The Cordillera de Colán was officially declared a reserved zone by the Peruvian government on March 6th, 2002. The Cordillera de Colán, located in the state of Amazonas, is an isolated mountain range of the eastern Andes. This new protected area contains 64,114.74 ha of pristine forest, distributed in three altitudinal levels: pre- montane, low montane and montane.
The protection of several flora and fauna species is one of the main goals of the establishment of the new reserved zone. Among them are the yellow?tailed wooly monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda)-a Peruvian endemic species-, the owl Xenoglaux loweryi, and the royal sunangel (Heliangelus regalis). The vegetation in the Cordillera de Colán has not been sufficiently studied, but a high level of endemism is predicted. This area also protects water resources and provides several environmental benefits to the surrounding communities.
The legislative decree (see image above) establishing the Cordillera de Colán Reserved Area is based on recommendations of a technical report made by the Asociación Peruana para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (APECO), with support of the World Park Endowment and the Garfield Foundation. APECO has worked on this project for many years. In 1996, APECO signed an agreement with the Council of the Aguarauna and Huambiza indigenous peoples to restart the process of protecting this biologically and culturally significant area. Since then, cooperative efforts have continued to bring about this victory for conservation.
ParksWatch: July 2002