About This Project

Residentes de Chile: Viene el Día de la Tierra! Si quiere hacer una donación en honor del Día de la Tierra (cualquier monto), indica esto en un mensaje con la donación, y le daremos una visita guiada al sector de Cascada de las Animas donde van los guanacos, en la primavera de 2017.

Phase two of Proyecto REGenera, restoring the "espinal" of Chile https://experiment.com/project...We will release guanacos in Cascada de las Ánimas Nature Sanctuary and monitor their socio-ecological impacts.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Guanacos (Lama guanicoe) are a wild relative of llamas. They used to live throughout Chile, until about 500 years ago, when they were almost exterminated. We think they had important effects on the ecology of central Chilean woodlands, and were also important to local indigenous people. Many Chileans still feel that guanacos are an important symbol of wilderness and Andean cultures, but their ecological impacts have been lost. This may have contributed to the degradation of many central Chilean woodlands. Following our experiment on the effects of guanaco browsing in silvopastoral savanna, we need to find the guanacos a new home, this time in the wild. This is our opportunity to learn how best to put our ideas into conservation practice.

Véase abajo para español.

What is the significance of this project?

Guanacos can have positive ecological effects by browsing on trees (stimulating the growth of some species), dispersing seeds (including, possibly, big seeds that have no other way of dispersing), making dung heaps that improve the soil, and making trails and dust bathing sites where herbs and flowers can establish. Guanacos have never been reintroduced into central Chile for ecological restoration. We will conduct socio-ecological monitoring of the guanacos' territory, measuring tree canopy growth and seedling establishment, endemic herbaceous species richness, soil nutrients, avian diversity, responses of rabbits and small mammals, and locals' and tourists' perceptions. This data will allow us to plan future conservation programs.

What are the goals of the project?

We need to prepare the groundwork for the reintroduction of the guanacos. This means building fences at Cascada de las Animas to keep the guanacos out of some areas. Once we release the guanacos, we plan to monitor their socio-ecological effects over several years. These experiences will allow us to understand the institutional and social requirements for a larger-scale program of release of guanacos in central Chile for ecological restoration. It will also help us put a timeline and more data behind the ecological impacts that can be expected.