Conflict Between Mountain Tapirs (Tapirus bairdii) and Farmers in the Colombian Central Andes

Abstract

In the last century the “Antioqueña” colonisation process transformed the Colombian Andean forest to cropland, This was predominantly in the form of coffee plantations, as coffee was the top Colombian export product in the 20th century. Simultaneously, cities like Ibague, Armenia, Pereira and Manizales were founded on an economy based on coffee and thus dependent on the exploitation of natural resources. In the middle of the 20th century Pereira, the capital of Risaralda State, was the oldest coffee producer in Colombia. Due to the highest human population in the country, habitat fragmentation and loss increased. River levels diminished and demands for wild meat increased. For this reason the Ministry of Agriculture bought almost all the farms on the Otún river basin. These lands were given to the municipality of Pereira and administered by Pereira’s aqueduct company (Murillo and Baena, 1999). At the start of the 70’s these lands and the surrounding areas in Quindio, Tolima and Caldas states were declared to be the “Los Nevados” (snow peaks) National Park with a total area of 38,000 ha. This area was increased to 58,000 ha in 1973. Nowadays this park has a population of 20 families who were living in the Risaralda area before the creation of the park. These families work in the area, growing potatoes and cattle ranching in the Paramo region.