merazonia

Merazonia in the spotlight on TV

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 22:06:06 GMT

Experience Merazonia like never before! Ecuavisa, Ecuador’s top TV channel, captured the heart and soul of our sanctuary — from our passionate team to the vibrant jungle we protect, and the incredible animals we care for and release. Watch the feature (English subtitles) to get a glimpse of daily life at Merazonia.

Amazon’s wildest stars on TV

Merazonia was chosen for this feature because it stands out as a beacon of wildlife conservation in Ecuador. Our work goes beyond rescuing and rehabilitating animals — we protect critical rainforest habitat, promote biodiversity, and inspire communities to care for the natural world.

By showcasing Merazonia on national TV, the importance of conservation is brought into living rooms across the country, highlighting how dedicated efforts can make a real difference for both wildlife and people.

Want to join our team of wildlife heroes or help support our work? Click here to volunteer or donate and make a real difference at Merazonia!

Want to stay up to date?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

Nature struck. Now it is time to rebuild

Sat, 12 Jul 2025 19:40:04 GMT

Merazonia's quarantine was devastated by a catastrophic river flooding. In just hours, rising waters destroyed the facilities that took years to build. So, we've launched Operation Phoenix – our bold plan to create a brand-new health centre for rescued wildlife.

You can download the detailed healthcare plan in English here or in Dutch here.

And you can donate via this special link to help us make this dream come true.

Read on for more detailed information

Why it matters

Every year, Merazonia rescues victims of the illegal wildlife trade—monkeys, birds, felines, and more. Many arrive traumatized and sick. Before they can begin a new life in the rainforest, they need specialized medical care in quarantine.

Now, our top priority is rebuilding this vital facility. Thanks to the Dutch Jaap van der Graaf Foundation and the student group Storm, we were able to buy a strategically located piece of land at the edge of our reserve.

Why this land is perfect:

Isolated from the rest of the animals
Easy access for veterinary teams and supplies
Connected to the electric grid
A solid structure ready for transformation

We’ve already begun renovations, but we need funds to:

- Finish the construction work

- Build specialized enclosures

- Buy medical equipment

Looking Ahead

This new quarantine is just the beginning. In the future, we plan to expand this space into a fully equipped wildlife clinic, allowing us to turn the old clinic into a research centre. Step by step, Merazonia is growing into one of the most advanced wildlife rescue centres in the Amazon. Big dreams, real impact – powered by you!

If you would like to see the detailed health care plan you can download it in English and in Dutch .

You can donate to this project by clicking here . On our donation page, you can also find alternative ways to make a donation.

Want to stay up to date?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

55-34-10-14-2: Numbers with meaning

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 18:02:06 GMT

These numbers might look random but they tell our story. Last year, we received 55 new animals, released no less than 34, transferred 10 to a more adequate location and sadly couldn't save 14. But the cherry on the cake of numbers is bright red : we had 2 howler babies born in the wild!

Emuya was part of the first released group of red howler monkeys, back in 2018. In October, she became the first to give birth in freedom. She and her beautiful baby girl are in great shape!

Soon after, Pepper (second released group) gave birth to a boy but lost him a few weeks later. We are very sad of course, but know that this is nature taking its course. It is not uncommon for a first time mom to lose a baby and we still take it as a win, seen the poor state Pepper arrived in at Merazonia back in 2019. All she did was whine as loud as she could in the ears of her caretakers. But their persistence (and agony) paid off, and we are sure she will get another chance to be a mom.

Daddy Floki, along with our other free female Ruby, took distance from the mothers, and haven't been located for a few months now. And we preparing a group fo five young howlers in our new release enclosure, and expect to open the doors soon so they can take their first steps into the free world!

IUCN milestone

Monkeys born in the wild is a milestone for us. One that has been 13 years in the making, ever since our first howler monkey, Neve, arrived in 2011. Now, we are painting the next dot on the horizon: having a third generation born in freedom. The IUCN considers that a fully successful reintroduction. It is a dot that is at least 6 years away from us. But we are confident we'll get there.

And we think our released woolly monkeys aren't far behind! Early in December, we succesfully set free another group. Youngsters Koba, Chester and Shimi exceeded our expectations: they moved swiftly away from their release site, foraging deeper and deeper into the jungle, gorging themselves on leaves, wild fruits and seeds.

