The Magnolia buenaventurensis was discovered in our local partner’s Buenaventura Reserve (Ecuador) in 2022. The M. buenaventurensis is at risk of extinction, though: despite intensive search actions, only 26 trees have been found in remnants of the region’s once vast forests. To revert this, our partner Jocotoco aims to assure the survival of the species by

• Surveying new areas to locate other surviving trees
• Protecting the remaining trees
• Increasing the population with 2,000 saplings through seed collection, propagation and enrichment planting in the Buenaventura reserve and surrounding areas
  

Without these actions the risk of losing this magnificent species in a region where deforestation is a major threat, is enormous.

Buenaventura, with its 3,500 hectares of protected forest and located in the Tumbes-Chocó Magdalena Biodiversity Hotspot, is a crucial refuge for a wide range of species. Deforestation is a major threat to the region, with a staggering 95% decline in forests below 900 meters since the 1950s. The remaining forest fragments continue to disappear at an alarming rate, due to the expansion of agriculture and mining projects.

The reserve is the only fully protected reserve in the region, and therefore the only place where the permanent protection of M. buenaventurensis, a flagstone species for the region, and many other endemic and threatened species can be guaranteed.

The reserve hosts 361 bird species, 15 of which are classified as globally threatened. Notable among these avian inhabitants are the endangered El Oro Parakeet and Ecuadorian Tapaculo, both of which possess significant populations within Buenaventura. The Buenaventura Reserve forms the Important Bird Area IBA EC071 and the Key Biodiversity Area KBA 14526.