CONTEXTO:

The Galeras Flora and Fauna Sanctuary is a symbol of the Nariño department. Its main attraction, the Galeras
volcano, is one of the most active on the continent. Some of its craters emit gases almost constantly, while
others that are extinct are evidence of its great past activity. Part of the Sanctuary is located in a High
Volcanic Threat Zone (ZAVA), as it is part of a volcanic complex. Its richness is reflected in the great variety
of flora and fauna species in the protected area's paramo, high Andean, and Andean forest ecosystems. It also
has lagoons and various water sources that supply local aqueducts.

Fauna
We can find three of the five deer species recorded for Colombia, the common deer (Mazama americana), the
soche deer (Mazama rufina), and the rabbit deer (Pudu mephistophiles). We also find other mammal species
such as foxes (Lycalopex culpaeus), cusumbos (Masuella sp.), porcupines (Echinoprocta sp.), rabbits
(Sylvilagus sp.), and armadillos (Dasypus sp.).

On the other hand, the birdlife is represented by 135 species distributed in the three ecosystems, among the
most abundant being the hummingbird family, Trochilidae, with species such as Chalcostigma herrani,
Eriocnemis derbyr, and we also find honeycreepers like Diglossa humeralis humeralis, Diglossa humeralis
aterrina, Diglossa cyanea.

We find two species of ducks: the yellow-billed teal (Anas georgica) and the Andean duck (Anas andium). In
the Andean forest, we find the black guan (Aburria aburri), eagles (Buteo platypterus), mountain toucan
(Cyanacorax yncax), among others. Of the species recorded in the area, 17 are in a threatened category,
mostly restricted to biomes of threatened birds.

Flora
The Sanctuary currently has a record of 622 species of flora, with the Orchidaceae (99 species), Asteraceae
(90 species), and Ericaceae (25 species) families standing out due to their higher richness in terms of the
number of species. Within the species, we identify fifteen that present some degree of vulnerability at the
national and international level, based on the proposals of the IUCN (1997) and the contribution presented by
Rangel (2000) and the categories proposed by García & Galeano (2003) and Calderón (2003): Lepechinia
vulcanicola, Gynoxis sancti-antoni, Berberis grandiflora, Baccharis granadina, Oreopanax nigrum, Chaptalia
cordata, Draba picnophylla, Guzamnia bakeri, Geum perivianum, Puya clava-herculis, Ranunculus guzmanii,
Chuquiraga juissieve, Gaultheria erecta, Diplostephium rhododentroides, and Espeleta pycnophylla or
frailejón, which is an endemic species of the paramos of southwestern Colombia, Nariño.

FRASES:

"The Galeras Flora and Fauna Sanctuary is a symbol of the Nariño department."

"Its richness is reflected in the great variety of flora and fauna species in the protected area's paramo, high
Andean, and Andean forest ecosystems."

"We can find three of the five deer species recorded for Colombia."

"The Sanctuary currently has a record of 622 species of flora."

"Espeleta pycnophylla or frailejón, which is an endemic species of the paramos of southwestern Colombia,
Nariño."