Story Maps

We present the second in a series of story maps investigating deforestation hotspots in the Colombian Amazon. Our goal is to identify the most critical hotspots (areas with the highest densities of deforestation) and use satellite imagery to identify the primary deforestation drivers. The first report focused on a hotspot approaching Chiribiquete National Park in Caquetá department, and the  deforestation was largely […]

MAAP Reports

We present the second in a series of story maps investigating deforestation hotspots in the Colombian Amazon. Our goal is to identify the most critical hotspots (areas with the highest densities of deforestation) and use satellite imagery to identify the primary deforestation drivers. The first report focused on a hotspot approaching Chiribiquete National Park in Caquetá department, and the  […]

Los Amigos Bird Observatory

With a chicken-like appearance and terrestrial behavior, tinamous are by far some of the most common and unique birds at Los Amigos. Undulated tinamous roam around the station searching for their most delicious prey such as insects, seeds and fruits. But undulated tinamous are not the only species inhabiting Los Amigos forest. Despite their highly […]

Put Science and Technology to Work MAAP Reports

In December 2017, the Peruvian Congress approved a bill that declared it in the national interest to construct new roads in the border zone of Ucayali region, which shares a remote border with Brazil. The main proposed road in this border area would cover 172 miles and connect the towns of Puerto Esperanza and Iñapari, in the Ucayali […]

Los Amigos Bird Observatory

“If you take care of birds, you take care of most of the environmental problems in the world.” – Thomas Lovejoy Last year, we began the search for the most talented and most important passionate students and/or professionals that have found birds to be the source of their greatest inspiration and reason to protect the […]

Put Science and Technology to Work MAAP Reports

Pope Francis, as part of his upcoming visit to Peru in January, will visit the Madre de Dios region in the southern Peruvian Amazon. He is expected to address issues facing the Amazon and its indigenous communities, including deforestation. In this article, we show that Madre de Dios is experiencing a deforestation crisis, due mainly to […]

Los Amigos Bird Observatory

If you spend enough time at Los Amigos, there is almost a 100% guarantee that you will learn something new about birds every day. It’s not only the high diversity that can enchant your walks at the break or end of day inside the forest, but also their behavior, different calls, colors, and attractive displays. […]

MAAP Reports

Since its launch in April 2015, MAAP has published over 70 reports related to deforestation (and natural forest loss) in the Andean Amazon. We have thus far focused on Peru, with several reports in Colombia and Brazil as well. These reports are meant to be case studies of the most important and urgent deforestation events. We often use forest loss alerts (known […]

Put Science and Technology to Work MAAP Reports

In addition to the human-caused deforestation emphasized in MAAP, there is also natural Amazonian forest loss. The causes include meandering rivers, wind storms (see MAAP #70), and the subject of this report: landslides. Amazon landslides may be caused by heavy rains in rugged areas. Many landslides occur in protected areas, which often include steep and unstable […]

Protect Wild Places

Any passionate birdwatcher or avian researcher knows that a forest with a diverse array of habitats is a likely treasure trove of brilliant, rare and charismatic avifauna. The Los Amigos Biological Station and reserve managed by Amazon Conservation in southeast Peru is just such a place. Situated in two floodplains, with terra firme, bamboo and […]