Welcome to the Atlantic Forest! Join our Brassy-breasted Tanager (our coverbird) and 190 other endemic birds who call this biodiversity icon home. A dense, stunning South American forest habitat that used to span nearly 350 million acres in Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, now just 12% of this unique climate-mitigating South American forest remains.
Despite this here are the incredible stats:
- 191 endemic bird species
- over two thousand species of mammals, reptiles and amphibians,
- 8% of the world’s species of plants
- 60% of Brazil’s threatened species live in what small isolated patches remain (many under 250 acres) of the once mighty Atlantic Forest.
Older than the Amazonian Rainforest but similar in density of biodiversity, these two once-monster forests evolved separately. And the remaining patches of the Atlantic Forest play an important role in climate mitigation, as its highly layered and diverse botany are massive carbon capture machines.
Whats being done? Lots!
- Conservation organizations are working to preserve, expand, and connect the remaining patches making it easier for wildlife to find mates and move around safely
- Local farmers are learning how to practice alternate methods of farming that are sustainable and can increase their income.
- Some of the forest birds are super important seed dispersers, so getting them back in larger numbers to restore the forest is critical. The reintroduction of the endangered Black-fronted Piping Guan, by SAVE Brazil is a pretty cool project making a difference.