Biodiversity

The Iwokrama Forest's ecosystem is located at a crossroads between Amazonian and Guianan flora and fauna. As a result, it contains high species richness and several species of animals that are threatened or extinct across most of their former geographic ranges, like the Giant Anteater.

The Iwokrama Forest has the highest species richness for fish (over 420 described so far) and bats (90; see bats in the online mammal guide) for any area this size in the world. It also has extraordinarily high bird diversity (over 500). Additionally Iwokrama Forest has also been identified as a global hotspot for several plant families, including Lecythidaceae and Chrysobalanaceae.

Inventory Research

In April 1999, it was decided that the best way to augment existing information on the vertebrate and higher plant diversity of the Iwokrama forest would be to target smaller organisms. Inventory efforts from 2000 to 2002 were directed towards sampling one of the least studied organisms in tropical forests – endophytic fungi. Outputs include sample plots in the Iwokrama forest, a system of information management for fungi, technical papers in international journals, lecturing to University of Guyana students and Iwokrama ranger trainees, and the production of a field guide. Inventory work has resulted in the culturing of over 200 morpho-species of endophytic fungi from 14 host plants and collection of at least 67 species of macro fungi from the forest. A series of presentations and publications have resulted from the work on endophytic fungi.

Faunal inventories have continued after the initial inventory studies that took place from 1996 to 1998. This work has been undertaken through the ranger training programme and several collaborating institutes have been involved including the Centre for the Study of Biological Diversity at the University of Guyana, the Royal Ontario Museum and Florida International University.