They showed no interest in our team below them on the ground, struggling to follow them through the dense undergrowth. There now appears to be an interesting timeshare going on between this group and Ojo and Leo - members of the previously released group from 2023. Django also visits them sometimes, but he and Pedro Jr. are mainly full-time members of a wild group. It seems that the woollies are only a small step behind the howlers in producing their own wild offspring. Get ready for us, IUCN!

Tyra news flash

December came with more festivities: we also released the two tyras, Rowan and Betty). They arrived here early November and we prioritized their rehab because of their natural and non-human focused behaviour. A special thanks to Ian and Clare in the UK, who help us fund our tayra projects. We managed to shoot a quick video of them a week after release, shown in the compilation video below.

Spot the puma
Pangui received a thorough health check this month. Our current vet Randy put together a medical team that checked her inside and out. Conclusion: apart from a bit of arthritis and one broken tooth, she is super fit for her age! Nonetheless, we continue to adapt her enclosure for possible geriatric issues in the future.

Other animal news

Red howler babies Raya and Nala are being hand reared and slowly introduced to leaves and the jungle. They might still join the group of young howlers in rehab. This gang of 5 (Akira, Freya, Frodo, Pepita and Fionn) is housed in our new, secluded and spacious rehab enclosure and they are having a ball together! So much energy here. As soon as the current release projects and funds allow us, we will focus on their future.

Young capuchins Eliott and Ryan were transferred to the Amazoonico centre, to join Sinchi living free on the capuchin island. The woolly monkeys Diego and Carlito (unfit for release) were taken to another part of Amazoonico and are part of a group now that lives in a fenced off area of several hectares (shown in the video). This gave us the space to move Tina, Sofia (with baby Tommy) to a different, spacious enclosure in Merazonia, enabling us to finally add Moira to the group too. Tommy is developing well and might have a future on 'the Island' too.

Not to forget all the other animals that passed through Merazonia in 2024:

In 2024 a total of 34 animals were rehabilitated and released in Merazonia: 3 woolly monkeys, 1 red howler monkey (added to a previously released group), 10 sloths (3 two-fingered and 7 three-fingered sloths), 1 silky anteater, 1 Andean porcupine, 2 tayras, 1 opossum, 1 porcupine, 3 blue headed parrots, 2 black headed parrots, 1 oil bird, 1 striped owl, 1 roadside hawk, 2 common boas, 4 rainbow boas. In total we received 55 new animals, including an alarming number of new baby woolly monkeys (5) and red howler monkeys (7). Sometimes animals arrive to us too weakened or injured; 14 newly arrived animals unfortunately didn't make it. For 10 animals we have found a more adequate centre to live in, or be released from. Most went to our friends at Amazoonico. The total of animals in our care is currently 98.

Help us create a groundbreaking new hospital

We keep professionalizing our centre and are building a new hospital! We bought more land at the entrance of our reserve. This land comes with a building fit to be transformed into our new quarantine. This initial phase has been co-funded by the Dutch Jaap van der Graaf-foundation. But we need more help to finish the new quarantine. After that, we will also replace our current clinic. So if you, or your organization or company, want to be part of creating the best wildlife health centre in Ecuador, then please contact us for the detailed project plan and costs. You can watch a short introduction video here.

Want to stay up to date?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

Release news and healthcare plans

Tue, 03 Sep 2024 14:26:12 GMT

Merazonia has two exciting ongoing releases: a group of woolly monkeys and red howler monkeys are set free. We also have big plans to build a new health centre, after floodings destroyed our quarantine. We'll sum it all up for you below. But for more detailed information you can download our year report here .

The sad truth is that we are seeing an increase in the number of animals coming in, especially woolly monkeys and howler monkeys. This is a worrying trend and an indication that the rain forest is under greater threat again in Ecuador.
At the same time, we are achieving our biggest rehabilitation successes. In Decemer 2023 we started with the gradual release a group of five, young woolly monkeys in our reserve. They are adapting extremely quickly to the wild and are now often hanging out with a wild group of woolly monkeys. On the photo you can see Pedro Jr. Back in 2021 he was the timid 'child' star of the Vice TV show Unknown Amazon . But now he is a boisterous young man who roams free within our reserve.

