Research
Science for effective biodiversity conservation
We conduct basic and applied research in the Peruvian Amazon that is the foundation of science-based conservation. From biological inventories, population monitoring, and in-depth studies of rainforest ecology to the impacts of national policy and the issues facing our local communities, our projects aim to generate and share the information needed to effectively protect the Amazon, its plants and animals, and sustainable livelihoods.
Our research projects
Lepidoptera diversity & biology
Southeastern Peru is among the most biodiverse places on Earth. A single 65 km stretch of road leading from the Andean highlands of Cusco to the lowland rainforest of Manu National Park, for instance, is known to contain 2,500 species of butterflies alone. That’s roughly three times the species found in all of North America, and there are likely still many species remaining to be discovered in the area.
Beyond a handful of studies like the one mentioned above, however, we know very little about Andean and Amazonian biodiversity. Which species are abundant, and which are rare? How big are their geographic ranges? Currently, we don’t have the answers to even these most basic of questions for the vast majority of species. We know even less, and usually we know nothing at all, about their natural history and ecology. What plants do butterflies feed on as caterpillars, and how do they interact with other species to form complex tropical ecosystems? Again, we simply don't know.
As threats to the rainforest mount, it is more important than ever to answer these questions. We focus on the Lepidoptera –butterflies and moths – as a model study group. These insects are diverse and abundant and, as plant-feeding insects, are highly representative of the biodiversity of the Peruvian Andes-Amazon.
Long-term project goals
Studying the diversity and biology of Amazonian butterfly and moth species involves work in the rainforest as well as the lab. Here, an ASA researcher examines a caterpillar at Finca Las Piedras - this is the first time the life cycle of this species has been documented.
Know the species that occur in our region
This involves documenting the butterfly and moth species found throughout SE Peru, one of the most biodiverse yet poorly studied regions on Earth. We often find species that are unknown to science, so describing them is an important part of what we do.
Document natural history and other aspects of Lepidoptera basic biology
We know essentially nothing about the natural history of most species of butterflies and moths here. Generating key information such as species’ caterpillars and their host plant relationships is important for assessing species’ threat status and laying the groundwork for more in-depth studies of the rainforest ecosystem.
Understand the impacts of climate change and other human activities
Global warming is causing the Amazon to become hotter and drier, yet we know almost nothing about the impacts on the region's plants and animals. We are studying butterfly migration and other adaptations to seasonality, as well as the impacts of climate change on populations, at multiple sites throughout the region.
Build local capacity
We’re working to train the next generation of science and conservation leaders, as well as to create the basic infrastructure needed for cutting edge research in the Amazon. This includes modern biological collections and a field-based molecular biology laboratory focused on Lepidoptera, the first and only of their kind in SE Peru.
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Know the species that occur in our region
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Document natural history and other aspects of Lepidoptera basic biology
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Understand the impacts of climate change and other human activities
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Build local capacity
Summary of project results to date
We’re working to transform our knowledge of biodiversity in southeastern Peru, no small task given both the region’s extraordinary species richness and a near total lack of previous studies. Although this is a long-term endeavor and will never be fully complete, we’re steadily making concrete gains towards our goals. Below are a few highlights scroll right to view them all >>
> 1,500
BUTTERFLY AND MOTH SPECIES DOCUMENTED
With more than 40,000 voucher specimens in the ASA’s collections
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6
NEW SPECIES AND OTHER TAXA DESCRIBED
A first step for learning more about these organisms’ biology & threat status
> 300
LEPIDOPTERA HOST PLANT RECORDS DOCUMENTED
And their caterpillars also described, most of which are new to science
18
PUBLICATIONS IN PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS
Most with students or early-career scientists as first author
> 500
FUTURE LEADERS IN SCIENCE TRAINED
Professional development for building local capacity
1
MIGRATORY AMAZONIAN BUTTERFLY DOCUMENTED
The first ever recorded in the Amazon and the only one monitored annually
Determining where individual butterfly and moth species occur, as well as where the region’s biodiversity hotspots are, requires lots of sampling. These are the locations where we’ve collected Lepidoptera specimens throughout southeastern Peru to date.
Cutting edge tools for basic research in the Amazon: The field DNA laboratory
We say that the Lepidoptera Diversity and Biology project is basic science, but that doesn't mean it's easy. It also doesn't mean we don't need advanced tools or technology. Since butterfly and moth diversity is so high in our region, simply identifying an individual can be quite challenging – even for an expert. In fact, given the large number of species that have not yet been described, sometimes it's just impossible. To help us solve this dual challenge we've partnered with Peru's Pontifical Catholic University in Lima to implement the Amazon's first in situ molecular laboratory dedicated to the study of Lepidoptera. By conducting DNA barcoding entirely in the field, we are aiming to revolutionize the way species identification and discovery are conducted in the world's most biodiverse places.
