Student Education and Research

in Neotropical Program:

Status: Active, started in 2005

All projects within this project:
Donate

Background:

The Neotropics &ndash a region extending from southern Mexico to Argentina and including the Caribbean Islands – contains 26 endemic species of birds of prey and provides important habitat for dozens more. Some forest species occur at low density and are difficult to study, thus presenting great challenges for their conservation against the principal threats of habitat loss and persecution.

We began this program in May 2005 to address an urgent need to find out more about the region’s raptor diversity and implement programs that help people to co-exist with raptors, their prey, and the habitats the birds need for survival. Each year, we provide grants and supervision to students conducting thesis research projects related to Neotropical birds of prey.

Recent Results:

2010 Results

  • A completed study of the White-collared Kite, once considered extinct, revealed that populations do exist in Brazil, the range is larger than expected, and the conservation status is better than originally thought.
  • An active Isidor's Eagle nest with a six-week-old chick was found in Colombia and observations of this rare eagle revealed that it preys mainly on domestic chickens, which poses a conservation problem in an area where researchers confirmed eight cases of humans killing the eagles in the last five years.
  • A study of the Andean Condor in Ecuador represented the first step toward implementation of an unfunded national conservation strategy and revealed patterns of distribution and abundance.

Project Links:

(no history) (no field notes)
Publications and Data (no misc. information)
Photos and Videos

Species involved

People involved in this project:

Hernan Vargas Ph.D. Program director – Neotropical Science and Student Education
Rick Watson Ph.D. Vice President and Director of International Programs
Jose Hernan Sarasola CECARA - CONICET advisor
Mari Cruz Jaramillo Msc student
Patricia Parker UMSL, University advisor
Jose Rivera MSc student
Maximiliano Adrián Galmes Ph.D. Student

Cooperating Partners:

  • Arkansas State University
  • Charles Darwin Foundation
  • Fundación Cóndor -Parque Cóndor
  • Fundación Galo Plaza Lasso – Comuna and Hacienda Zuleta
  • Galapagos National Park Service
  • Grupo Nacional de Trabajo sobre el Cóndor Andino en Ecuador
  • Ministerio del Ambiente de Ecuador
  • Offield Family Foundation
  • SIMBIOE
  • Swiss Friends of the Galapagos
  • The Butler Foundation
  • The Galapagos Conservancy
  • Universidad Nacional de La Pampa
  • University of Missouri Saint Louis
  • Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center
  • Zoo Boise Conservation Fund
  • Centro para el Estudio y Conservación de las Aves Rapaces en Argentina-Universidad Nacional de La Pampa (CECARA)
  • Universidad Nacional del Comahue (UNCOMA)
  • Government of La Pampa Province
  • Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (ANPCYT)
  • Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)
  • Aves Argentinas