The Thomas van der Hammen Natural Reserve or Thomas van der Hammen Forest Reserve is an area of the Bogotá savanna that is under environmental protection. The natural reserve was declared as such in year 2000 by the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable development.[1] It takes its name from the Dutch-Colombian geologist Thomas van der Hammen who devoted his life to the research of the region. The surface area of the protected reserve is approximately 1,395 hectares (3,450 acres) and it is located in the north of Bogotá.
The protection area has the purpose of creating an urban forest that connects the Bogotá River and the Eastern Hills of Bogotá, to preserve the underground water sources, improve the quality of the air and protect the diversity and activities of the animal species that exist there.[2][3]
Mayor of Bogotá Enrique Peñalosa has proposed construction in the Reserve that could host 1.5 million people.[4]
Flora and fauna
The Thomas van der Hammen Natural Reserve is a rich natural area important for the biodiversity of the Bogotá savanna. Several endemic species have been registered, and two newly described species of butterflies were discovered in the Reserve.[5]
Fauna
Birds
In the area of the reserve 187 species of birds have been registered, some of which are endangered.[6][7] Two species, registered in the past; Cistothorus apolinari and Polystictus pectoralis have not been reported recently.[8]
| Name | Species | Image |
|---|---|---|
| Bogotá rail | Rallus semiplumbeus |  |
| bronze-tailed thornbill | Chalcostigma heteropogon |  |
| rufous-browed conebill | Conirostrum rufum |  |
| spot-flanked gallinule | Gallinula melanops |  |
| cerulean warbler | Setophaga cerulea |  |
| olive-sided flycatcher | Contopus cooperi |  |
| snowy egret | Egretta thula |  |
| noble snipe | Gallinago nobilis |  |
| blue-throated starfrontlet | Coeligena helianthea |  |
| coppery-bellied puffleg | Eriocnemis cupreoventris |  |
| subtropical doradito | Pseudocolopteryx acutipennis | |
| pale-bellied tapaculo | Scytalopus griseicollis | |
| silvery-throated spinetail | Synallaxis subpudica |
Mammals
Registered mammals are among others guinea pigs, Andean white-eared opossum (Didelphis pernigra),[5] tigrillo (Leopardus tigrinus),[9] long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata),[10] and eleven species of bats.[11]
Bats
| Name | Species | Image |
|---|---|---|
| big brown bat | Eptesicus fuscus |  |
| hoary bat | Lasiurus cinereus |  |
| Mexican free-tailed bat | Tadarida brasiliensis |  |
| Seba's short-tailed bat | Carollia perspicillata |  |
| Geoffroy's tailless bat | Anoura geoffroyi |  |
| Peale's free-tailed bat | Nyctinomops aurispinosus |  |
| Wagner's bonneted bat | Eumops glaucinus | |
| small big-eared brown bat | Histiotus montanus | |
| black myotis | Myotis nigricans | |
| Bogotá yellow-shouldered bat | Sturnira bogotensis | |
| highland yellow-shouldered bat | Sturnira ludovici |
Butterflies
With 350 endemic species, Colombia occupies the first position worldwide in diversity of butterflies and after Peru, the second place in total number of registered butterfly species (3274).[12] The Thomas van der Hammen Natural Reserve contains 23 (new studies report more than 26 with two new species in the genus Satyrinae discovered) species of butterflies.[5][13] Other species of butterflies have been registered:[14]
Gallery
-
Map of the extent in 2016 -
La Conejera wetland, part of the reserve
See also
References
- ^ ¿A quién le sirve la CAR?
- ^ Por qué la reserva Thomas Van Der Hammen es importante para Bogotá
- ^ "Inicia la construcción del bosque más grande de Latinoamérica en la Reserva Thomas Van Der Hammen". 2015. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
- ^ (in Spanish) La franja que pone a Peñalosa a defender su primer megaproyecto - El Tiempo
- ^ a b c (in Spanish) Los animales de la reserva Thomas van der Hammen
- ^ (in Spanish) Las aves de la Reserva Van der Hammen…¡déjenlas volar y vivir en paz!
- ^ Cortés, 2016, p.1-3
- ^ (in Spanish) Estas aves desaparecerían si Peñalosa urbaniza la reserva Thomas Van der Hammen
- ^ (in Spanish) La Reserva Van der Hammen como oportunidad para el tigrillo lanudo
- ^ (in Spanish) Comadreja reportada en la Reserva Van der Hammen
- ^ Sánchez, 2011, p.72
- ^ (in Spanish) Nuevas especies de mariposas en borde norte de Bogotá
- ^ (in Spanish) Las mariposas que frenarían el plan de Peñalosa en van der Hammen
- ^ Calderón & Gualtero, 2014, p.49
Bibliography
- Calderón Cangrejo, Nikolai, and Paula Andrea Gualtero Velasco. 2014. Memoria Simposio Reserva Thomas Van Der Hammen, 1–149. Accessed 2017-03-23.
- CAR, .. s.a. Plan de Manejo Ambiental de la Reserva Forestal Regional Productora del Norte de Bogotá D.C. "Thomas van der Hammen" - Anexo 13 - fotos de las especies de mariposas del borde norte de Bogotá, 1–6. CAR.
- Cortés, Oswaldo. 2016. Aves Reserva Van der Hammen, 1–3. Humedales de Bogotá. Accessed 2016-01-14.
- Sánchez, Francisco. 2011. La heterogeneidad del paisaje del borde norte de Bogotá (Colombia) afecta la actividad de los murciélagos insectívoros - Landscape heterogeneity of Bogotá's northern border (Colombia) affects insectivorous bats' activity. Revista Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales 14. 71–80. Accessed 2016-01-14.
External links
- (in Spanish) Bogotá diversa
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