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EL TRIUNFO BIOSPHERE RESERVE, MEXICO Total Protected Area: 294,367 acres (119,177 ha) Ecoregions Represented: Central American Pine-Oak Forest, Chiapas Depression Dry Forests, and Sierra Madre Moist Forests Partner Institutions: Instituto de Historia Natural y Ecología de Chiapas (IHNE) Reserva de la Biosfera El Triunfo - Comisión Nacional de Areas Naturales Protegidas, México (CONANP) El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve is one of the most biodiverse forest reserves in Mexico and worldwide. The reserve straddles the Sierra Madre mountain range in the southern Mexican State of Chiapas, protecting cloud forest, tropical forest, oak-pine forest and hydrologic systems. Home to many endemic plants and vertebrates, the site harbors percent of all the species of fauna in Mexico and 43 percent of the species in the state of Chiapas. The site protects 10 of the 19 vegetation types registered in Chiapas, including large areas of cloud forest. El Triunfo’s drainages capture 10 percent of the rainfall for all of Mexico, distributing water to all the economically important regions of the State and one of its watersheds, the Rio Grijalva, provides 70 percent of the hydro-electricity in the country. El Triunfo was first decreed as a state park in 1972 and as a federal protected area in 1990, and in 1993 the reserve was designated a UNESCO Man and the Biosphere site. Ecological significance Because in Chiapas the Sierra Madre is a transition zone between the Neoarctic and Neotropical biogeographical regions, the area’s flora and fauna are enriched by the northernmost and southernmost range extensions of many species. The area where the El Triunfo is located has been identified as a Pleistocene Refuge, where numerous species survived the climate changes and extinction of the Pleistocene epoch. Covering 10 vegetation types, including some of the best remaining stands of Central American cloud forest and the last expanse of Pacific Coast tropical evergreen forest, El Triunfo is literally a last refuge for dozens of endemic, rare and endangered species of plants and animals, including the resplendent quetzal (Pharomachrus mochinno), azure-rumped tanager (Tangara cabanisi), horned guan Oreophasis derbianus), emerald toucanet (Aulacorhynchus prasinus), puma (Felis concolor), jaguar (Panthera onca), tapir (Tapirus mexicana) and spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi). In total, 378 bird species, 55 reptile species and 82 mammal species have been recorded throughout the biosphere reserve. There are more than 2,000 known genera of flowering plants alone, with 22,000 known and over 30,000 expected species. Socioeconomic context The area’s original inhabitants were Mames (Maya-Quiche nation), who were fishers-gatherers, and later practiced agriculture, including cocoa production, and commerce. The different immigrants, including Aztecs, Spaniards, Chinese, Japanese, and Germans, introduced new products to the area, such as coffee, which became important in the region. The construction of the railroad in the early 1900s and later the Panamerican highway in the 1950s fragmented the watershed and promoted migration to the area. The original inhabitants have virtually disappeared, and the production models, such as large plantations, brought in by immigrants from diverse backgrounds have replaced traditional models that evolved with local conditions, causing ecological disruptions in the watershed. Currently there are 221 settlements in the reserve, with a population of 14,217 people. The main economic activities in the reserve are coffee production, cattle ranching, timber extraction, and small-scale commerce. Partners The Conservancy’s primary partners in El Triunfo are the state-affiliated organization, Instituto de Historia Natural y Ecología de Chiapas (IHNE) and the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve Management through the National Commission for Natural Protected Areas (CONANP). IHNE is a natural resource management agency and research institute created by the Chiapas government in 1942 to oversee the conservation and study of the state’s natural wealth. Since 1972 IHNE has provided important on-site protection and conservation programs at El Triunfo and several other protected areas in the state. Threats There are several primary threats to ecosystems at El Triunfo, most of them relating to current development demands by the area’s growing population. First is the deforestation stemming from the expansion of the agricultural frontier. Immediate causes include clearing for coffee plantations, subsistence agriculture, cattle ranching, and forest fires. Another ecological threat is the contamination of soil and water courses by agrochemicals and coffee pulp. Poorly planned construction projects, particularly roads, increase and facilitate further incursion into the Reserve. Lastly, social-agrarian problems such as poverty, marginalization, scarce agricultural resources, and high population growth increase pressure on the area’s natural resources. Date of initial threats analysis for site: 1994 Date of most recent update: 2000 Source of threats analysis presented below: PiP Consolidation