14014 Some weeks ago, the media referred to Colombia as one of the best places in the world for birdwatching. There was a reason behind that claim. Colombia garnered the highest number of recorded bird sightings on Global Big Day, a global birding event that takes place simultaneously throughout the planet every year on May 11th. Colombia documented 1,558 species sighted last Global Big Day. The only other country that came close to that figure was Peru with 1,448 species. Beyond making newspaper headlines, this high number of sightings raised a key question in the scientific community. What is being done to protect such precious biodiversity? Colombia´s ecosystems are as diverse as its bird population. The latest official checklist prepared by the Colombian Committee of Ornithological Records includes 1,969 bird species found in the country. The vast majority (approximately 1,660) reside in Colombia full-time and 84 are endemic, that is, not found elsewhere on the planet. The...