COLLECTIONS AND DATABASES

The managing authority of the Alto Purús (INRENA) has highlighted the need for an immediate and intensive inventory of the aquatic fauna of the region. There are currently no systematic collections or electronic databases of non-vertebrate aquatic animals from southern Peru or the adjacent waters of Bolivia and Brazil and no permanent collections of aquatic animals from this region. The MUSM fish collection has poor representation of species from the upper Ucayali and Madre de Dios areas. Other aquatic animals from the Peruvian Amazon are poorly represented in museums worldwide; e.g., there are only 230 lots of Peruvian freshwater mollusks in the 15 largest collections globally (K. Cummings, pers. comm.).

 

BIOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS AND PAUCITY OF KNOWLEDGE

Western Amazonia is a region of Highest Priority for Conservation Action among freshwater eco-regions of Latin America and the Caribbean (Olson et al. 1998; Bernales and Bouroncle 2000). Despite the large proportion of species confined to Neotropical aquatic ecosystems (Reis et al. 2003), and the importance of these resources for the economy of the region (Crampton 2001), they remain among the least surveyed of all Neotropical habitats. Moreover, Western Amazonia is known to be a region of outstanding species diversity and regional endemism (Kullander 1986; Eisenberg and Redford 1999). Consequently, the species diversity of aquatic animals in the Peruvian Amazon is very poorly known. For many groups little is known from the Peruvian Amazon, and the few specialists currently working in this area are members of this research initiative.

 

IMPENDING HABITAT DEGRADATION

There is an urgent need to document the aquatic fauna of the Alto Purús ecosystem before it is significantly altered. To date approximately 10% of Amazonian forests have been damaged or severely degraded (Laurence 1988; Alexander 1994) and remaining intact forests of Peru and Western Brazil are being rapidly developed for industrial forestry. Despite protection under National Park status, the aquatic resources of the Alto Purús face increasing pressures. The WWF classifies the Alto Purús Reserved Zone as vulnerable. The principle immediate threats are increased logging activity, immigration to the region, and construction of a highway through the park to Puerto Esperanza. Deforestation is accelerating throughout the Department of Ucayali, including illegal logging within the park. Lumber activity takes place primarily in the western (Purús) and eastern (Inuya and Sepahua) rivers. Logging opens land to access from adjacent more densely populated regions of Peru and Brazil. Loggers also enter the park illegally to extract big-leafed mahogany Swietenia macrophylla and the cedar Cederla odorata. Development pressures from cattle-ranching, commercial agriculture, and illegal logging are increasing rapidly. Growing threats include toxins from mining and oil extraction, loss of surrounding forests that cause water quality changes and sedimentation, and fishing of sensitive, larger freshwater species (e.g., Arapaima gigas). Austerity measures in Peru in the last year have led to budget cuts within INRENA of over 30%. WWF reports 46 logging camps in the park, and many timber roads in the Inuya and Sepahua Rivers (Leite-Pitman et al. 2003).

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