Arbonautas

01/10/2024

This year’s breeding season continues to bring hope, of the wild nests, 26 became active, with 24 in artificial cavities and 2 in natural tree cavities. Proyecto Conservación Cotorra Puertorriqueña at Rio Abajo State Forest is working tirelessly to save one of the world’s most Critically Endangered parrots.🦜

Puerto Rican Amazon Breeding Season 2024 🦜In the Rio Abajo Forest of Puerto Rico, our partners at Proyecto Conservación Cotorra Puertorriqueña de Rio Abajo are working tirelessly to save one of the world’s most Critically Endangered parrots.

This year’s breeding season continues to bring hope, with 46 wild nests and 59 captive nests identified at the Río Abajo site. Of the wild nests, 26 became active, with 24 in artificial cavities and 2 in natural tree cavities.

In the captive population, 34 nests became active, demonstrating the effectiveness of ongoing breeding efforts. The balance between wild and captive populations is essential for ensuring the survival of the Puerto Rican Amazon, a species that once teetered on the brink of extinction.

Pictured here, a proud mother parrot sits watch over her three newly hatched chicks, small, pink, and fluffy bundles of life representing the future of this species. Every chick is a step toward safeguarding the wild population.

You can learn how your support of the World Parrot Trust helps aid in country partners to protect threatened species such as the Puerto Rican Amazon > https://www.parrots.org/projects/puerto-rican-amazon

22/09/2024

Happy Autumnal Equinox!!

¡Feliz equinoccio!
Si quieres encontrar balance y harmonía elige solo una maestra; la naturaleza.

21/09/2024

It was a full year of hard work at El Yunque National Rainforest after hurricane Maria destroyed the forest. No electricity, limited communications, many miles of trails opened with no shade and countless tree climbs restoring the parrot nesting sites in remote areas of the forest. These album has all our stories.

Arbonautas is working with the US Forest Service in the remote areas of the mountains of El Yunque National Rainforest for the Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Program, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife initiative focused on keeping the island’s only endemic bird species from extinction. After Hurricanes Irma and Maria we have many challenges: a wrecked forest, lost trails, battered tree platforms and nests plus an entire flock of missing birds.

21/09/2024

Today seven years ago Hurricane María, a high end Category 4 hurricane made landfall in Puerto Rico, with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph. Hurricane María caused widespread catastrophic damage and loss of life across Puerto Rico and Saint Croix of the U.S. Virgin Islands due to its heavy rain, very strong winds, and storm surge. We are still recuperating from this event that changed everything in the island.

Eye of extremely dangerous Hurricane Maria moving westward across southeastern portions of Puerto Rico.

16/09/2024

Recovery of critically endangered Puerto Rican parrot is a challenging, lengthy process, and is especially complex when it includes captive breeding and reintroduction.

Recovery of endangered species is challenging, especially when it involves reintroduction and dynamic environmental conditions. We developed a population viability analysis (PVA) for the critically e...

06/09/2024

🍄 Fungi Friday 🍄

31/08/2024

A tree has roots in the soil yet reaches to the sky. It tells us that in order to aspire we need to be grounded and that no matter how high we go it is from our roots that we draw sustenance.

15/08/2024

En cada vida debe caer algo de lluvia. Sin pequeños baches, la vida no sería tan maravillosa.

13/08/2024

Los árboles de la Sierra de Luquillo se han adaptado a los estragos de las fuertes tormentas. Son más bajos que los árboles en zonas libres de huracanes y muchas especies tienen aproximadamente la misma altura, por lo que ningún árbol individual se eleva por encima del dosel para estar expuesto a vientos fuertes.

Aquí hay otras tácticas que usan los árboles del bosque de Luquillo para resistir los huracanes:

Palma de la sierra
Las palmas y otros árboles tropicales arrojan sus hojas rápidamente en una tormenta. Sin nada más que tronco y ramas, el árbol presenta un objetivo más pequeño para el viento.

Árbol de tabonuco
Además de dejar caer sus hojas, los árboles de tabonuco entrelazan sus raíces para crear una red para compartir nutrientes y formar un ancla fuerte en las crestas expuestas.

Muskwood
La guarea similar a la caoba, o árbol de madera de almizcle. se vuelca en una tormenta, luego brota rápidamente un nuevo crecimiento a lo largo de su tronco caído. Estos brotes se convierten en clones de árboles que al principio dependen del árbol original para obtener nutrientes y agua, antes de enviar sus propias raíces al suelo.

Cómo los bosques sobreviven a la tormenta
Amber Dance - El científico.

The trees of the Sierra the Luquillo mountains have adapted to the ravages of harsh storms. They are shorter than trees in hurricane-free zones, and many species are all roughly the same height, so no individual tree rises above the canopy to be exposed to high winds.

Here are other tactics Luquillo Forest trees use to resist hurricanes:

Sierra palm
Palms and other tropical trees toss their leaves quickly in a storm. With nothing left but trunk and branches, the tree presents a smaller target to the wind.

Tabonuco tree
In addition to dropping their leaves, tabonuco trees intertwine their roots to create a network to share nutrients and form a strong anchor on exposed ridges.

Muskwood
The mahogany-like guarea, or muskwood tree. tips right over in a storm, then quickly sprouts new growth along its fallen trunk. These sprouts grow into tree clones that at first rely on the original tree for nutrients and water, before sending their own roots into the soil.

How Forests Survive the Storm
Amber Dance - The Scientist.

29/07/2024

"No puedo cuidar mi salud y mi espíritu a menos que pase por lo menos dos horas al día en los árboles, totalmente libre de compromisos mundanos." ~ El Arbonauta

19/07/2024

The majesty of the tree bark.

Troncos y cortezas de los árboles de Puerto Rico.
Tree bark beauty from Puerto Rico trees.

16/07/2024

💭 Martes de Memorias 💭
🌳 Expediciones y trepas árbol campeón mas alto de Puerto Rico 🇵🇷

Climbing Puerto Rico's Tallest Champion Tree.

26/04/2024

🌎 Earth Week Moments🌳
Morning chat in the canopy.
🌳 Rio Abajo State Forest - Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Project 🇵🇷

24/04/2024

🌎 Earth Week Moments🌳
Busy morning in the canopy. Up in the tree from the newly installed artificial nest a pair of curious parrots investigates who's coming up today.
🌳 Rio Abajo State Forest - Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Project 🇵🇷

23/04/2024

The last trip to the forest in this assignment for the 2024 nesting season. We are very satisfied to have worked again with the Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Project and happy to contribute to the survival of this beautiful critically endangered specie of our island. Honored to work with an excellent crew of biologist in the aviary at Rio Abajo State Forest. Thank you all!! The best team!!

🌳Rio Abajo State Forest - Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Project🇵🇷

22/04/2024

🌳Thank you Mother Nature 🌎

02/04/2024

🚨¡Excelente Noticia! 🦜
Nos enorguellece conocer que en esta temporada del 2024, ya se han contabilizado 25 nidos activos de nuestra cotorra puertorriqueña. Es la cifra más alta desde que comenzaron a liberarse cotorras en el Bosque de Río Abajo desde el año 2006.
Todo un éxito el trabajo del equipo liderado por la bióloga Tanya Martínez. ¡Felicidades a todos nuestros colegas!

En el bosque de Río Abajo en Utuado, se registra la cifra más alta de estos hogares silvestres y ya comienzan a nacer los polluelos de esa ave endémica.

22/03/2024

🌎 International Day of Forests🌳
Busy morning in the canopy. Up in the trees surrounded by curious parrots that can't wait to check out the new nest installed.
🌳 Rio Abajo State Forest - Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Project 🇵🇷