Released red howler monkeys are thriving

After woolly monkeys, the species we most receive is red howler monkeys. We have had several neonates arrive that are still in need of special care. At the same time there is a group of juveniles that is being prepped for reintroduction into the wild. And we are monitoring our already released group on a daily base. And something amazing might be happening there. Several months ago, we introduced an adult male, Floki, to this troop. With success it seems, as we believe that within a few months we are going to witness the birth of a free born howler monkey in our reserve!

Yes, that's right: we suspect that the alpha female, Emuya (on the photo), is pregnant!

The force of nature - New quarantine needed

The care of trafficked wildife is a result of human intervention in nature. But we have also experienced firsthand that nature itself can be destructive.

Our quarantine was largely destroyed by a severe river flooding and b uilding a new quarantine is now our most urgent challenge.

We have already started 'Operation Phoenix' and signed a contract to buy a small plot of land bordering our reserve. The advantages are numerous. Firstly, we can keep new animals outside the reserve (and away from the other animals) until they are declared healthy by the veterinary team. Other advantages of tis plot are that there is easy access, it is connected to the grid, and has a building on it that can easily be transformed into a quarantine.

The video shows the building amd location well. We have received a big grant from the Dutch 'Jaap van der Graaf' foundation to buy the land. But we lack funds to remodel the existing building into a quarantine and to buy equipment such as heat lamps and medical tools.

So, please contact us if you like to contribute to this dream or donate here . Later on, we hope to build our new clinic here too, so our old clinic can become a research centre. We try to keep making dreams reality.

Oxymoron champion: the baby giant anteater

One of the more challenging rehabilitations was that of baby giant anteater Goliath. He arrived at Merazonia at just two months old back in 2022. He was found orphaned and confused on a road deep in the Ecuadorian jungle. His mum was presumably hit by a car.

He was brought to Merazonia for his neonate care and rehab. And he did incredibly well! Initially he slurped up more costly goats milk than any other smaller anteater species we've housed. But soon his days were spent exploring the jungle with his surrogate mum/dad and his instincts to find termites, ants and grubs grew more powerful by the da y.

We found a private reserve where he could be released, as close as possible to location where he was originally found. A team of Merazonia set out to guide his release. Goliath was kitted with a radio tracker so we could follow his movements during those important first weeks, and a local team was trained to monitor him.

After 3 months of tracking, he had proven his complete independance and the radiotracker was taken off him. Be well Goliath!

A huge thank you goes out to Instituto Tamandua in Brazil, for sharing so willingly their expertise with us. Also to John Castillo and his team in Loja and Sacha lodge for assisting with and facilitating this release. In the world of wildlife rehabilitation it is so, so important to share knowledge and work together and for this we are incredibly grateful!

The popular mediasite The Dodo made a very cute compilation video that shows Goliath's road to freedom.

Not to forget all the other animals that passed through Merazonia in 2023:

In 2023 the following animals were rehabilitated and released in Merazonia: 5 woolly monkeys, 1 red howler monkey (added to a previously released group), 1 giant anteater, 3 boas, 14 sloths (3 two-fingered and 11 three-fingered sloths), 1 porcupine, 1 agouti, 2 striped owls and 1 palm tanager. A total of 29 animals were rehabilitated. Sometimes animals arrive to us too weakened or injured; 3 newly arrived animals unfortunately died. For 6 animals we have founud a more adequate centre to be live in or be released from. And added another 10 animals to the number in our care at Merazonia - totalling 78. One of the rehabilitated and released animals was giant anteater Goliath.

A reserve with a view: Our new platform

We have also built a platform overlooking the Amazon has also been built. Here you have a beaitiful over our reserve, the Pastaza valley and the two national parks that we are in between: Llanganates and Sangay. Volunteers can relax here in their spare time or practise yoga. And for the caretakers of baby monkeys it is a place to shelter when it rains. One of our volunteers turned out to be a very talented artist; she painted us several information panels that explain the work we do and the problems we face. These have been installed here too, so we can teach regional schoolchildren about conservation. Education is an element of conservation that Merazonia is intending to spend more time on in the future.