Indicators, Threats Analysis, results from the workshops held in 1997 and 2000. Participants in analysis presented below: Reserve staff, INE, IHNE, representatives from various sectors, TAC members. Scheduled future update(s): None scheduled. The five major threats at the site Target/ Threats: System/ 1st Line: Impact/Stress Resource -2nd etc: Sources of Stresses Cloud forest Stress: Deforestation -Source: Expansion of agricultural frontier (coffee production) - Source: Social-agrarian problems (poverty, marginalization, scarce Rank M H Partner/Site Strategy H Develop organic and shade coffee projects with communities. Strengthen organizations. Develop alternative productive projects. Policy work with state and federal government. Enforcement of existing laws and agricultural resources, high population growth). Tropical forest Stress: Deforestation - Source: Cattle ranching H H - Source: Forest fires M Stress: Deforestation -Source: Forest fires M M Stress: Contamination -Source: Coffee processing M H Pine-oak forest Hydrologic system regulations. Agrarian and social support. Legal security. Give appropriate information to PROFEPA. Intensive cattle grazing projects. Diversification of activities; conservation easements, extension and training, promote maize production using green fertilizers. Fire prevention and control campaign and workshop. Organic agricultural production. Fire prevention and control campaign. All strategies. Watershed conservation project. Ecologically friendly coffee. VH = very high, H =high, M = Medium, L = low Conservation Strategy at the Site The Parks in Peril (PiP) project was an important starting point to initiate management activities in El Triunfo, focusing on procuring field, communications and computer equipment; channeling resources for basic research; completing a threats analysis, monitoring programs, and land tenure updates; developing financing strategies and building the capacity of both reserve and IHNE staff to carry out site conservation activities. The reserve currently has a five year strategic plan and management plan for the site (19982002). The management plan was developed in collaboration with different stakeholder sectors such as community representatives, academic institutions, government agencies, municipal representatives, conservation organizations, campesino organizations, and ejidos. To address threats more effectively and provide for long-term security, the plan identifies sub-components with specific actions in the following six themes: natural resource protection, sustainable development, environmental education, research and monitoring, social communication, as well as management and administration. (information from Instituto Nacional de Ecología,(1999). Programa de Manejo de la Reserva de la Biosfera El Triunfo, Mexico. México, D.F., México). One of the Conservancy’s conservation strategies in Mexico is to establish a number of “platform sites” that will serve as a mechanism for increasing the depth and coverage of conservation efforts. Because of the ecological significance and conservation priority of the watershed adjoining the El Triunfo and La Encrucijada Biosphere Reserves, we are creating the Chiapas Coastal Watershed Platform Site, which, in addition to the two reserves, encompasses a previously unprotected watershed area between La Encrucijada and El Triunfo. To conserve the forests, watershed functions, and freshwater systems critical to the biodiversity of the Chiapas Coastal Watersheds, the Conservancy and its partners will focus on the following strategies: Develop a watershed management and conservation model to conserve biologically significant lands and waters Objectives: Complete a sound site conservation plan for the landscape scale project Establish riparian corridor and ridgeline protection and management strategy built on sound community based conservation programs Establish water quality and quantity protection mechanisms Establish measures of success and conservation monitoring programs Promote the establishment of long term financing and key conservation policies Objectives: Complete the economic valuation study of El Triunfo’s environmental services, potentially including the full watershed and the wetland services of La Encrucijada. Establish a carbon mitigation project for test watershed corridor or ridgeline area Establish the legal and institutional mechanisms for water use fees and site based trust funds Support the replication of the watershed conservation model through the promotion of policy changes Establish linkages with regional planning and financing initiatives from public, bilateral and multilateral sources Conservation capacity: Strengthen Partners and TNC Programs Objectives: Strengthen the Conservancy’s site-based technical and project management capacity Establish Learning and exchange programs with network sites, while providing targeted assistance to these site based programs Strengthen partner conservation capacities through institutional development Develop private lands conservation capacities through a local private organization Create a watershed conservation coalition and broad institutional network, using communication and education programs as key tools