The
habitat of the Yellow-Eared Conure is the high Andes Mountains
of Colombia and Ecuador. This bird is heavily dependent upon the
wax palm (Ceroxylum quindiuense) for food and nesting.The
habitat of the Yellow-Eared Conure is the high Andes Mountains
of Colombia and Ecuador. This bird is heavily dependent upon the
wax palm (Ceroxylum quindiuense) for food and nesting.
Columbia is a nation of rich biological diversity. It has 1,850 species of birds, 358 kinds of mammals and more than 45,000 types of plants. However, the precious ecosystem of the Andes Mountains and adjacent valleys is in grave danger. Most of this is due to deforestation.
Over
the past 150 years, 80 percent of the woodlands have been cleared
for farming and cattle ranching. This loss of habitat in part
has caused 80 of Colombia's native birds to become in danger of
extinction. Other animals and plants also are endangered. Perhaps
less than 5% of the Yellow-Eared Conure's natural habitat remains
today. And even much of this habitat has seen some form of human
activities.
The
endangered wax palm is Columbia's national tree. The populations
of this tree are aging and not being replaced with younger palms.
The livestock feeding in the pastures eat the palm seedlings,
thus preventing their growth and natural replacement of the forest.
Continued deforestation and fragmentation of the wax palms leaves
them highly susceptible to disease.
The need for conservation of this unique habitat is immediate and critical.