Sibundoy Valley (26533)
Colombia, South America

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Global KBA criteria: A1a, A1e, B1, B2

Year of last assessment: 2024

National site name: Valle de Sibundoy

Central coordinates: Latitude: 1.0188, Longitude: -76.9675

System: terrestrial, freshwater

Elevation (m): 1000 to 3500

Area of KBA (km²): 1109.35464

Protected area coverage (%): 20.68

KBA classification: Global

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: The Valle del Sibundoy KBA is located on the headwaters of the Putumayo River, in the southwest of Colombia, in the foothills on the Nudo de los Pastos. It's located mostly on the Putumayo department and a little part of Nariño between the municipalities of Pasto, Sibundoy, Orito,Villagarzon, Santiago, San Francisco and Mocoa. This is an area of 1083 Km2 that covers an altitudinal range that from 1000 to around 3500 meters above sea level. This area has different annual means of precipitation with lowest on 820 mm and the highest on 4500 depending on the municipality. Mean temperature of this area is around 15°C. It's characterized by having high andean ecosystems as the Wet and Cloudy Forest and to a lesser extent, the presence of Paramo.

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site contains the entire known population of Pristimantis zoilae (A1a, A1e, B1). This site also holds the only known population of the tree species Aiphanes pilaris (A1a, A1e, B1). Two trigger birds: Cyanolyca quindiuna y Urochroa leucura (both B2). Four additional amphibians meet legacy criteria and are in need of reassessment.

Additional biodiversity: In the area, 164 bird species have been recorded, six of them endangered and 27 birds restricted to the Northern Andes biome (Acevedo-Charry, 2014). In addition, there are 18 relict wetlands as part of the transition zone to the Amazon in an inter-Andean valley (CORPOAMAZONIA and FCP, 2006). Finally, 32 species of amphibians can be found in this area (Mueses-Cisneros, 2005).

Manageability of the site: This area is managed by the Autonomous Regional Corporation from Nariño called CORPONARIÑO.

Other site values: Reported presence of many indigenous communities as the Kasma, Kamentsa, Inga, Paez, Quilacinga, Embera Chami, Pastos and others.

Delineation rationale: Site was identified during the 2015-2018 amphibian AZE update. The delineation of this KBA was adjusted as a polygon drawn using the upper Putumayo micro-watersheds that do not overlap with the Laguna de la Cocha KBA.

Habitats

IUCN Habitat	Coverage %	Habitat detail
Forest		Forest – Subtropical/tropical moist montane
Shrubland		Shrubland – Subtropical/tropical high altitude
Artificial - Terrestrial		Plantations

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The area presents pressures such as bean, lulo, tree tomato agriculture and the presence of cattle for the production of calves and milk.

Additional information

References: Acevedo-Charry O (2014) Aves de Quindicocha - Valle de Sibundoy, Putumayo - Colombia: Potencial área de conservación. Universitas Scientiarum 19(1): 29-41 doi: 10.11144/Javeriana.SC19-1.aqvs Mueses-Cisneros, J. J. (2005). Fauna anfibia del valle de Sibundoy, Putumayo-Colombia. Caldasia, 27(2), 229-242. CORPOAMAZONIA Y FCP (2006). Plan de manejo ambiental - humedales Valle de Sibundoy. Convenio de cooperación N° 160 de 2006.