The Munchique wood wren is a member of the wren family (Troglodytidae) that was described as new to science in 2003. It is found in the Western Andes of Colombia.
The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is an isolated mountain range in northern Colombia, separate from the Andes range that runs through the north of the country. Reaching an elevation of 5,700 m (18,700 ft) just 42 km (26 mi) from the Caribbean coast, the Sierra Nevada is the highest coastal range in the tropics, and one of the highest coastal ranges in the world, being 250 metres (820 ft) shorter than the Saint Elias Mountains in Canada. The Sierra Nevada encompasses about 17,000 km2 (6,600 sq mi) and serves as the source of 36 rivers. The range is in the Departments of Magdalena, Cesar and La Guajira.
The Cordillera Occidental is the lowest in elevation of the three branches of the Colombian Andes. The average altitude is 2,000 m (6,600 ft) and the highest peak is Cerro Tatamá at 4,100 m (13,500 ft). The range extends from south to north dividing from the Colombian Massif in Nariño Department, passes north through Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Risaralda, Chocó, and Caldas Departments to the Paramillo Massif in Antioquia and Córdoba Departments. The cordillera is paralleled on the east by the Cauca river. From this massif the range divides further to form the Serranías de Ayapel, San Jerónimo and Abibe. Only to recede into the Caribbean plain and the Sinú River valley.
Los Nevados National Natural Park is a national park located in the Cordillera Central of the Colombian Andes. The park features Colombia's highest and northernmost active volcanoes including the glacier-capped Nevado del Ruiz, Nevado del Tolima, and Nevado de Santa Isabel, and the glacier-free superpáramo peaks (paramillos) of Cisne, Santa Rosa and Quindío. Other elevated structures of volcanic origin within the park are Alto La Piraña, La Olleta, Cerro España, and the Peñas de Caracoli. Cerro Bravo and Cerro Machín are located outside the park but part of the same volcanic region.
Atelopus famelicus is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae endemic to Colombia. It is known from the Cordillera Occidental in Cauca and Valle del Cauca departments.
Serranía de Los Churumbelos Auka-Wasi National Natural Park was declared on 30 August 2007 by the Colombian government. It is located in the Bota Caucana of southern Colombia. Three biological expeditions conducted rapid biodiversity surveys and conservation assessments in Serranía de los Churumbelos from 1998 to 2000. The results from the expeditions were published by Fundacion ProAves in Conservacion Colombiana in 2007. These studies raised interest in the region and laid the justification for the protection of this spectacular mountain range.
The Serranía del Pinche are part of the Western Ranges of the Colombian Andes. The mountains consist of several high peaks with small patches of isolated páramo and provide a corridor between the Pacific and Andean biogeographic regions. It is located municipality of Argelia in the Department of Cauca. This area is under consideration for protection as a Flora and Fauna Sanctuary by the Colombian government. This area is important for its incredible biodiversity and high percentage of primary forest. An endemic hummingbird - the gorgeted puffleg - is only found here and the population is considered to be critically endangered.
Farallones de Cali is a cluster of mountains in the West Andes of Colombia. It is located west of the city of Cali and gives rise to many of the rivers that provide water and electricity to Cali. The PNN Farallones de Cali encompasses 150,000 ha (580 sq mi) in the mountains as well as much of the Pacific slope and is an area of very high biodiversity. The average temperature ranges from 25 °C (77 °F) in the tropical foothills to 5 °C (41 °F) in the páramo. In this territory are located the district of Pichinde, Andes and Leonera, and two villages Penas Blancas and Lomas de la Cajita.
The Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area is one of the smaller national parks, covering only 6 km2 (2.3 sq mi), located in the Cordillera Oriental of Colombia in the Norte de Santander Department. The landscape is shaped by large brownstone pedestals and columns formed by thousands of years of erosion. The area is part of the Catatumbo River basin and elevation range from 1,450 to 1,900 meters above mean sea level. It was declared an Área Natural Única in 1998.
The Old Providence McBean Lagoon National Natural Park is a national park located on the northeast side of Providencia Island in the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, Colombia.
The Rosario and San Bernardo Corals National Natural Park is a natural park located in the Sucre and Bolívar Departments on the coast of the Caribbean Region of Colombia, 45 km from the Bay of Cartagena. It was the most visited national park in Colombia in 2009, with 318,473 visitors.
El Tuparro National Natural Park is a national park located in the Vichada Department in the Orinoquía Region of Colombia. It is the only protected area in the Eastern Plains under Colombia's Natural Parks System.
The Las Hermosas National Natural Park is a national park located in the Valle del Cauca and Tolima departments, at the highest elevation of Cordillera Central range in the Andean Region of Colombia. Its main feature is probably the wetlands and 387 glacial lakes.
The Salamanca Island Road Park is a national park located in the Caribbean Region of Colombia, on the western outskirts of the city of Ciénaga in the Magdalena Department. The flora and fauna is in abundance because of the confluence of sweet water flowing from the Magdalena River and saline water of the Caribbean Sea. It was created in 1964 to protect the abundant bird life and coastal mangroves.
The "El mono Hernández" Cork Forest Flora and Fauna Sanctuary is a natural monument located in the Sucre and Bolívar Departments on the coast of the Caribbean Region of Colombia.
The Puracé National Natural Park is a national park located in the Andean region of Colombia, southeast of the city of Popayán in the Cordillera Central range. Its main feature is the active stratovolcano Puracé, one of Colombia's most active volcanoes. Four of the country's most important rivers originate within the area: Magdalena River, Cauca River, Japurá River and Patía River.
The National System of Protected Areas (SINAP) is the Colombian national park administrator. It is a department under the Ministry of the Environment, Housing and Regional Development responsible for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. SINAP was established after Colombia signed the Convention on Biological Diversity through Law 165 of 1994, and has been the primary activity of the Colombian Government regarding the conservation of biodiversity. The areas of the Park System supply 25 million people with water.
The Tamá Massif is a group of mountains on the border between Colombia and Venezuela to the south of Lake Maracaibo. It contains evergreen rainforest and cloud forest at the lower levels, and páramos at the highest levels.
Tatamá National Natural Park is a national park in the Cordillera Occidental, Colombia. Established in 1987, the park encompasses 51,900 ha of primary west-Andean tropical and subtropical rainforest, temperate cloud forest, and páramo habitat in an area that spans the departments of Risaralda, Chocó and Valle del Cauca, within the Chocó bioregion.
Pristimantis jubatus is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is endemic to Cordillera Occidental and is known from the vicinity of its type locality in the Munchique National Park and from Farallones de Cali. The specific name jubatus is Latin for "crested" and refers to the cranial crests of this frog.