Studying the diversity and biology of Amazonian butterfly and moth species involves work in the rainforest as well as the lab. Here, an ASA researcher examines a caterpillar at Finca Las Piedras - this is the first time the life cycle of this species has been documented.
DNA barcoding for species identification and discovery
One of the main uses of our lab is the generation of DNA "barcodes", short sequences of the mitochondrial COI gene that we use to identify species and search for new ones
Development of low-cost protocols for molecular biology done completely in the field
Making the study of DNA accessible to researchers in underserved or remote areas, in southeastern Peru and beyond
No more sending samples abroad
Or even out of their site of origin, for that matter. We want to keep biodiversity where it belongs, right here in the rainforest
Training and capacity building to promote science and scientific discovery in the rainforest
We’re empowering our local scientific community by providing unprecedented opportunities to learn cutting-edge methods in the study of biodiversity Can i switch them around? Would make it a lot easier since i can just copy the other layout.
DNA barcoding for species identification and discovery
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DNA barcoding for species identification and discovery
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Development of low-cost protocols for molecular biology done completely in the field
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No more sending samples abroad
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Training and capacity building to promote science and scientific discovery in the rainforest
Project partners
Communicating our findings: Publications
We generate lots of new information through our Lepidoptera Diversity and Biology Project. In fact, due to the incredible diversity of southeastern Peru and the near total lack of research on butterflies and moths in our area, almost everything that we document – Lepidoptera life cycles, their host plants, behavior, and ecology – is new to science. To make this information available to those who can make use of it, we publish our findings across a variety of platforms, especially peer-reviewed scientific journals. Here are a few of our most recent:
Lepidoptera species records
The ASA's biological collections (code=ASA) are housed in Puerto Maldonado, the regional capital of Madre de Dios in southeastern Peru. To date, the collections contain around 50,000 specimens, mostly Lepidoptera that are either mounted or papered. A major advantage of the relative youth of our collections (specimens go back to 2017) is that all have been photographed digitally, meaning that they are available for study by anyone on Earth. While we do host visiting researchers who wish to study the physical voucher specimens, we have created an online portal to our Lepidoptera database for those who are unable to make the journey to Madre de Dios. For inquiries about particular specimens or about our collections in general, please reach out to us.
For the best experience, we recommend viewing our database on the desktop.
Forest dynamics & plant phenology
The southeastern Peruvian Amazon is among the regions on Earth being most heavily impacted by global climate change. The region's annual dry season, in particular, is becoming longer and harsher, yet the impacts of these changes on the rainforest's biological communities remain almost completely unknown—and very poorly unstudied.
Increases in the length and severity of the dry season might have many consequences for Amazonian species. Plants, for example, might alter the timing of fruiting and flowering—phenology, as plant ecologists call it—as the normal climatic cues they rely on change. The forest may also be affected in other ways. The amount of carbon stored by rainforest trees, or the way the forest recovers from disturbance, might also be affected by a changing climate.
We are monitoring forest dynamics and plant phenology at Finca Las Piedras to determine what consequences these changes might have for the Amazonian ecosystem and the local people and wildlife that depend on the predictable availability of seasonal resources in SE Peru. Read below about how we're doing this.
FLP-01 – The forest dynamics plot at Finca Las Piedras
Forest dynamics describes how the rainforest changes over time – tree growth and mortality, as well as shifts in community composition. To monitor this we have installed a 1 hectare permanent plot at Finca Las Piedras in which we periodically inventory every tree greater than 10 cm in diameter at breast height, including each individual's size and health status.
The 1 hectare plot at Finca Las Piedras, officially known as FLP-01, is part of a global network of plots located throughout the world's tropics that are a crucial tool for understanding how rainforests function and how they are being affected by climate change and other human disturbances. Our plot is valuable because it is located in an otherwise poorly-studied area of the Amazon that is experiencing unique threats and challenges compared to other parts of the basin.
FLP-01 at a glance...
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Size: 1 hectare (about 2 football fields)
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582 individual trees (≥ 10 cm DBH)
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181 unique tree species across 48 families
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Most common species: Siparuna decipiens (Siparunaceae), Euterpe precatoria (Arecaceae), Galipea trifoliata (Rutaceae), Pausandra trianae (Euphorbiaceae), Bixa excelsa (Bixaceae)
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Censuses conducted in: 2021, 2024
More about forest dynamics plots
The Amazon is the most complex ecosystem on Earth, so making sense of how the rainforest works, as well as how it changes over time, is a real challenge. From setting up the plot to tagging, measuring, and identifying hundreds or even thousands of individual trees, monitoring forest dynamics plots here requires hard work and a unique skill set.
Watch our video to learn more about how we set up our 1 hectare permanent forest dynamics plot at Finca Las Piedras and what we can learn about the rainforest by studying it.
