“We are appealing for the attention of international conservation organisations and Governments"

Once the FARC soldiers were disarmed, it led to a vacuum of power which is being exploited by large landowners who are now deforesting the area at an alarming rate to make way for farms and for the illegal growth of coca crops. Official Colombian sources reported that in 2017, 219,973 hectares of forest were lost from the region – the equivalent of 35 football pitches every hour.

An international group of conservationists and scientists from Colombia and the UK is now urging the new Colombian Government to formally protect the area and to take urgent steps to halt the deforestation and development.

A new paper, published in Conservation Letters, summarises research into the biodiversity bridge and looks at the impact of increased levels of deforestation.

Professor Chris Jiggins, one of the authors of the paper and a Fellow of St John’s College, University of Cambridge, visited the area as part of his research.

He said: “This is a critical moment for Colombia – there are new threats to these areas but there’s still some forest left. The systematic clearance of trees breaks an important link between the Andes and the Amazon that has played a vital role in the evolution of animals and plants. But if action is taken sooner rather than later we could preserve the area and maintain links between these irreplaceable ecosystems.”

Colombia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world and the deforestation is destroying the habitats of everything from insects, bats and hummingbirds, to monkeys and bears.

Dr Nicola Clerici, first author on the paper and Associate Professor at the Universidad del Rosario in Colombia, said: “We are appealing for the attention of international conservation organisations and Governments to funnel both research and development funds and resources to promote and nourish projects focused on the preservation and sustainable management of this strategic Andes-Amazon bridge.”