Since January we have been involved in the rescue of 177 wild animals from illegal trafficking! The anti-trafficking operations we organized with the authorities have led to the arrest of seven wildlife traffickers.

These anti trafficking operations included raids on five markets in Pucallpa, which resulted in the arrest of four traffickers, the rescue of live animals and confiscation of close to a hundred kilograms of bush meat. Two other raids took place in the Vado Market in Yurimaguas, Loreto, where more than 150 animals were rescued and two traffickers were arrested.

Those detained by police are currently under investigation and both administrative and criminal proceedings have been opened against them. Thanks to recent changes in the Peruvian wildlife laws immediate sentencing is possible for the first time and penalties have been increased to 3 to 6 years in prison and a minimum fine of S/.39,500 (about $11,000).

NPC's undercover work helped identify the trafficking centers and during the raids we helped identify illegal activity and have aided in care of the rescued animals.

None of this would have been possible without the work of the authorities of Ucayali and Loreto. These regions are national centers of wildlife trafficking in Peru, with hundred to thousands of animals trafficked every day, smuggled from the rainforest to coastal cities and out of the country. These kinds of operations are an absolute necessity to combat these practices that are driving many species to extinction. We hope that under the new wildlife law raids will be much more frequent until wildlife trafficking will be stamped out.

We are pleased to present NPC's annual report, which highlights our most important achievements of 2015.  From important studies on the ecology of  Peru's endemic primate species, to the continued success and expansion of our Community Based Conservation Network, to an intensified focus on battling the illegal trafficking of Peru's fauna, it has been a very busy year! 

We hope you will enjoy learning more about it.

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NPC is seeking funding for the implementation of a spay/neuter programme in the villages of the Peruvian Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot.This region is considered to the most biodiverse region on Earth, as well as one of the most threatened. and is home to many endemic and highly threatened taxa of flora and fauna, including the Critically Endangered yellow-tailed woolly monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda), the Long-whiskered Owlet (Xenoglaux loweryi) and spectacle bear (Tremarctos ornatus).

Local people keep dogs for company, but also for security reason and very often they leave dogs in very remote areas to guard their fields. Sometimes they leave them in the fields overnight to guard cattle. These dogs are fed the minimum necessary and hunt to supplement their diet and to amuse themselves when their owners are away. Except from the direct hunting problem, unhealthy stray domestic animals can be very dangerous vectors for diseases transmission into the forest, contaminating and infecting populations of wildlife with diseases they have little or no immunity against. These diseases can become real epidemics wiping out wild populations of certain species without anyone knowing about it. Therefore it is extremely important to keep domestic animals population as low and as healthy as possible.

There is also a very important moral issue. The main way people in the area avoid too much breeding is by killing the females as soon as they are born, usually by drowning in a sack. Therefore, in typical villages, there are very few females and a lot of males. Apart from the horrible ways in which the new born females are disposed of there is also the problem of to many males. When just one female is in heat fights between the dozens of males become very fierce and many are wounded severely, sometimes dying later from injuries or infection.

The idea of this project is to offer free sterilizations, basic veterinary care and education about how dogs and cats should be kept, to the people living in villages surrounding our research station. We have vets associated with the project that are willing to do the work voluntarily or for a nominal fee, therefore costs will be kept to a minimum, just materials and transport. We estimate that 300 - 400 pounds would be sufficient for the first 30-40 dogs, or enough for two or three villages. Prices will decrease slightly if we can get funds for a larger amount of operations which we could be offered to people in growing number of villages, depending on the amount of funds available.

“El Niño” is a natural phenomenon that occurs every three to five years, bringing torrential rains, flooding, landslides and drought. Climate change, warming of the oceans and the loss of the ozone layer increase the frequency and intensity of this phenomenon. It is believed that this year’s “El Niño” could be the worst ever recorded and for this reason has been named the Godzilla “El Niño”. With the consistently high and rising levels of deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon, the danger of flooding and landslides is ever increasing. In the last two years, dozens of people have lost their lives and hundreds have lost their homes as a result of these natural disasters. Central Bagua Grande and parts of Moyobamba, the capital of San Martin state, were flooded this year due to the effects of climate change, even without any influence from“El Niño” or Godzilla.

At the moment we are carrying out an environmental education campaign, visiting rural villages in Amazonas and San Martin, educating school children about the importance of primates and forests through games,
videos and storytelling. This year we are also including activities specifically focusing on the threat of the “El Niño” phenomenon. The majority of the villages that we plan to visit during this campaign have so far been un-reachable due to torrential rains that have made many roads impassable.

Although a state of emergency has been declared in both Amazonas and San Martin, the national campaign “Preparate Peru”(Prepare yourself Peru) has had little impact in rural areas. Local people know little about what this year’s weather will bring but schools are being closed for December as a precaution. However little more is being done to prepare rural cities and villages.

