Mexico City /
In a 24-hour day in which they toured and sampled affected and preserved spaces of the first section of Chapultepec Foresta group of 30 researchers and 200 students from UNAM documented the presence of 279 species of animals, plants and fungi that survive in that emblematic green area of Mexico City.
Through a ‘BioBlitz’ -a concept from the end of the 20th century that involves documenting the biodiversity of a given area, generally in 24 hours-, the academics and undergraduate and graduate students of the Faculty of Sciences, and of Higher Studies (FES) Iztacala, as well as the Institutes of Biology and Ecology (IE) of the National University, made important scientific discoveries, from September 2 to 3.
Species registry in Chapultepec
For example, they discovered a firefly that may not have been described (studies are needed to corroborate this); they located 20 species of lichens of which only two were known; and they found four endemic species of: axolotl, fish, bird and millipede, reported Rodrigo Medellín Legorreta, researcher at the IE.
The project was made possible thanks to the coordination between UNAM and the Secretariat of the Environment of Mexico City (SEDEMA)in particular the Executive Directorate of Chapultepec Forest.
At a press conference, UNAM scientists and Mexico City authorities presented some results of this first “BioBlitz” in Mexico City, a joint effort to describe biodiversity, raise public awareness about the natural history of a site, highlight the importance of scientific research and link society with citizen science, said Clementina Equihua Zamora, head of the IE Outreach Unit.
Among the species located in the heart of the Mexican capital are 91 plants and 76 insects“If they are still there it is because of their great resilience to human presence, pollution and the impact on their habitat,” said Medellín Legorreta.
In the auditorium of the Botanical Garden of the UNAM, Virginia León Regagnon, academic secretary of the IB, of the same academic entity, highlighted that the fundamental objective is to document, describe and classify the biodiversity of our country.
“This opportunity to have carried out this activity in Chapultepec Forest opens the doors to many opportunities to learn about the conservation status of the species that live thereand to propose strategies to help conserve this park,” he stressed.
Marina Robles García, head of SEDEMA, commented that this collaborative project between academia and the government invites us to change the idea of seeing nature as a distant and far-off scenery, and to modify the approach to consider the nature of Mexico City as a space for coexistence. “Let’s not just conserve Chapultepec, let’s create connectivity networks.”
Meanwhile, Monica Pacheco Skidmore, executive director of Chapultepec Forest, said that this ‘BioBlitz’ It is the beginning of a project that will last several years.which is expected to be done soon in the second and third section of the placea very rich urban park, with 869 hectares, which is the largest in Latin America.
Expert Recommendations
Following this exercise, UNAM academics made some recommendations, including creating a management plan to improve the quality of aquatic ecosystems; strengthening the program of respect for all living beings within the forest; and creating sanctuaries in some sites to protect the biota that lives on the forest floor, for example fireflies.
Also They suggested using more native plants than exotic ones in Chapultepec; leaving more understory (bush vegetation that grows under the trees of a forest); carrying out a management program for cats, which were found in almost the same numbers as the opossums and are likely having a negative impact on native fauna; and increasing the species of garden plants for pollinators.
María del Coro Arizmendi Arriaga, director of FES Iztacala, was in the presidium.
Full information on the ‘BioBlitz’ can be found on the Naturalista portal: https://www.naturalist.org/projects/bioblitz-bosque-de-chapultepec-1a-seccion
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