Isla Ometepe in Lake Nicaragua is one of the world’s largest freshwater islands and is a national biodiversity conservation priority.
The island is formed by two volcanoes linked by a wetland isthmus. The range of altitudes on the island, combined with its position between Nicaragua’s dry Pacific and humid Atlantic coasts, subject it to a dramatic range of micro-climates. For this reason it is potentially the most biodiverse of any area its size in Nicaragua and provides valuable and critical habitat for significant numbers of migratory birds.
Historically, inactive management of the Maderas Volcano Natural Reserve left wildlife and tropical forests (such as dry, montane and elfin) vulnerable to agricultural encroachment, wildlife trafficking and the impacts of increasing and unregulated tourism. Fauna & Flora International and its local partners are working to address this with support from British American Tobacco (Central America), the DEFRA Darwin Initiative and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Fauna & Flora International is training and supporting a new co-management group in implementing the reserve’s newly approved management plan. The infrastructure of the reserve is also being improved: new park personnel are being employed and trained and ranger posts, an interpretation centre and trails to the, now dormant, volcano’s crater are being built.
A conservation priority for Ometepe is to protect habitat for migratory and resident birds and provide data for international bird monitoring programmes. Recent surveys confirm that the island is of regional importance for birds migrating across the Americas - more than 40% of species on the island are migratory – and a haven for resident species too that have declined dramatically elsewhere, such as the yellow-necked parrot Amazona auropalliata.
Plans are in place to ensure that the reserve can take advantage of the increasing numbers of tourists visiting the island. With support from the Nicaraguan Ministry of Tourism, properly conducted ecotourism should deliver self-sustaining income for the reserve from gate fees.
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