JBRJ takes part in unprecedented expedition to the Iratapuru River Reserve in Amapá

An unprecedented expedition is underway until October 26 in the Iratapuru River Sustainable Development Reserve (RDS), in the municipality of Laranjal do Jari, in the state of Amapá. The initiative, promoted by the AP government, is collecting samples of arboreal and arborescent plants and woody species found in abundance in the region. The team is made up of researchers from the Amapá State Secretariat for the Environment, which is coordinating the action, the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden, the New York Botanical Garden and the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR).

The fieldwork is part of the National Biodiversity Monitoring Program (Monitora), supported by the Amazon Protected Areas Program. The expedition is taking place on three trails in the Iratapuru River RDS and has the support of residents of the São Francisco community, who have been trained to be monitors for the program.

The coordinator of the team of botanists is Rafaela Campostrini Forzza, a researcher from ICMBio and the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden. “We're implementing the Monitora Program's terrestrial forestry protocol, measuring the height and circumference of the trees, plus plaqueing. We are also collecting plants for biodiversity monitoring, describing the species and generating a unique code for each sample. The result of this work will reveal the health of the forest and subsidize various scientific and sustainable sectors,” explained Rafaela, in an interview with the Amapá News Agency. The collection of plants will generate the first database of the Iratapuru River Reserve.

The expedition was also the subject of an article in Jornal do Amapá 2nd Edition.