Community Cloud Forest Conservation

AGROFOREST ECOSYSTEMS ESTABLISHED IN DEGRADED LANDSCAPES OF NORTHERN GUATEMALA WILL RESTORE HABITAT CRITICAL TO THE SURVIVAL OF GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER (GWWA), GOLDEN-CHEEKED WARBLER (GCWA), AND WOOD THRUSH (WOTH), IN THEIR WINTER RANGE WHERE THEY ARE VULNERABLE TO DEFORESTATION CAUSED BY RAPID EXPANSION OF AGRICULTURE. ENHANCED BIRDSCAPE AGROFOREST ECOSYSTEMS CREATED TO MIMIC NATURAL FORESTS, IN IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS (IBAS) WILL DEMONSTRATE MEASURABLE ECOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENT OF NEOTROPICAL MIGRATORY BIRD (NMB) HABITAT EXPECTED TO INCREASE NON-BREEDING-SEASON SURVIVAL OF WINTERING POPULATIONS OF GWWA, GCWA, WOTH AND 16 OTHER NMBS. LOCAL STEWARDS, INFORMED BY ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION, WILL IMPLEMENT LONG TERM CONSERVATION PLANS TO MANAGE NMB HABITAT IN AGROFOREST ECOSYSTEMS WITH INCENTIVES OF IMPROVED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION AND ECONOMIC RETURN. LOCAL CITIZENS WILL PLANT 250 HECTARES OF RESTORED NMB HABITAT IN 4000 AGROFOREST PARCELS, MEASURING 625 M2 EACH, MARKED BY GPS COORDINATES, WITHIN 3KM OF EXISTING FORESTS WITHIN THE IBAS OF THE PROJECT AREA.