“Each hectare of pristine Amazonian rainforest contains up to 3.03 x 1012 individuals of terrestrial arthropods representing some 100,000+ species. Our research team is in the midst of a long term study in an area of Yasuni National Park that has been impacted by road construction for oil extraction. Our team has collected nearly 10 million specimens of arthropods, including over 300,000 beetles so far. We estimate that 50 - 80 percent of the species in the Yasuni forest canopy are new to science and never before viewed under a microscope. Because our research on the link between oil extraction, road-building, and the forest canopy fauna is so closely related to the theme of the Yasuni Green Gold book, we wholeheartedly support its publication. We hope that Yasuni National Park will remain a pristine forest ecosystem where researchers and students can come to study tropical biology and biodiversity. The Yasuni Green Gold campaign will show the world what irreplaceable treasures of diversity Yasuni rainforests truly are.”
Dr. Terry L. Erwin
Curator of Coleoptera and Chairman. Entomology Departament
and
Dr. Christy Jo Geraci
Department of Entomology. Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Washington DC, USA
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