We must understand that the lives of thousands of rural Peruvian children are in very real danger. Highways are closed, harvests ruined, houses destroyed, water contaminated and areas without power mean a large loss of life and increase in future poverty.

It is common to hear people say that “El Niño” is a natural phenomenon, or an act of god, and that they just need to put up with it, but it is important to understand the magnitude of destruction that is about to occur and that it is a consequence of the continued destruction of ecosystems. It is the result of bad government policies that promote deforestation. It is time to demand that governments value life and  protect it; that they stop treating nature as a resource to be exploited; and their rural citizens are not treated like expendable people.

Por Noga Shanee, NPC

El día 28 de Octubre, he tenido la mayor satisfacción al ser testigo del desalojo del mercado Bellavista, siendo trasladado a un nuevo y formal local. Las nuevas instalaciones han sido diseñadas para facilitar operaciones de inspección y control por parte de las autoridades y el tráfico de fauna silvestre no estará permitido.

Bellavista era un mercado ilegal, manejado informalmente por la municipalidad de Coronel Portillo, Pucallpa. Además de ventas cotidianas, este mercado comercializaba ilegalmente con fauna silvestre, drogas e incluso existen sospechas de que se traficaba con personas. Durante los veinte años que operó este mercado se han presentado ente las autoridades cientos de denuncias sobre tráfico de fauna y otros negocios ilícitos y también sobre la terrible contaminación que fue la causa de muchas enfermedades en la ciudad de Pucallpa. Sin embargo, las mafias que lideraban este mercado, evitaban la entrada de las autoridades con gran violencia, por este motivo las denuncias fueron archivadas una tras de otra: siendo los traficantes los únicos beneficiados de este estado de abandono ya que delinquían  libremente y abiertamente. 

Durante los últimos 20 años millones de animales vivos (mascotas) y muertos (carne de monte) han sido vendidos a vista y paciencia en este mercado ubicado a un par de cuadras del centro de la ciudad. La manera abierta en que se comercializaban los animales en este mercado ha generado que la población perciba el tráfico de fauna silvestre como algo legal y aceptable. En los tachos de basura de este mercado se podía encontrar cada día varios animales muertos que no aguantaron el miedo, la depresión, el hambre y las enfermedades y fueron botados a la basura sin ningún respeto. El tráfico de fauna silvestre que ocurrió en Bellavista a unos niveles extremadamente altos, afectaba a los animales que sufrieron y perdieron sus vidas, además de tener un papel importante en la extinción de especies de la Amazonia Peruana.

El mercado de Bellavista ha sido uno de los principales objetivos de la campaña en contra del tráfico de fauna silvestre dirigida por NPC y desde el año 2013 hemos trabajado incansablemente en Pucallpa denunciando las actividades ilegales que ocurrían en este mercado. Hemos organizado protestas, ruedas de prensa y campañas de concienciación con las autoridades y el público en general, con la finalidad de clausurar este terrible mercado que tantas muertes y sufrimiento ha causado a incontables animales.

Es importante tener en cuenta que la clausura de este mercado no significa el fin del tráfico de fauna silvestre en Pucallpa. La completa e indignante falta de respuesta de las autoridades ambientales nacionales y regionales contra el tráfico de fauna silvestre en la región Ucayali, ha resultado en la existencia de almacenes ilegales escondidos en la ciudad donde los traficantes compran/venden miles de animales. El hecho de que el principal centro de comercio ha sido clausurado es un gran paso, pero ahora es el momento más importante para parar el negocio de la fauna silvestre. Las autoridades ambientales deben despertarse, identificar y atacar los traficantes, sacarles de sus huecos y sancionarles fuertemente. Deben asegurar que de ahora en adelante los traficantes de fauna no podrán acceder al público directamente y abiertamente en ningún sitio de la cuidad.

Sabemos que el traslado del mercado provocó una protesta social y que algunos comerciantes honestos fueron afectados por ello. Sin embargo, el cierre de este punto de ilegalidad y contaminación, que era una vergüenza para la cuidad y sus autoridades, fue un gran paso hacia el desarrollo de Pucallpa, de Ucayali, y de Perú.  Uno de los principales mercados ilícitos de fauna silvestre en Perú ya no existe, y esto es un gran logro.  Así es que de nuevo felicito a la municipalidad de Coronel Portillo por finalmente demoler este terrible mercado que logró funcionar ilegalmente durante tantos años. Nosotros como NPC reiteramos nuestro compromiso a continuar trabajando en Pucallpa hasta terminar con el tráfico de fauna silvestre.

Hago un llamamiento a los ciudadanos Pucallpeños, por favor si tienen información sobre algún almacén de fauna silvestre en cualquier lado de la ciudad, o si se encuentran un lugar donde los traficantes de fauna están estableciendo de nuevo para vender animales al público, por favor avisen de inmediato y en total confianza al correo electrónico:   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .