In December 2024 we were delighted to send a donation of $165,000 to the World Land Trust to enable our partners at Fundación EcoMinga in Ecuador to complete the purchase of two new plots of land in the Ecuadorian Andes, and further expand our Naturetrek Reserves in the area.
Until now, our efforts have focused on building the Naturetrek Candelaria Reserve and Naturetrek Viscaya Reserve, which together have helped to form an important cloudforest wildlife corridor between the Llanganates and Sangay National Parks. With this long-held ambition now essentially complete, we have turned our attention to the neighbouring ‘El Encanto’ region. Our donation, derived from the £15 / £5 sum that we set aside for every flight that we book on behalf of our clients, has enabled us to purchase two blocks in El Encanto, a combined 466 acres in size. This latest purchase increases the acreage of our Naturetrek Reserves in Ecuador to 2,181 acres in total.
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Wildlife in El Encanto
Being at a slightly lower elevation than our existing reserves, El Encanto (meaning 'the enchanted' land) holds a wealth of mammals, including Jaguar, Puma, Ocelot, Giant Anteater, both Mountain and Brazilian Tapir, White-lipped Peccary and, of course, Spectacled Bear. Indeed, we have already captured images on a camera trap of a Jaguar that is present in our new reserve!
Our plans for the area
In 2025, we will continue to set aside out of our profits £5 for every short-haul flight and £15 for every long-haul flight that we book, to build our fund for further purchases of primary cloudforest in this area, enabling us to protect this extremely biodiverse habitat and its endangered wildlife in posterity.
