Cóndor Mountain Range (14832)
Peru, South America

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Global KBA criteria: A1b, B1, B2

Year of last assessment: 2023

National site name: Cordillera del Cóndor

Central coordinates: Latitude: -3.7800, Longitude: -77.9200

System: terrestrial

Elevation (m): 2000 to 2700

Area of KBA (km²): 17136.0587

Protected area coverage (%): 70.14

KBA classification: Global

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: The KBA Cordillera del Cóndor covers 17136.05 sq km and it's located in the province of Condorcanqui, department of Amazonas and province Datem del Marañón in the department of Loreto, Perú. The KBA includes the basins of the Morona, Santiago and Cenepa rivers, as well as the Peruvian sector of the Cordillera del Cóndor in the upper Comainas River. The KBA harbors tropical forests typical of the lower Amazon, as well as hill and premontane forests in the Condorcanqui mountain range. The summits and slopes of the mountain ranges have not yet been explored, and present a tepui-type vegetation with sclerophytic and herbaceous scrub. In the plains of the lower Morona river, there are white sand forests that have not been explored either. The climate in the area is mainly warm, rainy and humid. There are tree climate types present in the KBA, with temperatures ranging from 17°C to 33°C and annual precipitation ranging between 2000 and 5000 mm, depending on the region.

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: The KBA Cordillera del Cóndor qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the A1, B1 and B2 criteria described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBA. This KBA harbors the threatened plant Coussarea klugii and three range restricted frogs (Excidobates mysteriosus, Pristimantis condor and Pristimantis versicolor), the Vulnerable fish Chaetostoma branickii and seven range restricted birds.

Additional biodiversity: Aburria aburri, Grallaria hypoleuca, Megascops petersoni, Picumnus lafresnayi, Turdus fulviventris, Peckoltia pankimpuju, Peckoltia furcata, Sternarchorhynchus stewarti, Panaqolus nocturnus, Ravenia biramosa, Campylopterus villaviscensio, Grallaricula peruviana, Heliangelus regalis, Nephelomyias lintoni, Henicorhina leucoptera, Pyrrhura albipectus, Thamnophilius tenuepunctatus, Touit stictopterus, Wetmorethraupis sterrhopteron, Xenerpestes singularis, Harpia harpyja, Ara militaris, Myrmoborus melanurus, Galbula pastazae, Hemitriccus cinnamomeipectus, Pyrrhura peruviana, Urosticte ruficrissa, Phylloscartes superciliaris, Urochroa leucura, Glaucidium parkeri, Pipreola squamipectis, Schiffornis aenea, Cacicus sclateri, Cranioleuca curtata, Geotrygon saphirina, Ramphastos culminatus, Phlogophilus hemileucurus, Contopus nigrescens, Snowornis subalaris, Lanio fulvus, Actitis macularius, Hemigrammus aguaruna

Manageability of the site: The KBA Includes two National Protected Areas such us Ichigkat Muja - Cordillera del Cóndor and Reserva Comunal Tuntanain, so this KBA can be managed by the National Service of Protected Natural Areas - SERNANP.

Supersedes another site: -

Other site values: Within the KBA, there are many indigenous communities, mainly from the Aguaruna and Huambisa ethnic groups. These inhabit the areas of the Comaina, Cenepa, Santiago and Marañón rivers (Cenepa district) and in the Santiago river (Condorcanqui district).

Delineation rationale: The boundary of this KBA includes the basins of the Morona, Santiago and Cenepa rivers, as well as the Peruvian sector of the Cordillera del Cóndor in the upper Comainas river. To the north the KBA limits with the border between Peru and Ecuador including the Natural protected area Cordillera del Condor and Tuntanain, as well as the Santiago Comaina Restricted Zone and its buffer zones. To the east it follows the Morona River to the Mayuriaga River. To the south it continues along the Marañon River, crossing the Cananya River. To the west it follows the Cenepa River, Numpatkay River and Achuine River.

Habitats

Summary of habitats in KBA: Forest 60-70%, Wetland (inland) 20-30%, Other 1-10%

Land use: At this site there are two natural protected areas (National park Ichigkat Muja - Cordillera del Cóndor and Communal Reserve Tuntanain) managed by the Servicio Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas por el estado (SERNANP) And the Gobierno Territorial Autónomo de la Nación Wampis / Autonomous Territorial Government of the Wampis Nation - Iña Wampisti Nunke

IUCN Habitat	Coverage %	Habitat detail
Other	5
Forest	65
Wetlands(Inland)	25

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: This site is threatened by the effects of livestock farming, shifting agriculture, wood harvesting, subsistence hunting and fishing. But one of the main threats is the gold mining, both by native inhabitants and settlers.

Threat level 1	Threat level 2	Threat level 3	Timing
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops	Shifting agriculture	Ongoing
Agriculture & aquaculture	Livestock farming & ranching	Small-holder grazing, ranching or farming	Ongoing
Biological resource use	Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	Unintentional effects (species being assessed is not the target)	Ongoing
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting	Unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale (species being assessed is not the target) [harvest]	Ongoing
Natural system modifications	Fire & fire suppression	Increase in fire frequency/intensity	Ongoing
Energy production & mining	Oil & gas drilling		Only in the future
Energy production & mining	Mining & quarrying		Ongoing

Additional information

References: Castro, A., Dávila, C., Laura, W., Cubas Saucedo, F., Ávalos, G., López, C., ... & Marín, D.(2021). Climate of Perú: National climate classification map. https://www.senamhi.gob.pe/?p=mapa-climatico-del-peru