Brazil nut & aguaje palm phenology
Phenology is the timing of cyclical biological events – in plants, this mostly means the timing of flowering and fruiting. Plants use many different cues to know when it's time to produce flowers or fruits, and these are most often related to the climate. As climate changes alters these cues, flowering and fruit production are likely to be altered in kind. However, although climate change has been thoroughly documented in the Amazon, the biological impacts remain poorly understood; for many species, we know nothing at all of these impacts.
To address this challenge, since 2017 we've been conducting detailed monthly monitoring of the phenology of two species of great economic and ecological importance in southeastern Peru, Brazil nuts and 'aguaje' palms. These two species are prized by local people and wildlife alike for their highly nutritious and tasty fruit, and together they represent the most important non-timber forest products that are sustainably harvested anywhere in the Amazon.
Brazil nuts (Bertholletia excelsa) are 'emergent' trees, meaning they tower over the rest of the rainforest canoy. They grow in great densities in SE Peru and their nuts are an important seasonal resource for people and wildlife.
Aguaje palms for dense wetland stands in southeastern Peru that serve a variety of important roles in the region. The fruits are an important food source for both people and wildlife, and the ecosystems they create are important carbon sinks that act to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa)
Brazil nuts grow on giant emergent trees and fall to the ground once per year during the annual rainy season, when the harvest occurs. This is the southeastern Peruvian Amazon's leading non-timber forest product and, after gold and timber, the third most important export commodity of any kind in the region. Brazil nut harvesting is commercially viable here thanks to densities of large trees that are higher than elsewhere in the Amazon. Given this, the Peruvian government has set aside approximately 1 million hectares of natural forest as concessions for sustainable Brazil nut extraction. Although the collection of Brazil nuts is ostensibly sustainable, overharvest and lack of tree planting (to replace trees that die of old age) threaten this rare win-win for both people and nature in the long term. We are studying the phenology of Brazil nuts with the aim of informing the species' conservation in the face of climate change and other unsustainable human activities in the region.
Aguaje palm (Mauritia flexuosa)
Mauritia or 'aguaje' palms grow in dense wetland stands known in southeastern Peru as 'aguajales'. Although they are limited in extent compared to other habitats like the upland Brazil nut forests, these areas have great value – delicious and highly nutritious, aguaje fruit is an important food for both local people and wildlife. Aguajales are also incredibly rich carbon sinks, and they play a large role in the regulation of local hydrological cycles.
As with Brazil nuts, climate change threatens to disrupt aguaje phenology, which will have cascading effects on the local economy and on wildlife that depends on this abundant seasonal resource. Trees are also often cut down to harvest aguaje fruit as climbing techniques are not universally practiced. Our goal is to monitor the impacts of climate change and other human activity on this important local resource to contribute to its long-term protection and the myriad benefits the species provides.
Biological inventories & monitoring
The southeastern Peruvian Amazon is among the regions on Earth being most heavily impacted by global climate change. The region's annual dry season, in particular, is becoming longer and harsher, yet the impacts of these changes on the rainforest's biological communities remain almost completely unknown – and unstudied.
Increases in the length and severity of the dry season might have many consequences for Amazonian species. Plants, for example, might alter the timing of fruiting and flowering – phenology, as plant ecologists call it– as the normal climatic cues they rely on change. Such a change could have important consequences for plant reproduction, as well as for local people and wildlife that depend on the predictable availability of seasonal forest resources.
Study groups
The Amazon rainforest is the world's most diverse ecosystem and contains many thousands of species that interact with one another in complex food webs. Most of these species remain poorly studied – in fact, the majority of Amazonian species haven't even yet been described by science. Basic inventories, therefore, are needed so that we can understand the distribution of individual species, evaluate their threat statuses, and ultimately understnad how this important ecosystem functions. These are some of the groups we're studying at Finca Las Piedras and the number of different species we've documented in each. Check back frequently, though – the Amazon is so diverse that new discoveries are made almost daily!
Research spotlight – camera traps
Mammals and other ground-dwelling vertebrates are notoriously difficult to study in the Amazon due to their secretive habits and the incredible density of the rainforest vegetation. But we have a secret weapon: camera traps!
Camera traps are triggered remotely when an animal passes in front of them, allowing us to passively document the species present in the rainforest, day or night. Watch our short video to see a few of the things we've found using this simple yet powerful technology.
Making biodiversity accessible: Field guides
We put a lot of work into our inventories at Finca Las Piedras and throughout the southeastern Peruvian Andes-Amazon, generating important distributional data that is used by scientists and conservation practitioners to understand and mitigate the threats facing biodiversity in the region. However, to maximize the utility of the information we generate, we also produce field guides to help others make sense of the incredible biodiversity found here. Our hope is that by making the identification of some key groups of plants and animals easier, we can foster a greater appreciation of our region's natural wealth.
