Explorers Inn Talk

Mark Theobald
July 2004
As you probably know Explorers Inn is situated on the Tambopata river, about 60 km upstream of Puerto Maldonado. This river originates in the mountains near Puno, flows past Explorers Inn to Puerto Maldonado where it joins the Madre de Dios river. The Madre de Dios then passes into Bolivia and finally the river enters the Amazon in Brazil. The lodge was the first of many in this area and it all began when Peruvian Safaris bought this land where the lodge is situated from the Peruvian Government in 1975. The land originally belonged to a small farm, which explains why you can see many different kinds of fruit trees around the lodge area; orange trees, lemon trees, pineapples, bananas etc. The Armas family that farmed the land here moved across the river. The lodge opened its doors to the first visitors in 1976. One year later the Tambopata Reserved Zone was created, which was an area of 5500 ha where use of the natural resources was protected. This has since evolved into the Tambopata National Reserve which covers 270000 ha and has much better protection. In 1979 a group of researchers came to Explorers Inn to survey the flora and fauna of the area. As a result of their studies, they concluded that due to the species richness of the area and the number of rare and endangered species present, it was vitally important that this area is protected. This area is one of the areas with the greatest biodiversity in the world. The area around the lodge holds several world records for the number of species that are present. 601 species of birds have been recorded within an 8 km radius of the lodge, 152 species of dragonflies and over 1200 species of butterflies. So why do we have some of the richest biodiversity on the planet here? Tambopata is at a habitat crossroads. We have the high lands of the Andes to the west, the pampas grasslands of Bolivia to the south and the expanse of Amazonia to the north and east. This results in a rich variety of habitats at this point in the middle. For example, there are at least 7 different forest types around Explorers Inn alone. The lodge is committed to sustainable tourism. This means that Explorers Inn attempts to minimise any impact that its activities may have on the natural environment. For example, the electricity used in this building for the lighting and for the kitchen is produced by solar power. All organic waste is collected, taken over the river and fed to the pigs in the local community and all non-organic waste is taken to Puerto Maldonado for disposal. Also the lodge has agreed voluntarily to follow the giant otter management plan suggested by Frankfurt Zoological Society for the giant otters on Cocococha Lake. This is why we only take the boats onto a small section of the lake giving the otters the rest of the lake for themselves. In this way, the otters do not feel threatened by our presence since there is a large percentage of the lake which they have complete control of and therefore feel safe. Since the management plan was introduced sightings if the giant otters on the lake have gone up 70%. As I just said, the organic waste goes over the river to the local community. This is La Torre Community which comprises of 34 families, most of which are not indigenous to the region and moved from the highlands in the 1960s. Explorers Inn has a good relationship with La Torre Community; for example some of the members

of the community work here at the lodge and the lodge buys some of its food from the community. We buy our papayas, bananas and yucca from across the river. Also, members of the community can get a lift into town and back on the lodges boats and of course, the community allows us to go over and visit them and see how they live, free of charge. Explorers Inn has a long history of research into the ecology of the area; for example some parts of the forest have been studied for the last 25 years. A lot has been found out about the complex relationships of the rainforest but there is still a lot more that we do not know; in fact it has been estimated that up to 90% of the species of the rainforest are still unknown to science! The resident naturalist program allows visiting scientists to carry out research projects as well as to help out with the management of the reserve. The lodge provides accommodation for the scientists and therefore is supporting research into the rainforest environment. This arrangement also allows the visiting scientists an opportunity to communicate their research to a wider audience and gives the tourists a deeper understanding of the rainforest ecosystem and the research that is being carried out. Finally, I want to talk about the Tambopata Reserve Society, which was set up by 2 Resident Naturalists 20 years ago. The aims of this organisation are to promote the conservation of biodiversity in the Tambopata area and to coordinate projects regarding the sustainable use of natural resources. Members of the society, receive a copy of a newsletter several times per year containing information about the research that is being done in the area and what is happening in the local community. This is a great way to keep in touch with what is going on here as well as supporting efforts to maintain the natural richness of this area. There are copies of the latest newsletter about that you can take away with you for free.