The Day the Forest welcomed its Tenants

On March 20th, in a corner of humid forest belonging to the Fundación Loros, an unusual procession made its way through the understory: police officers, sailors from the Armada Nacional, officials from the EPA Cartagena, and the Foundation's own team, carrying transport cages through the leaf litter. Inside traveled young zarigüeyas — those sharp-snouted creatures with eyes like black buttons — along with turtles bearing dark grey shells, and an owl dressed in brown plumage that regarded the world with the solemn calm that belongs to nocturnal birds caught in daylight. When the cages were opened, there was no ceremony. The zarigüeyas slipped between the leaves as though they had always known this was their place. The turtles moved slowly, at their own pace, toward the low vegetation. The owl found the lower branches of a tree and went still — camouflaged among the dry stems, waiting for the world to forget about it. Someone trailed behind with a phone in a blue case, trying to capture the moment before the forest swallowed them whole. The official record detailing every species and exact count is still on its way — to be sent by the Centro de Atención de Primates — but the photographs already say enough: a forest that, on that afternoon, welcomed back some of its most unassuming tenants.