2016

From the rio Guabacayo to the valley of Canaan

Prospecting and naturalist inventory of an Andean valley sheltering the rare Yellow-browed Toucan and collection of bat DNA for the Museum of Natural History of Paris.

DETAILS .

Participants: Fabrice Schmitt, Raphaël Sané, Ombline Chabasseur, Valentin Nivet-Mazerolle, Maxime Zucca, Juan-Carlos Chavez, Jean-Pierre Castro, Philippe Papaux.
Partners: Museum of Natural History of Paris, Corbidi association, Provence Bats Group (loan of a microphone).
Main results: discovery of the existence of a possible passage on foot and by mule between the Guabacayo Valley and the Canaan Valley. In the latter, discovery of an original habitat, a low vegetation located on the moutain ridges called ratachal; many data on rare bird species; several bat data and samples (small wing patches and salivary samples); collection of herpetological data and specimens.
Follow-up: due to lack of time, the ratachal was not explored during this expedition but led to the execution of the next one.