Want to stay up to date?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

"Precious Pepi prepares for life in the jungle"

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 15:05:50 GMT

A story by volunteer Jason Brendel

Foreword: Pepi is a neonatal Red Howler monkey currently undergoing rehabilitation at Merazonia. Pepi is one of the few exceptions to Merazonia's usual hands-off policy due to the specialized care that infant primates like her require, which they would normally receive from their mothers in the wild.

"Once upon a dime and a dilly, there was a little Red Howler Monkey named Pepi. Some argued her name should have been PeePee (for obvious reasons) but it never quite stuck. Poopoo McGoo was tossed around as an alternative option, but it was ultimately decided that this young bundle of joy would be named Pepi.

Her wondrous eyes looked out on the world and thought of all the great trees she would one day climb and sweet, sweet leaves she would crumble and munch; but Pepi was a hesitant girl. Like many of us, her dreams also scared her. Excited to leave the cage, she would rattle the door and fly upon your shoulder once it swung open. "Waaa maaa wa wa wa my name's Pepiiiiiii waaaaa" she would often say, as if suddenly remembering she hadn't had her bottle and was supposed to be cranky. So, "mama for the day" would write in her journal that she was a bit touchy today, and carry on filling up her ittie bittie bottle with the milk she so craved. Pepi would look upon it like it was the last 30 millilitres known to the universe, and once it was ready, she'd grab it with her little hand and begin chugging like a college kid on pledge week. She would let out a little cough and look at you like "why did that happen?" Mama would tell her she must slow down, but she didn't understand.

Once the little Pepmeister was good and full of milk, it was time to adventure out into the big, scary jungle world. The clinic door would swing open and it would be too much at once for such a delicate soul. Pepi would curl into mama's arm and peak out the window of space between elbow and side. Outside were talking birds named Margaret and Checkers who would belt out a "Rita!" or an "Hola!" to let you know they were around. Ground birds, or "chickens" as they call them, would waddle in the way and complain when you had to pass.

Nonetheless, the journey continued on past the poopy compost and into the forest of green. Little Pepi would start to wiggle and wobble once she spotted her famous bench, next to a tree to climb and a vine to ascend. The first days, her ambition was quelled by the heights. However, as little Pepi faced her fears every day, she slowly began climbing higher and higher. Soon she was repelling up the vine like it was Rapunzel's hair, hardly holding onto a care in the world. The same became true for the well-known Pepi Tree, a place she would get to know at rising heights and soaring speeds. Some days she'd catch a case of the zoomies and zip around like it was 1969 all over again. Happiness would fill mama's eyes as the progress was oh so divine. Sometimes mama felt such pride she'd let out a little cry.

Those special moments made up for all the temper tantrums and well-timed pee to poo combos on double XPee weekend. Every time. Every stinken time you'd be ready to put her back into her cage she would take it as a golden opportunity to liquify your linens. Though some things never changed, little Pepi became a whole new monkey in just a blip of time. She taught mama that no challenge is too big to conquer, and sometimes we have to start jumping onto random trees and free the explorer locked within our hearts. It's only when we take this leap of faith that we begin our journey to our true potential."

Thank you Jason, for putting into words, what a day in the life of surrogate care really is like! Jason volunteered at Merazonia for two months and during this time became one of baby Pepi's surrogate "dad's". Pepi is growing stronger and more confident everyday and we soon hope to reduce her contact with humans entirely.

Can't get enough of little Pepi? Watch this video to learn more about where she came from and then watch this video to see how far she's come since arriving!

For more fun Merazonia stories by Jason Brendel we advise you to go check out his blog . There you will find a variety of stories including the time our released howlers gracefully fell out of a tree!?!

2022: Back On Track

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 16:53:31 GMT

In 2022 we released many animals and built a new, specialised enclosure. Two complete novelties also stand out: the arrival of solar energy and a creature called Goliath...

This year, volunteers were able to reach us in great numbers again to help take care of the animals. This gave our permanent staff the tools (and means) to prep many animals for that first step back into the wild. We are proud of the things we achieved, together with our volunteers and donors.

We remember two releases fondly in 2022: the first being that of seven blue headed parrots who were the first to be freed from our brand new bird of prey enclosure, the other was anteater Federico who confidently took on the wild after spending four months with us.

Merazonia also received our first ever Giant anteater this year, who has been progressing wonderfully and keeping us on our toes during his daily jungle adventures! But first, lets talk about those releases...

