EcoMinga Foundation's Rio Anzu Reserve
The canyon of the Rio Anzu is a spectacular place with a unique set of plant species, including a new species of orchid found nowhere else in the world. EcoMinga and our conservationist neighbor, Sr. Cajamarca, are protecting this canyon.

In the Mera area (see map above), we have purchased a portion of the spectacular limestone canyon of the Rio Anzu ( 88 hectares, 1100-1200 m elevation). This canyon has sheltered an old-growth tropical rain forest on very shallow soil over a limestone substrate. The area has many rare and endemic plant species. Because of the unusual geology we expect to discover more new species in the future.

We work with neighboring owners, including Sr. Manuel Cajamarca and sons, to create a joint reserve. A portion of the canyon is shown above. This purchase was made with the help of the individual donors listed below, along with the Orchid Conservation Alliance and the CEIBA foundation, who have particular expertise in working with local landowners to achieve conservation goals. We are also purchasing a slightly higher elevation forest (1500m). Both contain very rare plant species that are found nowhere else in the world.
The limestone canyon of the Rio Anzu has a unique flora, including this rare orchid.

 
View looking down the Rio Anzu.

Among the most exotic limestone specialists is the tropical ladyslipper orchid, Phragmipedium pearcei. It grows close to the water's edge on bare or moss-covered limestone.

 

Phragmipedium pearcei forms enormous colonies along the Rio Anzu, where many plants are periodically submerged by floodwaters. The plants are not damnaged by these immersions.

 

This Costus species is a striking member of the forest understory flora.

 

Another member of the understory flora. Maybe Zinziberaceae or Marantaceae.

 

A spectacular Heliconia species.
 

Help us expand the Rio Anzu Reserve to include additional endangered habitats! Make a tax-deductible donation to EcoMinga via one of our US or UK partners!

 

We need you to help us buy the tracts connecting the Rio Anzu canyon to the nearby Los Llanganates National Park, while these tracts are still available and forested. Donations for this purpose are urgently needed.

Our partners in the US and UK are the Orchid Conservation Alliance, the World Land Trust (US) and World Land Trust (UK). All are registered charities in their respective countries and donations made to them for EcoMinga are tax-deductible. We are also now participants in the Orchid Conservation Coalition's "1% for Conservation" program. Write these foundations directly to make donations, and write me for more information:

EcoMinga would like to thank the following organizations and people who have contributed to EcoMinga's land purchases or have supported scientific work related to EcoMinga:
PriceWaterhouse Cooper
Puro Coffee (Andy Orchard)
John and the late Ruth Moore
Dr. Malli and Vera Lee Rao
Dr. Steve Beckendorf and Cindy Hill
Dr. Nigel Simpson, O.B.E
South East Pennsylvania Orchid Society (SEPOS)
Jardin Botanique de Montréal
Orchid societies of the Bay Area, California
CEIBA Foundation
Wild Waters Foundation
Henri Botter and Ardy van Ooij
Orchid Growers Guild (Madison, WI)
Hilo Orchid Society, Hawaii
Pauline Brault
Atlanta Orchid Society
Marisol Villagomez
Dr. Anne Chao
John Little
Dr. Mary Gerritsen
Angela Mirro
Bryon K. Rinke

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