Our local partners are continuing their valuable work in the mountains of the Alejandro de Humboldt National Park, Cuba, to learn more about the fascinating globally endangered and evolutionarily distinct Cuban Solenodon, known locally as the ‘almiquí’.
The partnership with the IUCN Small Mammal Specialist Group and local biologist Norvis Hernández and her team is kindly funded by Zoo New England, who have adopted the Cuban Solenodon Conservation Project as one of their Conservation Partnerships, providing expertise and support for our fieldwork activities.
Studying the almiquí is a challenge! They are found up in the difficult to access pristine forests in the mountains above 740m.
The team has been undertaking field surveys across the species’ range in the Alejandro de Humboldt National Park. This includes searching for indirect field signs – den sites, scats, and distinctive areas where they have foraged – and also some camera trapping.
As you can see, it often rains up in the mountains!
January trip
Earlier this year, Dr Ros Kennerley visited the project to see how they are getting along. The weather was brilliant during the short field visit to a new area of the national park, however the high amounts of rainfall in the preceding months meant that the river was too deep to cross at some points. The team found some promising good quality forest, that they will explore in greater detail during a field trip in May.
Check out the photos below to see more of the field site and team.
