So the Reserva El Dorado has a very high concentration of endemic birds and amphibians. And, as in the Amazon, new species are still being discovered.
Many of the endemic species are considered endangered, partially because of their isolation and partly because of the threat of development from the nearby tourist city of Santa Marta. Vacation home building, invasive alien trees and deforestation for farming are all encroaching on the remaining native forest.
The New Screech Owl Species
In 2007, a new owl was seen in the Reserva's ecosystem. This owl is closely related to the tropical screech owl (Megascops choliba), a species listed as a Least Concern as it has a stable population and a large range. The Santa Marta screech owl (Otus sp. novus), on the other hand, only numbers 4 or 5 pairs right now. But Fundacion ProAves has put up dozens of nest boxes for the newly discovered owls in hopes of helping them survive and reproduce. The exciting news for birders is that the owls can be seen roosting right beside the newly opened EcoLodge.
This new screech owl joins the Santa Marta parakeet (Pyrrhura viridicata) and the Santa Marta Antpitta (Grallaria bangsi), as an El Dorado endemic species. Once the screech owl is confirmed as a new species, it will likely be listed as Endangered as well, unless large numbers are found outside the reserve, which is unlikely.
Protecting Reserva El Dorado and The New Owl
Several years ago, Fundacion ProAves, supported by several other conservation organizations including Conservation International and the American Bird Conservancy, began work to acquire some of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta forest ecosystem. This area is recognized by the Alliance for Zero Extinction as one of the sites in critical need of conservation, based on the range of biodiversity found there. The screech owl is just one of twenty one endemic bird species being protected. Endemic amphibians are also found there in significant numbers.
The natural flora is being restored. Non-native pines were taking over the native broadleaf forests, threatening not just the reserve but the quality of drinking water in the cities below. Those pines were used to build the EcoLodge.
With restoration underway and ecotourism interest high, the Reserva El Dorado is on its way to saving its unique biodiversity, including the Santa Marta screech owl.
