Colombia is ranked internationally as one of the most mega-diverse countries, with only 0.22% of the earth’s land territory being home to about 10% of the currently known species on the planet. It is the first country in species of birds (1,889 species) and amphibians (763 species) and is also rich in mammals (479 species). The country also houses approximately 40,000 species of plants, accounting for 15% of global diversity.
Due to deforestation and unsustainable land transformation, biodiversity in Colombia is being lost at an alarming rate. The main causes of deforestation are land use changes for agriculture, infrastructure projects, illegal crops, internal migration, mining, legal and illegal extraction of timber and forest fires. The expansion of cattle ranching is the main driver of deforestation and land use change. Over the past fifty years the areas devoted to cattle ranching in Colombia increased dramatically from 14.6 to 39 million hectares.