Freedom for seven blue headed parrots

After months of preparation, we were delighted to watch seven blue headed parrots regain their freedom. Not only did they deal with the transition very well; we were also able to (gradually) release them from our newly built (and completely donor funded!) rehabilitation enclosure. Above you can see one individual soaring high above our plantation and here is the enclosure - isn't she a beauty?!

The design was thought out in such a way that once the bird (or birds in this case) were ready to go, we would be able to open up the entire top section of the cage, allowing them to leave in their own time, leaving our interference to an absolute minimum.

This worked perfectly for the blue heads, as we hope it will for many birds of prey in the future! Some intel for you: as we write this blog, we are busy caring for a baby Band-bellied owl, who we plan to be the enclosures next temporary resident!

The anteater with an amazing attitude to life!

Federico arrived in May as a fragile, clumsy little creature but look at him now! If you haven’t seen this recent video, in which he creates his own jungle highway, sliding down a trunk, then you must watch it.

Federico was released in mid September after our volunteers found it increasingly difficult to keep track of him while out on his daily jungle walks. A lot like anteater Andy before him, Federico reached the stage where he simply didn't need us any more. And wow has he been doing well. Every now and again he pops by to show us how well he's doing in the wild, before continuing on his never ending hunt for juicy ants and termites. Well done Federico!

Not to forget all the other animals that passed through Merazonia in 2022:

From left to right: the year was started off right in early January, with the release of a Striped owl who had been hit by a car; a Yellow-footed tortoise who munched her way through her time at Merazonia before being moved to a lower altitude centre for release; a beautiful common boa who was relocated to the Merazonia reserve after being found in a nearby town; and a feisty two-toed sloth who was brought to us after causing some disruption on a nearby road.

In other anteater news, have you met Goliath?!

In September, Merazonia received its first ever Giant anteater. At just two months old, Goliath was found alone and confused on a road in northeastern Ecuador. His mum was presumably hit by a car as he should have been hitching a ride on her back for at least the first year of his life.

Thankfully, Goliath was found promptly and has been doing incredibly well with us! His days are spent exploring the jungle with his surrogate mum/dad and his instincts to seek out every single termite, ant and grub are growing more powerful by the day.

And, the word "giant" is no joke! Five month old Goliath is already slurping up more costly goats milk daily, than any other smaller anteater species we've housed. It's also quite the challenge to transport the little monster around as his preferred method to do this is, naturally, to cling onto our backs which you can imagine is quite the feat with claws his size!

A huge thank you goes out to Instituto Tamandua in Brazil, for sharing so willingly their expertise with us. In the world of wildlife rehabilitation it is so, so important to share knowledge and for this we are incredibly grateful!

For more Goliath info (and pics!) or to symbolically adopt him, click here .

In capuchin news: lovely Moira is over the moon with her new friend Ryan

Cheeky, energetic youngster Ryan was about four months old when he arrived to Merazonia in May after being found in Macas, a big city about two hours from us. His fur was in poor condition, deeming it likely that he had been away from his mum for a while. Timid and unsure of his new surroundings, Moira took him under her wing and the two have been inseparable ever since (...probably bonding over their shared mission to take over the world some day!).

Freedom is just around the corner for Merazonia's woolly monkeys...

After seeing a steep increase in baby woolly arrivals over the past couple of years, we have been able to bring together a healthy group of seven individuals. Fonzi is the prospected alpha male of the group (even though he doesn't act like it and gets mostly bossed around by entitled, adult female Carmiña). The rest is made up by five playful youngsters: Pedro Jr, Chancho, Django, Ojo and Leo.

If all goes to plan, we aim to get the release moving by February, which will mean we have received all necessary tracking equipment and carried out final pre-release health checks. Both tracking equipment and health checks are costly necessities which wouldn't be possible without out you all. So, thank you to every one of you who has donated in the past months including during our campaign for Giving Tuesday . Your support is incredibly appreciated and we're so humbled by our kind Merazonia family, near and far.

But wait... we have one more youngster to (hopefully) join!

Baby Shimi is the latest woolly to arrive to Merazonia. She's about four months old and originally arrived to another centre back in October. She was taken care of there before being sent to us temporarily, for medical treatment.

