Quebrada Mellicita-Charco Azul (19271)
Panama, Central America
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2007
National site name: Quebrada Mellicita-Charco Azul
Central coordinates: Latitude: 8.1805, Longitude: -82.9013
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 40 to 250
Area of KBA (km2): 17.00783
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: This site consists of the remaining forest fragments of the Burica Peninsula south of Puerto Armuelles. Charco Azul, on the coast 4 km south of Puerto Armuelles, consists of three adjacent fragments of mostly young secondary lowland evergreen forest (121 ha total) around the Quebrada Merida. The forest is within the operating area of the facilities of Petroterminales de Panamá (PTP), the Pacific terminal of the oil pipeline from Puerto Armuelles to Chiriquí Grande. It is easily accessible by road. The Quebrada Mellicita area, 7-11 km south of Puerto Armuelles, contains five large and several smaller fragments of more mature forest (2 to 56 ha, about 224 ha in all). The remaining forest is in the Quebradas Manzanillo, Melliza, and Mellicita within 3.5 km of the coast.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas)
Additional biodiversity: The globally near-threatened, and nationally critically endangered, Baird's Trogon persists at the site. The threatened Yellow-billed Cotinga was recorded once in 1982, but it is unlikely that it now occurs regularly. The area contains 12 of 16 species (75%) of South Central American Pacific Slope EBA, and 14 of 42 species (33%) of biome N05. Several nationally endangered species also occur. Red-throated Caracara was present in 1982 but is now probably gone. Non-bird biodiversity: The globally endangered Red-backed Squirrel Monkey* occurs, as well as Central American Wooly Opossum, Central American Spider Monkey, Neotropical River Otter, Ocelot and Jaguarundi (Rodríguez 2000, A. Rodríguez pers. com.). Reptiles and amphibians that have been recorded from the Puerto Armuelles area include the frog Eleutherodactylus taurus, the salamander Bolitoglossa lignicolor, the lizards Sphaerodactylus graptolaemus, Bachia blairi, Sphenomorphus cherriei and Leposoma southi, and the snake Micrurus clarki.
Habitats
Summary of habitats in KBA: The site contains fragments of mature and secondary lowland evergreen forest, together with young scrub, cattle pasture, and agricultural areas. Part of the area is devoted to the terminal for a transisthmian oil pipeline.
Land use: agriculture | rangeland/pastureland | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 50 | |
| Forest | 50 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: In 1982 the area contained a large tract of continuous forest, but this has since been almost entirely cleared for cattle pasture, as has virtually all other forest on the southern Burica Peninsula including the Costa Rican side, and clearing continues. Although Charco Azul is not formally protected, PTP has prevented clearing on its property for security reasons, allowing the forest to begin regenerating. The conservation value of the remaining fragments would be enhanced if they could be linked by allowing some of the intervening pasture to revert to second growth.
Additional information
References: Angehr, George R. 2003. Directorio de areas importantes para aves en Panama. Directory of important bird areas in Panama. Panama: Sociedad Audubon de Panama. Ridgely, Robert S., and John A. Gwynne. 1989. A Guide to the Birds of Panama (Second Edition). Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Wetmore, Alexander. 1965. The Birds of the Republic of Panama. Part 1. Tinamidae (Tinamous) to Rhynchopidae (Skimmers). Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. Wetmore, Alexander. 1968. The Birds of the Republic of Panama. Part 2. Columbidae (Pigeons) to Picidae (Woodpeckers). Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. Wetmore, Alexander. 1973. The Birds of the Republic of Panama. Part 3. Passeriformes: Dendrocolaptidae (Woodcreepers) to Oxyruncidae (Sharpbill). Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. Wetmore, Alexander, Roger F. Pasquier, and Storrs L. Olson. 1984. The Birds of the Republic of Panama. Part 4. Passeriformes: Hirundinidae (Swallows) to Fringillidae (Finches). Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.