Introduction Cuenca, Amaru, and Cajas!

Hola!

It's crazy to think that I am less than a week into my 3 month long internship at Bioparque Amaru in Cuenca Ecuador. So far I've had an amazing time learning about the city of Cuenca and desperately trying to increase my Spanish skills. While there are some English speakers at the zoo, most people in Cuenca speak Spanish, which has made traveling an interesting experience. Fortunately, my comprehension skills have only  increased with my full immersion and Spanish lessons are offered at many schools nearby. Many international students attend these, and I have met friends from all over the world including Denmark, Holland and Switzerland!

These next few weeks at the zoo will be focused on my introduction to Amaru and all of the animals, routines and staff. There are some amazing animals here, including a baby lion, a huge Galapagos tortoise, and an adorable black and chestnut eagle. They even have white-tailed deer, which in Ecuador are rare; so much so, that there are even breeding programs here.

Many animals that arrive to Bioparque Amaru are injured wildlife or illegally trafficked, and so far the zoo has over 500 animals despite being open for three years. Currently, Amaru is working with the National Aviary in Pittsburgh to help restart an Andean Condor breeding program. The overall hope is to release eventually release animals back into the wild. Due to this, the National Aviary has helped fund the construction of an amazing condor exhibit for the condors that will arrive soon at Amaru. Updates to follow!

City streets of Cuenca. (Photo credit: Nikki)

Interesting mural in Cuenca

Getting our picture taken with the St. Bernards in Parque Calderon (Photo credit Nikki)

Baby lion at Amaru! (Photo credit Nikki)

Feeding the Galapagos tortoise (Photo credit Nikki)

(Photo credit Nikki)

The adorable  black and chestnut eagle at Amaru

Some ducks (Photo credit Nikki)

An Ocelot or tigrillo (Photo credit Nikki)

A stray perrito who frequents the park (Photo credit Nikki)

View of Cajas National park!

To learn more about the zoo, view their page here (warning: it's all in Spanish) or at my friend Nikki's blog who has been working in South America for almost a full year.

Bye for now!
 Kristen

If you are interested in helping to support Bioparque Amaru's and the National Aviary's condor conservation efforts please read Nikki's message below:

With your help, I would like to significantly increase our support of Condor conservation efforts. The National Aviary and Bioparque Amaru would like to keep wild sightings of Andean Condors possible for future generations of Andean adventurers, and conserve the majesty of the nation's icon for centuries to come. There are three main aspects of our important project:

1.                In Pittsburgh, the National Aviary has committed to significantly upgrade Condor Court to allow for proper space to breed their four Andean Condors. Any young produced at the National Aviary will be released into the wild.

2.               In Ecuador, they are ready to build the first national breeding facility for as many as four pairs of Andean Condors. These innovative enclosures will incorporate available native habitat in Bioparque Amaru to provide a variety of nest sites, secure areas for zoo caretakers, treatment areas for administering healthcare to the birds, and separate enclosures for juvenile offspring.

3.               Development of a release site in Cajas National Park near Cuenca is necessary. Made possible by a long history of work in Cajas by Dr. Steven Latta, the Aviary’s Director of Conservation and Field Research, releasing birds in Ecuador which were born and raised in Ecuador is an economical approach to conservation while also investing in excellent locally-based partner organizations. In addition, we plan to use satellite and radio-telemetry to track and monitor the released birds to better guide our reintroduction program.

Thank you for considering my request to support this project. For your records, the National Aviary’s tax identification number is 26-1667146, and donations can be made on the website by entering Bioparque Amaru in the comments field.