Shimi had suffered electrocution to her mouth after dangerously chewing on a baby monitor cord but thankfully (although looking severe) her wounds were only superficial.

After making such wonderful progress at Merazonia and responding well to our woolly troop, it was decided that Shimi stay with us and (fingers crossed) join the release!

The verdict of whether Shimi will join depends on adult female Carmiña. If Carmiña takes to her, like she has with other babies in the past, Shimi will be joining the release from the safety of Carmiña's back.

Other Merazonia achievements: Solar power (?!) and some special thanks

Solar power is something we've been working towards at Merazonia for some time. Our aim was to deem ourselves completely self-reliant for our energy needs, and that is exactly what we did!

A huge thank you to our sponsor Deloitte, which is the company of an ex volunteer who made it possible. And don't worry! We assure that Merazonia still has its candle-lit charm. Power simply means that we don't have to use that noisy generator of ours. It also means our hard working volunteers are able to see their belongings after 6pm in the volunteer house!

This year, we put a lot of effort into making everybody outside Merazonia feel part of what happens inside Merazonia and we hope you felt that! A massive thank you is in place for the mastermind behind our online presence, Megan . She also created us this snazzy, new website on the side, which we invite you to explore.

Our team was also extended with Ana from Quito. Not only does she assist Megan, but she also takes care of much of our dreaded administrative work. Hopefully we will get to see more of her here in the jungle in 2023, so we can also put her biology background and masters in Applied Animal Behaviour to good use.

Working with wildlife in the Amazon will always come with it's challenges...

Whether its weathering a 15-day national strike that seriously jeopardises our food supply or pulling a weakened baby monkey away from the gates of death with intensive care and devotion, all is made possible by our dedicated Merazonia family, near and far.

And on that note, we'll leave you with this gorgeous photo of our released howler girls, high above Merazonia, chilling out in their favourite species of tree: cecropia!

This photo is courtesy of our extremely talented photographer Stewart Maclean aka @wanderingstew . Somehow we got lucky enough to have him stay with us for an extended period of time, and it is he who provided us with the majority of exceptional photos seen here on our new website.

A word from Merazonia Director and Founder: Frank Weijand

Thank you, team, for always putting in that extra step. For continuously thinking of how we can do better; for that fantastic combination of knowledge and passion: a combination that gives the animals back their liberty.

Thank you also, to all of you, for continuously believing in Merazonia and what we're capable of. With your support, we are able to continue the work we do, always striving to give the best possible care with the best possible techniques, to wildlife in need.

Thanks to all, for joining us on this crazy ride. May 2023 be the best one yet!

Want to stay up to date in 2023?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

The Adventures of Whistler

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 20:33:22 GMT

One reality of running a wildlife rescue centre in the middle of the rainforest is the fact that we are surrounded by trees. Lots and lots of trees. It's one of the things that makes Merazonia feel so special: being nestled so deeply in the jungle, submersed in nature.

Unfortunately, though, trees do also pose a risk and sometimes they can fall. We do our best to remove those that look particularly precarious from around enclosures and human areas, but rainforest storms can be strong and trees falling is something that cannot be avoided.

The vanishing act

Three weeks ago on the night of September 27th, thunder rumbled, lightning lit up the skies, rain poured down and two of our volunteers - Lincoln and Brenda - set out to give resident kinkajou Whistler his nighttime meds. (Don't know who Whistler is? Click here to find out) Upon arrival to Whistler's enclosure, they had a surprise.. a large tree had fallen onto his cage, and the mesh had been torn open on two sides. No Whistler!

Nocturnal concerns

Being a nocturnal animal who is very active, we weren't too worried that Whistler had been hurt by the fallen tree. And, although he's spent the majority of his life in captivity, we were quite confident that he could survive in the wild for a number of days or even weeks. Our main concerns however were 1) him being stuck high up in the rainforest canopy in the middle of a big storm, too scared and nervous to come down to safety and 2) the most important concern - Whistler needs a special medication twice daily to keep a serious heart condition at bay. Without this, his health could deteriorate rapidly.

Assemble the troops!

A search party it was. A big shoutout to our wonderful volunteers who sprung into action, grabbing their head torches without thinking twice and donning their rainjackets to head out into the dark, stormy jungle, in the name of Whistler.

