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Bilsa Research Station Reserve
A pristine reserve located on the Mache-Chindul mountain range. The 3,000 hectare reserve was purchased in 1994 by Jatun Sacha from the local “Colonos” and managed to conserve its magic and provide base for their Biological Station. The Mache-Chindul Mountains (120,000 hectares) are one of the few remaining wet premontane forest feed by moisture from the ocean in the form of fog, mist, and rain. There is great biodiversity and a stunning variety of birds that include endemics from the Choco bioregin and also species from the the Andean Western Slopes which are more than 100 km away. There are 330 bird species recorded at Bilsa and more than 490 recorded in the Mache-Chindul.
The most notorious birds found on this reserve are the Banded Ground-Cuckoo (Neomorphus radiolosus), Long-wattled Umbrellabird (Cephalopterus penduliger), Gray-backed Hawk (Leucopternis occidentalis), Baudo guan (Penelope ortoni), Brown Wood-Rail (Aramides wolfi).
The conservation status of this Jatun Sacha reserve is excellent while its parent reserve, the Mache-Chindul Mountains have been totally invaded by Colonos for more than 50 years since the Agrarian Revolution in 1962. Currently all of the 120,000 hectares of this reserve is under private ownership, some of them with rightful titles, but must most of them by possession. The last census of 2000 counted more than 6,000 people living in this reserve so today there must be more than 10,000 (my own guess). The government has been working with the people of this reserve for six years in an effort to educate on the values of conservation for this most special place.
Here is a link to an article that describes the troubles of Mache Chindul
Here is a link to the site sheet for International Birdlife IBA Mache Chincul Ecological Reserve
Here is a link to the Mistry of Ambien: Management Plan for Mache Chindul
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BIRDS of Bilsa Reserve
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San Pablo Lake near Otavalo
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Crested Guan
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Scaled Pigeon
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Blue Ground-Dove
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Bronze-winged Parrot
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Rose-faced Parrot
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Striped Cuckoo
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Purple Crowend Fairy
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Long-billed Strathroat
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Western White-tailed Trogon
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Collared Trogon Male
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Collared Trogon Female
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Golden-olive Woodpecker
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Black-cheeked Woodpecker
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White-wiskered Puffbird
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Pale-mandibled Aracari
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Spotted Woodcreeper
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Slaty Spinetail
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Slaty Spinetail
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Buff-throated Foliage Gleaner
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Western Slaty-Antshrike
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Dot-winged Antwren
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Chestnut-backed Antbird
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Sooty-capped Flycatcher
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Southern-beardless Tyrannulet
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Yellow-bellied Elaenia
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Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant
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Juvenile Ornate Flycatcher
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Dusky-capped Flycatcher
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Rufous Piha
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Long Wattled Umbrellabird
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Red-capped Manakin
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White-bearded Manakin
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Southern Nitghtingale Wren
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Bay Wren
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Tawny-faced Gnatwren
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Dagua Thrush
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Ecuadorian Thrush
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Buff-rumped Warbler
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Olive-crowned Yellowthroat
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Bay-headed Tanager
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Emerald Tanager
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Blue-neck Tanager
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Lesser Seed-Finch
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Blue-black Grassquit-female
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Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch
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Ocre-breasted Tanager
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Slate-colored Grosbeak
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