Discovering Colombia's rare flora and fauna

[Judi Lynn]

By Frank Gardner
BBC News
1 hour ago



Colombia's tropical rainforests have been disappearing fast. Since the 2016 peace deal between the government and the Farc guerrillas much of the virgin jungle that was previously off-limits due to conflict has now been chopped down, destroying entire ecosystems. But now efforts are under way to save what's left.

Earlier this year, and just before the coronavirus lockdown, I joined an expedition of top botanists from the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London into previously unexplored rainforest in the Serrania de las Quinchas, as they searched for rare plant species, some of them unknown to science.

Colombia is the second most bio-diverse country in the world after Brazil. It also has more bird species - 1,958 at latest count - than any other country.

If there were a game of Top Trumps for hummingbirds then Colombia would win hands-down. With its mountains, jungles and rainforests, this large South American nation boasts some of the world's most colourful flora and fauna. Here is a small sample of what we saw.



More:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-52948635