We replant the tropical dry forest

One of the planet's most threatened ecosystems

The tropical dry forest sustains unique biodiversity —psittacines, primates, felines, migratory birds— yet it is one of the most overlooked ecosystems in conservation. Less than 5% of its original cover remains globally. In Colombia, of nearly 9 million hectares, only about 720,000 ha survive —between 8% and 9% of the original area.

And what does survive is not always mature forest: a significant part is regrowth and secondary forest, fragmented and isolated. That is why every hectare we restore counts twice — it recovers surface area and reconnects the landscape.

This line of work is aligned with the Manifesto and the Management Model: psittacine rehabilitation is only viable if the territory where birds return offers forest with food, cavities, tall trees and low human pressure. Forest restoration is a necessary condition of the reintroduction program.

Sources: Pizano & García (eds.), El Bosque Seco Tropical en Colombia, Instituto Alexander von Humboldt, 2014; Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sostenible.

Our response in Villanueva, Bolívar

Northern Bolívar is one of the most important remnants of tropical dry forest in Colombia. That is where we concentrate our work: three compensation and conservation agreements in execution, planting native species and giving back to the landscape surface, connectivity and carrying capacity for the wildlife that still resists.

The agreements involve three environmental authorities (ANLA, CARDIQUE and CRA) and total 21,888 TDF trees committed for planting, more than 33 hectares in active restoration and corridor strips along streams. Out of confidentiality with counterparts, we present the cases without naming companies; technical detail is in each authority's public reports.

Ecological corridors: streams are the veins of the forest

Each stream on the property is preserved as an ecological corridor, with a protected strip of 30 meters on each side. That strip —the riparian buffer— is kept free of productive activity and enriched with native species, guaranteeing water, shade and connectivity so wildlife can move between the core and the edges.

We plant for parrots and primates

Our species palette is designed to offer two things: home (shelter and nest) and food (fruits, seeds and flowers) year-round. We work with a catalog of more than 100 TDF species prioritized by their value to wildlife and regional availability —ceiba bonga, jabillo, camajón, orejero, palma de vino, caracolí, jobo, guásimo, matarratón, macondo, mahogany, oak, among others.

Full detail in our field log, where we explain what each agreement plants and why each species contributes to the wildlife the territory hosts.

ICA-certified nursery

The Fundación Loros Nursery is registered with the Colombian Agricultural Institute as a producer and seller of plant propagation material, through ICA Resolution No. 00001884 of March 3, 2023, with indefinite validity. This means that every tree we plant —in compensations, volunteer events or tourist experiences— comes from a traceable, technically supervised, authorized nursery.

The nursery is authorized for 83 timber species, 14 fruit trees and 88 ornamentals, all relevant to TDF restoration and Caribbean landscape regeneration.

At least 35% of trees are native fruit species

In every compensation we execute on the property we make sure that at least 35% of trees planted are native fruit species of the tropical dry forest. It is our way of ensuring that compensation does not stop at timber but returns real food for wildlife and Caribbean communities.

In the most recent agreement, this 35% floor was incorporated as a formal clause, not just a good practice. The list includes jobo, ciruela, guayaba agria, mamón, mamey, zapote, caimo, achiote, anón, guanábana, guáimaro and palms like corozo, along with fruit trees adapted to the TDF such as mango and tamarind.