Welcome to HARPOTTUMA
Wildlife This includes any non‐cultivated or non‐
domestic organism in the kingdoms of animals, plants, protista, prokaryota and fungi and any parts or derivatives. Photo credits: Puma –Bas Lammers,2009; Giant River Otter-Nicole Duplaix; Harpy Eagle-Ricardo Kuehn, 2004; and Blue Morpho– Mark Deering,2011
Wildlife and the EPA
Boasting some 75% pristine rainforest, Guyana is a collective of complex biomes to more than 8000 species of plants, mammals, birds, fishes, reptiles, and amphibians, and countless inverte‐
brates. They all have a role that is rather unique, be it simple or complex. Wild Guyana is truly an ecologist’s treasure chest. It is a biologically diverse country, where an abundance of wildlife can be discovered, espe‐
cially in pristine areas such as the Kaieteur Na‐
tional Park, Kanuku Mts., Shell Beach, the Rupununi Savannahs and the Iwokrama Rainfor‐
est Reserve. What do you know about the Wildlife Unit of the EPA ? The Wildlife Unit operates under the Natural Resources Management Division, one of three technical Divisions of the EPA. The Unit is responsible for the development of a wildlife management and conservation programme to regulate the capturing, gathering, collecting, hunting, killing or taking of wildlife, for any purpose and use. What are we wild about? Improving appreciation and awareness for wildlife; Promoting sustainable practices favorable to wildlife; Conservation and protection of wildlife; and Strengthening wildlife database. HARP-OTT-UMA: A surge conjured by the joining of three wild giants found in Guyana. Harpy, Master of the skies;
Otter, King of aquatica (water) and prince on land; and Puma, Lord of terrestria (land) and all that he surveys.
Here in HARP-OTT-UMA , a host of wild gems.
What do you know about these giants? Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja) Habitat Range: South America; prefer uninterrupted expansive forest. Measurements: Adult body length of 90 cm ‐ 105 cm , an approximate wingspan of 250 cm , and weighs 4.5 kg ‐ 9.1 kg. Diet: Feeds on forest dwelling animals such as sloths, monkeys, opossums, some reptiles and birds. Wild Side: One of the world’s largest and most powerful birds of prey, Harpy Eagles are highly maneuverable fliers and strike their prey after a rapid pursuit and can fly with prey weigh‐
ing one half of their body weight [Guyana Naturally, 2012]. Giant River Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) Habitat Range : Endemic to South America; can be found in rivers, creeks and lakes. Measurements: Adult length of 183 cm ‐ 244 cm, from its nose to the tip of its tail (Nowak, 1999) and weighs approximately 18 kg ‐ 34 kg. Diet: Fishes and crabs. Wild side: The Giant River Otter is the largest of all the world's otter species. They are highly en‐
dangered. An estimated 1,000 individuals remain in Guyana and a few thousand in the wild [National Geographic, 2012]. Puma (Puma concolor) Habitat Range: The Americas in the moun‐
tain forest of elevation up to about 4880 m to lowland swamp and grasslands. Measurements: Body length of 11.76 cm ‐ 203 cm and weighs between 29.9 kg ‐ 4.82 kg. Diet: Preys on deer, rabbits and other fleshy mammals. Wild side: The largest of the small cats of the world. This cat hunts alone, during the day or night and will stash its food, if large enough, in dense undergrowth, returning to it over several days [Big cats online‐1997]. Why conserve and Protect Wildlife? We are all connected as in a chain, each link important to the others for survival. The forest provides food (wildlife), medi‐
cines, home to indigenous peoples, building materials, etc, so loss of the forest and the animals that live in it means loss of natural habitats and ecosystems, carbon sinks, natural air and water purifiers, and materi‐
als for building and construction. Harpottuma’s special feature: Blue Morpho Butterfly (Morpho pelei‐
des) A tropical butterfly found in Central and South America with a lifespan of approxi‐ mately 115 days. Most of their time is spent eating and reproducing [Rainforest Alliance Blue Morpho Butterfly, 2012]. Major threats to Wildlife Key Conservation Partners in Guyana Human activities can have direct as well as indirect threats to wildlife. We con‐
tribute in more ways than we know. “Plans to protect air and water, wilder‐
ness and wildlife are in fact plans to protect man” Stewart Udall. Climate Change; Habitat loss; Hunting & Over exploitation; Pollution & Toxic Chemicals; Introduction to the wild of exotic and/or alien species; Natural Calamities; and Accidental Deaths. Conservation Initiatives Steps towards the conservation of biodiver‐
sity will promote protecting and sustaining wildlife. Over the years, Guyana has taken and will continue to take such steps. These include: World Wildlife Fund (WWF); Conservation International Foundation ‐ Guy‐
ana (CI‐G); Iwokrama International Center for Rainforest Conservation and Development; Guyana Marine Turtle Conservation Society (GMTCS);  Wildlife Management Authority Centre for the Study of Biological Diversity (CSBD); Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC); Protected Areas Commission (PAC); National Parks Commission (NPC); and Ministry of Natural Resources & Environ‐
ment (MNRE). Links & Resources  A National Strategy for the Conservation and sustainable use of Biological Diversity;  The National Biodiversity Action Plans;  Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Policy;  The Low Carbon Development Strategy;  Environmental Protection Act;  Species Protection Regulations;  Protected Areas Act and two newly declared Protected Areas (Kanuku Mts. & Shell Beach);  Draft ABS Regulations;  Draft Wildlife Management and Conserva‐
tion Regulations; and  Draft Wildlife Import and Export Bill.  WWF : www.wwfguianas.org;  CI‐G: www.conservation.org.gy;  Iwokrama: www.iwokrama.org;  GMTCS: www.gmtcs.org;  GFC: www.forestry.gov.gy;  Kaieteur National Park (KNP): www.kaieteurpark.gov.gy; and  Guyana Clearing House Mechanism: gy.chm‐cbd.net.  MNRE: www.nre.gov.gy/ “The environment is everybody’s business”
Ganges Street, Sophia, Georgetown, Guyana
Tel.: (592)-225-5467-9 / 2062 / 1218 / 0506 / 6917 / 5471-2
/ 6044 / 6048
Fax: (592)-225-5481
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.epaguyana.org
Photo Credits: EPA-Guyana