Conserving the natural environments is a challenge we can not elude, not only for birds, but the biodiversity and for ourselves as well.

    PROGRAMS AND PROYECTS

    Although there are a lot of organizations which are working on the pursuit of environment preservation, we stress these three programs of quite importance in bird preservation;  "Aicas", "Grassland" and "Wetlands".

    AICAs                                                                                                                                            up

    The program of important areas for the Bird Preservation (AICAs) of BirdLife International,  internationally known as IBAS (Important Bird Areas) is coordinated in our country by  Aves Argentinas, Asociación Ornitológica del Plata.

    Its main aim is determinates the importance areas for Bird preservation, collecting them, getting to know them deeply and protect them through specific preservation actions.

     The criteria to determinate an IBA are standardized around the world, and basically an area must has one or more of the following features:

-          They must contain a habitat with globally endangered species.

-          They must contain a habitat with endemic species, so with restricted distribution (less than 50,000 square kilometers).

-          They must contain species of distinct biomes.

-          They must be areas of bird gathering (reproduction settlements, feeding areas, resting areas of migratory species, etc).

In Argentina there are about 200 potential places and 30 of them have already been evaluated and 22 are considered of quite importance for the preservation of endangered species.

    PAMPAS PROYECTS                                                                                                            up

    The Pampas plain, typical of our country, suffers a constant damage caused by intensive progress in the indiscriminate use of the soil. Conserving the pampas grassland is a great challenge due to that the main wealth produced in Argentina comes from the agriculture and cattle farming activity developed in this area.

Only 0.3% of the pampas grassland is protected and has 26 endangered species. One of them, the Eskimo Curlew (Numenius borealis), seems to be already disappeared.

    RAMSAR                                                                                                                                      arriba

   The Convention of wetlands signed in  Ramsar (Irán) in 1971, has nowadays the adhesion of 131 countries, the sponsorship of UNESCO and 1,150 protected areas worldwide.

  We understand as wetlands, those places with water presence, either permanent or temporary (lakes, swamps, marshes, etc). Once these places are established, over the years become important reservations for aquatic species – many of them are migratory species – that must be protected and preserved.

            Our country has 12 protected places in several provinces:

-          Pilcomayo River, Province of Formosa. Since May 4th, 1992, with 55,000 hectares.

-          Los Pozuelos Lake, Province of Jujuy. Since may 4th, 1992, with 16,224 hectares.

-          Blanca Lake, Province of Neuquen. Since May 4th  1992 with 11.250 hectares.

-          Costa Atlántica Reserve in Tierra del Fuego. Since September 13th , 1995 with 28,500 hectares.

-          Llancanelo Lake, Province of Mendoza. Since November 8th, 1995 with 65,000 hectares.

-          Samborombom Bay, Province of Buenos Aires. Since January 24th, 1997 with 243,965 hectares.

-          Guanacache Lake. In the border of San Juan and Mendoza Province. Since November 14th, 1999 with approximately 
    580,000 hectares.

-          Vilama Lake, Province of Jujuy. Since September 20th, 2000 with 157,000 hectares.

-          Jaaukanigás, Province of Santa Fe. Since October 10th, 2001, with 492,000 hectares.

-          Iberá Marshes, Province of Corrientes. Since January 18th, 2002 with 24,550 hectares.

-          Swamps of Dulce River and Mar Chiquita Lake, Province of Cordoba. Since May 28th, 2002 with 996,000 hectares.

-          Provincial Reserve Brava Lake, Province of La Rioja. Since February 2nd, 2003 with 405,000 hectares.

-          "El Tromen" Provincial Park, Neuquén province. Since February 2nd, 2006, con 30.000 Ha.