Tumbes River, Peru Photograph by WWF/ Craig Meforland   Western South America: Ecuador and Peru Mangroves   1,300 square miles (3,300 square kilometers) -- about half the size of Delaware Critical/Endangered

· The Mouth of the Tumbes
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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The Mouth of the Tumbes

In southern Ecuador and northern Peru, where the Guayas and Tumbes Rivers spill out of the countryside into the Gulf of Guayaquil and the Pacific Ocean, lies an ecoregion full of wildlife. American crocodiles share the muddy riverbanks with crabs and several species of birds, including roseate spoonbills.

Special Features

The Gulf of Guayaquil is the largest estuarine ecosystem on the Pacific coast of South America. The low topography of the coastal region combined with high tides allows salt water to penetrate far inland. As a result, mangrove trees are common and the Tumbes River represents the southernmost limit for some species of mangrove trees. Rainfall averages around 23 inches (600 mm) a year, but can occasionally be as high as 150 inches or 12.5 feet! (3800 mm or 3.8 m).

	Crocodiles are often called "living fossils" because they have the same basic appearance and behavior as they did nearly 200 million years ago when they lived alongside dinosaurs. The species has survived ice ages and climatic shifts--yet it is now endangered because of habitat loss and human exploitation.

Wild Side

The shores around the Gulf of Guayaquil are home to 13 species of mammals and reptiles, including the American crocodile. This is the southernmost point where this large reptile, which grows up to 15 feet (13.7 m) long, can be found. Other creatures include the Neotropical otter and crab-eating raccoon. Over 40 species of birds inhabit the mangroves as well, including Neotropical cormorants, white-necked herons, great egrets, white ibises, roseate spoonbills, and ospreys. You might also spot the white-wing guan here—it retreats to the mangroves when its primary habitat is threatened. This region is also the only place west of the Andes Mountains where the horned screamer, a large and elusive water-edge bird, can be found. The East Pacific mangrove crab lives in mudholes and can be seen climbing the mangrove trees at high tide.

Cause for Concern

Although protected areas do exist in Ecuador and Peru, large areas of mangroves have been lost to aquaculture, rice farming, and conversion to urban and industrial activities. Other threats include gold and silver mining in the upper Puyango-Tumbes watershed, which can raise mercury levels in aquatic organisms; dam development, which could change the ecoregion’s natural hydrology; erosion caused by waves from large ships; and domestic and industrial waste.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.