Project Floreana - Vrienden van Galápagos Florean… · The evolution of Project Floreana has led...

CHARLES DARWIN FOUNDATION, PO Box 17-1-3891, Quito, Ecuador www.darwinfoundation.org

Project Floreana

Final Report from the Charles Darwin Foundation to

Friends of Galapagos Netherlands

March 28, 2014

With black beaches, lush highlands, diverse marine life, and a quaint town, Floreana Island is truly a

remarkable place. The island was the first to host human inhabitants but since their arrival almost

two centuries ago, it has been greatly degraded in many areas, some to the point of no return.

Habitat loss and the introduction of invasive species, such as cats and rats, have led to the extinction

of a total of ten species on the island, including birds, reptiles, and a plant species. Nevertheless,

Floreana Island is shaping into the prototype for all other inhabited islands of the Galapagos

Archipelago. While the conditions are far from ideal, the island has the potential to be a self-

sufficient, self-contained system that will retain the unique Galapagos biodiversity while also

allowing for the local population to meet their social and economic needs. This is the goal of Project

Floreana, a flagship project of the Charles Darwin Foundation.

Project Floreana


Project Background

Much planning has gone into the continuation of the project and with the generous support of the

Friends of Galapagos Netherlands, these plans have resulted in actions and results. The majority of

the project’s various components have been separated into two categories: i) ecological restoration

through the Waterboxx Project and ii) the reintroduction of the Floreana mockingbird. Project

Floreana continues to use a holistic and dynamic approach to address these issues.

We are especially grateful to the Friends of Galapagos Netherlands for enabling us to meet with Mr.

Ferweda, which led to CDF’s collaboration with the COmON Foundation, sponsors of the Waterboxx

project in Floreana, which is described below.

This report outlines and highlights advances in the project leading up to and throughout 2013. The

restoration focus of the project has been incorporated into the Waterboxx/Galápagos Verde 2050

Project, while maintaining the Floreana Mockingbird Reintroduction Project, and this work forms the

basis of this report.

Waterboxx/Galápagos Verde 2050

The evolution of Project Floreana has led to the widespread use of Groasis Technology as part of the

major effort to restore the island’s flora. The technology is based on a plant propagation system,

known as a Waterboxx. The system allows water to flow directly to the intended plant, and in so

doing ensures that limited amounts of water are utilized to maximum effect. These will be used for

ecological restoration, as well as to encourage ways of making Floreana a self-sufficient island

through the production of foodstuffs for local consumption. The goal is a functional and self-

sustaining system.

The Groasis Technology in use with an endemic opuntia cactus ©CDF 2014

Project Floreana


Results and Impacts

Approximately 3000 square meters of native gardens were planted using the Groasis Technology, in

which 12 families in the urban area of Floreana took part and 3 in the rural area. This success was

greatly thanks to the efforts of Estalin Jimenez, a Field Assistant for the CDF. He worked with

community members to demonstrate the technology and to assist with its implementation (see

Annex 1).

Nearly 400 endemic plants have been planted in various areas, including: the highlands of Floreana,

public areas, the school’s garden, and private gardens. The Charles Darwin Research Station, located

on the island of Santa Cruz, even has a few Waterboxxes in its gardens. Visitors to the station can

see first-hand what work is being done for conservation in Galapagos. Thanks to a poster created by

the Waterboxx team (see Annex 1), visitors can also know more about the technology and its

application on Floreana.

Groasis Technology installed on a farm located in the humid zone of Floreana with native plant ©CDF 2014

This particular project is an integral component of a much larger scale project to be implemented in

Floreana. The Reforestation and Agricultural Production using Groasis Technology Pilot Project

(referred to hereafter as the Waterboxx Project) has tackled two pressing needs on Floreana Island:

ecological restoration of habitat through reforestation, and local efficient agricultural production to

reduce reliance on freight transport. The results obtained from this pilot project, and many meetings

with local stakeholders by CDF’s Deputy Executive Director meant that we were able to

communicate the project’s success and demonstrate how it could be applied on a larger scale. The

successful outcome has led to the launch of a comprehensive reforestation plan called “Galápagos

Verde 2050”. In addition to a communication campaign with international impact — jointly led by

the CDF, GNPD and Agua, Vida y Naturaleza the project’s aim to present the lessons learned and

achievements of the Waterboxx project in Floreana has been achieved. A booklet describing the

Project Floreana


project, its objectives, its outcomes, and future plans has been laid out in a professionally designed

package (see Annex 1).It is through this product that the CDF will be able to share its success with

more of the world.

The Floreana Mockingbird Reintroduction Project

Floreana Mockingbird ©CDF 2014

The Floreana Mockingbird is an icon of its namesake island, but for over a century it has not been

able to make Floreana its home. The main reasons behind its disappearance from Floreana Island are

believed to be habitat loss and the introduction of invasive species – both due to an increase in the

human presence on the small island. As one of four species of mockingbird in Galapagos, it has been

a main priority of the Charles Darwin Foundation’s work since 2008. Given its status as a critically

endangered species, the Floreana Mockingbird (herein referred to as “mockingbird”) is a point of

focus for conservation work in the Archipelago.

Plenty of research and planning has gone into how a portion of the population can be reintroduced

to the main island of Floreana. These birds are now restricted to two islets located off the coast of

Floreana: Gardner and Champion. It was the aim of the project to better understand these

populations and the threats they face, and to reinstate some of them to their native habitat on

Floreana Island, with the ultimate goal of improving the species’ survival possibilities as part of the

overall restoration of Floreana Island.

