Amazonas Conservation Initiative

We believe conservation success is defined by helping nature thrive so the people who depend on it live productive and sustainable lives.

It means a protected forest with old-growth trees, clean river water, and honoring the traditions of indigenous people so they may live in harmony with nature. And to strengthen the rainforest ecosystem of Peru by facilitating sound conservation principles and supporting protection of Ingigenous community lands.

In the face of climate change and other threats to the ecosystems that sustain our planet, we continue to work urgently to save more intact landscapes and the diverse species within.

We are dedicated to our mission: to conserve biologically diverse landscapes in Amazonas, in concert with local cultures, for the well-being of the planet.

The Palomino Project – Saving the Amazon: ( PPSA ) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization founded in 2018. PPSA is based in the Amazon basin, state of Loreto, Peru.
The Palomino Project is dedicated to the accumulation and conservation of indigenous knowledge, medicinal plants and traditional methods of use, as well as preservation and protection of the environment and wildlife.

Our vision includes creating educational/medical centers, botanical gardens, hatcheries and arboretums in rural villages with the goal of saving and ensuring sustainable availability of these resources and preserving the information on how to use them.

The educational centers will document the village elders’ knowledge their pharmacological knowledge to be passed on to the next generation. Intrinsic to this effort will be the scientific identification of the plants and a corresponding compilation of an indigenous language dictionary.
Privately guided services to Pacaya Samiria are provided by Emerald Forest Expeditions. To plan your visit contact:

Davarian

Amazonas Peru

Pacaya Samiria
Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve is located in Peru's Amazon region, 100 miles west from Iquitos. The Reserve is a triangular shaped area between the Maranon and Ucayali rivers. These rivers intersect at the northeastern tip of the Reserve, marking the beginning of what is considered the Amazon River proper. Most visitors access Pacaya-Samiria through the nearby city of Iquitos.

Private boat is the only way to access the reserve, which is large enough to cover the entire U.S. state of New Jersey. The basins of the Pacaya and Samiria rivers have been protected by the Peruvian government since 1940. The area was declared a National Reserve in 1972 and enlarged to its present size of 5,137,000 acres in 1982. The altitude of the Reserve is between 263 to 675 feet above sea level. The Reserve is the largest in Peru, the second largest in the Amazon region, and the fourth largest in all of South America.

There are over 80 lakes in the Reserve, the most important ones are the Hatun Cocha, Pastococha, Shinguito, Maldonado, Ungurahui, Yanayacu, Zapote, Yarina, Tamara, Cotococha, Achual, and El Dorado.

The approximately 50,000 people who live in the Reserve most are located in villages along the edge of the Reserve. Only a few villages are found in the interior of the Reserve. The average family has six to ten people and their main food staples are plantains, yucca, and fish. Their houses are made from materials found in the forest.

Geology: The habitat types found in the Peruvian Amazon resulted from large-scale geologic events during the tertiary and quaternary periods. The Samiria River basin sits in the Pevas lake bed, which formed during the uplifting of the Andes, and leaving a geological depression characterized by soft alluvial soils. This depression in western Amazonia allows the vegetated landscape to transform into the flooded forest that the region is known for. The Amazonian rainforest, including regions of Peru, is responsible for 20% of the oxygen on the entire planet.

Flora: Some of the native plant species present in the reserve are: Spondias mombin, Quararibea cordata, Mauritia flexuosa, Parinari excelsa, Cedrela odorata, Ocotea spp., Myrciaria dubia, Socratea exorrhiza, Calathea allouia, Solanum sessiliflorum, Hevea guianensis, Pouteria caimito, Clidemia hirta, Ficus maxima, Heliconia psittacorum, Inga spp., Psychotria poeppigiana, Alibertia edulis, Victoria amazonica, Ceiba pentandra, Phytelephas macrocarpa, Clusia spp., Swietenia macrophylla, Asclepias curassavica, Pachira aquatica.

Fauna: Mammal species found in the reserve include: the Amazonian manatee, the red-faced spider monkey, the South American tapir, the Bolivian squirrel, the Amazon river dolphin, the puma, the giant otter, the white-lipped peccary, the jaguar, the red brocket, the tucuxi, the South American coati, the capybara, etc. Some species of fish found in the reserve are: Arapaima gigas, Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum, Phractocephalus hemiliopterus, Colossoma macropomum, Osteoglossum bicirrhosum, Potamotrygon motoro, Brycon melanopterus, Hyphessobrycon erythrostigma, Plagioscion squamosissimus, Prochilodus nigricans.

BIRDING: Special birds almost impossible to see elsewhere: Wattled Curassow & Zimmer's Woodcreeper. Restricted Range species: Black-tailed Antbird. Good birds recorded at Yanayacu: Rufous-headed Woodpecker, Rufous-capped Nunlet, Scaled Spinetail, Orange-fronted Plushcrown, Dusky-chested Flycatcher. Varzea/Igapo specialties: Plain-breasted Piculet, Rufous-capped Nunlet, Slender-billed Xenops, Amazonian Antshrike, Plumbeous Antbird, Yellow-crowned Elaenia, Royal Flycatcher, Dusky-tailed Flatbill, Varzea Mourner, Gray-chested Greenlet. Terra Firme: Black-throated Trogon, Bluish-cheeked Jacamar, Rufous-necked Puffbird, Chestnut-capped Puffbird, Collared Puffbird, Bar-bellied Woodcreeper Spot-throated Woodcreeper, Saturnine Antshrike, Wire-tailed Manakin, Dot-backed Antbird. Mauritia palm stands: Point-tailed Palmcreeper, Sulphury Flycatcher, Red-bellied Macaw. Nightbirds: Zig-Zag Heron, Boat-billed Heron, Great Potoo, Long-tailed Potoo, Spectacled Owl. On the water-conspicous birds: Horned Screamer, Black-collared Hawk, Green Ibis, Sungrebe, 5 species of Kingfishers, Slate-colored Hawk, White-eared Jacamar, Wattled Jacana, Hoatzin, Velvet-fronted Grackle, Red-and-white Spinetail, Plum-throated Cotinga, Band-tailed Oropendula. Parrots: Blue-and-Yellow Macaw, Rose-fronted Parakeet, Festive Parrot and Short-tailed Parrot.