Mountain freshwater ecosystems and protected areas in the tropical Andes: insights and gaps for climate change adaptation

Abstract

Summary Although protected areas (PAs) play an important role in ecosystem conservation and climate change adaptation, no systematic information is available on PA protection of high-elevation freshwater ecosystems (e.g., lakes and watersheds with glaciers), their biodiversity and their ecosystem services in the tropical Andes. We therefore combined a literature review and map analysis of PAs of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and national systems of PAs and freshwater ecosystems. We found that seven national parks were created for water resources protection but were not designed for freshwater conservation (i.e., larger watersheds). High-value biodiversity sites have not been protected, and new local PAs were created due to water resource needs. We quantified 31 Ramsar sites and observed that PAs cover 12% of lakes, 31% of glacial lakes and 12% of the total stream length in the tropical Andes. Additionally, 120 watersheds (average area 631 km2) with glaciers and 40% of the total glacier surface area were covered by PAs. Future research into the role of PAs in ecosystem services provision and more detailed freshwater inventories within and around PAs, especially for those dependent on glacier runoff, will fill key knowledge gaps for freshwater conservation and climate change adaptation in the tropical Andes.

Declining glacier cover drives changes in aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity in the Cordillera Blanca, Perú

“…In particular, future studies need to extend the spatial scale of assessments to other valleys and ranges to quantify the importance of other environmental factors such as geology and wetland influence in tropical mountains (Livingston‐Burgess, 2015; Loayza‐Muro et al., 2010). Given the evidence for rapid rates of glacier retreat in the Andes and strong hydrological and ecological responses as demonstrated in this study, responsible institutions need to quickly develop a more complete knowledge base to inform policies for the conservation of biodiversity (Quenta‐Herrera et al., 2022) across the Andes.…”

Distribution and Conservation Status of the Mountain Wetlands in the Romanian Carpathians

“…Protected areas are crucial for ecosystem conservation [41]. Protected areas aim to promote in situ conservation strategies for threatened habitats and species by creating a network of managers and scientific experts to support capacity building, management and policy actions [73].…”

“…As a result, mountain wetlands located near wetland-protected areas tend to be in better condition compared to remote sites [39]. Plant communities of spring vegetation represent mostly small-scale growth dependent on flowing water [40][41][42]. In this context, and considering their structural and functional importance highlighted above, the aim of this study is to present an overview of mountain wetlands in the Romanian Carpathians, and their distribution across the whole investigated territory and conservation status.…”

Land Vulnerability, Risk Zoning, and Ecological Protection in the Protection Forest of Pagaibamba (Peru)

“…However, they are one of the least known and most threatened ecosystems in the tropics [62,69], because of high rates of deforestation and degradation. The ecological research works on these forests are fewer at the national level [62] and scarce at the regional level [70].…”