Results and Impacts

The Floreana Mockingbird Project, a component of Project Floreana, included monitoring and

ringing of the mockingbird populations of Gardner and Champion Islets. On a day trip to Champion

Islet in July 2012, monitoring was very successful: 58 mockingbirds were counted and confirmed

alive (see Annex 2). At the end of July 2012, a 5 day visit to Gardner Islet was also made to monitor

previously ringed mockingbirds. During this trip, CDF scientist Dr Luis Ortiz-Catedral and a

professional volunteer replaced the plastic rings with ionized metal ones. Despite extreme rain and

Project Floreana


rough conditions during the trip, the two pressed on with the work and a total of 98 mockingbirds

were confirmed alive.

One of 10 juveniles captured and ringed on Champion Islet. ©CDF 2014

The program also included extensive work to complete the database of mockingbird records from

June 2006 to June 2012. Thanks to the over 600 hours of work, crucial retrospective research on the

critically endangered bird was also possible.

As with many other aspect of Project Floreana, there were collaborative efforts between the CDF

and the Galapagos National Park Directorate (GNPD). Coordination with the GNPD staff on Floreana

was undertaken to establish whether Punta Cormorant, a peninsula on the northern side of the

island (see Annex 2), could be a suitable site for a predator control perimeter for rats and cats (two

of the mockingbird’s biggest threats). Mockingbirds are known to build their nests 1 to 2m above the

ground, making them an easy target for introduced predators such as cats and rats. Therefore it is

crucial that these threats are eliminated from Floreana before the mockingbird can be reintroduced.

Beyond field work and research, an objective of this project was to interact with the community of

Floreana Island and to collaborate with them. Under the umbrella of Project Floreana, an education

campaign, “The voyage that changed the world”, was organized by CDF staff member Christina

Georgii and attended by 30 local children from Floreana Island. As part of this campaign, Dr Luis

Ortiz-Catedral talked with the children about the importance of studying the mockingbird and what

exactly his field work entailed. To make it more engaging for the young ones, he brought “Mario”, a

stuffed toy mockingbird, with which he demonstrated capturing, measuring, and ringing techniques

(see photos below). It was a great success and complemented by a day-trip to Champion Islet for the

Project Floreana


children. From the boat, many mockingbirds were observed this was the first time any of the

children had ever seen one. There is no doubt that this unique trip helped in creating a very

significant first sighting of the bird for all of the 30 children.

Luis Ortiz-Catedral with group of children from Floreana Island, using “Mario”, the stuffed toy mockingbird,

to demonstrate his work with the mockingbird (right). ©CDF 2014

Conclusion

As was the goal from the beginning, Floreana is becoming an ideal model for the Archipelago. As can

be seen with the Waterboxx project, endemic and native flora have flourished both as parts of CDF’s

work and also within the community of Floreana, with the interest of the community members.

Using a holistic, participatory, and science-based approach to Project Floreana has proved to be a

successful way to tackle some of the primary issues of the island.

Future Plans

Thanks to the Waterboxx initiative, the project’s success has prompted evolution to an archipelago-

wide plan. This new initiative, called “Galápagos Verde 2050” will carry out ecological restoration

and reforestation on other islands of the archipelago that have seen similar destruction to that of

Floreana. Furthermore, the thorough approach to studying the Floreana Mockingbird is making its

reintroduction ever more possible in the near future.

Project Floreana


Financial Report

Report period: June 2012 – March 2014

Income $USD Expenditure $USD

Income $25,000

Carried forward $5,700

Total income $30,700

Personnel $25,232

Travel $ 0

Equipment & supplies $ 0

Shipping & Communications $ 0

Other $ 0

Total direct costs $25,232

Overhead $ 5,468

Total expenditure $30,700

Balance remaining $ 0

Notes to the financial report:

1. Income: $25,000 donation was received in December 2012.

2. Carried forward: this is the sum that was received from the previous accounting system

when the changeover was implemented on June 1, 2012.

3. (Expenditure): This grant was used for personnel costs of staff working on Project Floreana:

Jose Naula, who was the Floreana-based Field Technician during the period June to

December 2012, and for CDF Deputy Executive Director Felipe Cruz, in relation to his work

on the “Galápagos Verde 2050” and “Waterboxx” projects in 2013 and early 2014; Felipe’s

salary for November and December 2013 has been charged to this grant.

4. Overhead: the CDF’s standard overhead of 28% has been applied to this grant.

Project Floreana


Annex 1: Groasis Technology/Galápagos Verde 2050

Image 1: Estalin Jimenez, field assistant, installing a Waterboxx with Parkinsonia aculeata. ©CDF 2014

Project Floreana


Image 2: The Waterboxx team, working with local gardeners to prepare the land for the installation of

Waterboxxes. © CDF 2014 (Estalin Jimenez)

Image 3: Mr Claudio Cruz, demonstrating the project and Groasis Technology with an avocado plant. The

protective wooden case prevents invasive/introduced animals from trampling or eating the young plant.

©CDF 2014

Project Floreana


Image 5: Cover of the Galápagos Verde 2050 report. For full PDF document, please see Dropbox. ©CDF 2014

Project Floreana


Annex 2: Floreana mockingbird reintroduction

Image 1: Punta Cormorant, Floreana Island, with visitor path visible. ©CDF 2014

Image 2: One of 98 Floreana mockingbirds counted on Gardner Islet. ©CDF 2014

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