Happy Nice Mall

For a brief moment, the green tones of the tropical forest changed to neon blue as hundreds of blue morpho butterflies flew gracefully around us.

But the dreamlike scene, reminiscent of something from James Cameron’s “Avatar,” was interrupted by a series of loud chirps from the canopy above. As I strained my eyes to see the treetops, I caught a glimpse of the culprits: a pair of orange Azuero spider monkeys looking for fruit.

This incredibly rare subspecies was the reason we were here. After six exhausting days of fruitless hiking through Panama’s tropical dry forest, we had finally found them.

The view was instant. The sound of cows from a nearby pasture startled the nimble primates, and they retreated deeper into the safety of their lodge.

The Azuero Peninsula, a square block of land stretching about 50 miles into Southern Panama’s Pacific Ocean, is home to the country’s only remaining tropical dry forest, an ecosystem that experiences a more significant dry season than the rainy season, and an ecosystem where moisture often evaporates. more than precipitation throughout the year.

In Azuero, dry forest has been fragmented by deforestation from cattle ranches and pruning of coastal trees to make room for luxury homes, leaving isolated pockets of forest normally scattered across a treeless landscape. These habitat islands offer stranded refuges for hundreds of animal and bird species found nowhere else in the country, including the critically endangered Azuero spider monkey.

During a population survey in 2013, Oxford Brookes University primatologist Dr. Pedro Mendez-Carvajal estimated that only 145 Azuero spider monkeys remain in the wild, making them one of the rarest primate subspecies in Central and South America. In addition to habitat loss, animals seen as harmful are also hunted and poisoned by local farmers.

In the fall of 2017, I went to the Azuero Peninsula to work together. Professional Eco Azueroa conservation organization that aims to conserve the biodiversity of the area and help local people make informed and sustainable decisions about their environment.

Founded by Ruth Metzel and currently Sandra Vasquez de ZambranoPEA has developed a community-driven approach to conservation that includes working with farmers to replant trees, working with local teachers to create lesson plans on conservation and sustainability, and partnering with local supporters to foster a culture of conservation and land management.

Departing from the surf village of Pedasi, I spent a month buried with PEA, dividing my time between forest and sea. Indoors, I joined a team of local volunteers and biology students from the University of Panama during an informal survey to document the health of known spider monkey families. I also took photographs that could be used in community education programs.

Guided by tips from local farmers and students, we spent our days hiking through dense undergrowth and upper waterfalls in search of elusive primates. At night, we visited rural schools to make slide shows of what we found, and shared pictures of wildlife that many children have never seen despite living with animals in their own backyards.

I followed PEA’s efforts on the beach and Tortugas Peda, a partner organization to document the stunning Pacific coastline. At the time, conservation groups were trying to provide national protection for coastal areas. Pablo Arturo Barrios Wildlife Refugewhile teaching students the benefits of marine conservation.

Just as I witnessed in the jungle, members of local communities have worked with these organizations in an impressive exhibition of eco-minded fellowships.

The creation of a 75-mile and 62,000-acre wildlife corridor across the Azuero Peninsula was one of the first projects initiated by PEA when it was established 12 years ago. The corridor will increase the size of the available habitat by planting trees on clear plots, reconnecting several forest islands that are currently isolated from each other. Once the corridor is complete, PEA hopes the increase in forest habitat will allow animal populations to expand, including elusive spider monkeys.

It took several years for the idea to gain momentum because rural farmers were skeptical of the benefits of sacrificing valuable grazing land to regrow forests.

“When we first started we thought it would be as easy as knocking on people’s doors, planting trees and making a difference,” said Ms. Vasquez de Zambrano, PEA’s executive director. “Of course that didn’t work, so we had to explore a way to get into these communities.”

After discovering that teachers are the key to gaining the trust of the villagers, PEA launched a series of training programs centered on conservation, sustainability and coexistence. Over time, they were teaching more than 700 students each year. As PEA encouraged a new generation of young environmental activists, parents began to hear and digest the importance of conservation by chatting with their families, not strangers.

Vasquez de Zambrano said, “It is more meaningful that it is our own children who say that we need to reforest and protect nature.” “I think working with kids makes a real difference.”

Today, more than 400 farmers have pledged land for the wildlife corridor project. Five hundred acres of new trees will be planted on the donated land alone in 2022. Thanks to the collective help of local organizations, students and community activists, the coastal Pablo Barrios Refuge gained national protection in 2019.

Azuero continues to face serious threats, including the re-establishment of large-scale mining across the region and the introduction of new legislation that could allow development on protected lands. Still, Ms. Vasquez remains optimistic about the power of teaching and encouraging new environmental reformers.

“Our biggest impact is the way we change people’s minds,” he told me. “We create a culture of conservation – and enable people to be advocates of their communities.”

Matt Stirn He is an archaeologist and photojournalist based in Boston and Jackson Hole, Wyo. Instagram.