After hours of searching and to everyone's disappointment, Whistler's eyes did not shine back down at us from the treetops. And it continued: nights after night were spent conducting search parties, expecting to find a sign of Whistler. His favourite foods were left out with the hope of his return. Cosy sleeping boxes were left out on cabin balconies. Nothing!

It had been over two weeks, and we were starting to lose hope...

A glimpse of Whistler

...until a few days ago! Whistler was spotted in broad daylight, running down a jungle path near the water plant close to Merazonia. Whistler!! Is that you?! Indeed it was!! Thanks to some expert manoeuvres by Lincoln, who spotted him with another volunteer, Eloise, Whistler was able to be followed just long enough to see where he disappeared to. Scared and clearly confused, Whistler ran deep down into a hole in the ground.

Safe and sound

Some encouragement from vet Louisa later, and out he came! We are very relieved to say that besides losing a little bit of weight, a minor scratch on his leg and sleeping for 24hrs straight on his return - Whistler is back to his happy, playful self in his fancy, refurbished enclosure!

We aren't surprised you were exhausted, Whistler! That must have been the adventure of a lifetime!

Stay involved

Would you like to symbolically adopt Whistler? Adopt Whistler today and stay up to date with how he's doing. You will also be ensuring that he gets extra tasty treats with his meds daily!

Merazonia on Vice TV

Wed, 16 Jun 2021 14:24:47 GMT

Earlier this year, journalist Pedro Andrade visited Merazonia to film an episode for a new VICE TV series. The results can now be seen in the series Unknown Amazon . The star of the show is Pedro Jr, a baby woolly monkey that happened to arrive during filming. In this article we update you on Junior, the friends he has made and other animals!

A timely arrival

Pedro Jr's sad story is most likely one we see often: his mom got shot and Junior, clinging on to his mom, fell down the tree with her. His mom was eaten, while Junior was sold on the illegal market as a pet. Can you imagine how traumatic that experience is for any young being? Some never recover from this. Luckily, Pedro was brought to us at an early stage in his life, which increases his chances to return to the wild.

Since he arrived in Merazonia, late January, Pedro got over his initial shell shock. A good diet, including fresh leaves, help him grow and keep him healthy, but most importantly: he got playmates from his own species. This is vital for his psychological development.

Junior's gang

Pedro now has company from three more young woolly monkeys: Chancho, Django and Leo (who arrived only last week). The four of them form our own woolly monkey kindergarten, where they playfully develop their climbing and foraging skills and learn to interact with other monkeys. That social part will be needed to become part of a group later on and, later on in life, survive again back in the wild.

Junior is one of the more boisterous of the youngsters. But little by little, all four are making great progress. For some, that takes more time. Like Chancho. He has lived outside the jungle for far longer than the rest and without any other primates around. He also had some physical issues that lead to the amputation of his arm. Despite all this, he is slowly crawling out of his shell and interacting with the other monkeys more often. Some monkeys simply need more time.

Support Junior

It is a challenge to receiving four young woolly monkeys, on top of the group of adults we already house, and all the other animals in our care. Baby monkeys take a lot of resources (baby formula, food), time and devotion to keep healthy. And since Merazonia does not receive any governmental funding, the centre depends solely on volunteers and supporters. You can donate to Merazonia or adopt Pedro Jr , the red howlers or one of the other animals we care for and receive regular updates!

Although the road to freedom for Junior is s till long - first of all: he has a lot of growing to do - there is hope for Junior. In 2018 we did release a group of woolly monkeys within in our own reserve. Most of them had a similar background as Junior. We managed to track them for about 8 months with the use of radio collars and two teams who followed them on distance through the dense jungle. There are several wild groups living in our area and we suspect that recently we saw a group that had some members of our released group!

Red howler monkeys

To update you on some of the other animals that were shown in the episode of Unknown Amazon: the group of red howlers is doing extremely well! The young ones Pepper and Ruby just keep growing, their red coats shining as never before and the group as a whole, lead by big bearded Emuya, is seen exploring new parts of the jungle. We hope to introduce juvenile monkey Rua to them soon. These gorgeous reds are also up for adoption by the way. Currently we are the only centre in Ecuador successfully raising red howler monkeys in captivity and more importantly: manage to set them free again!

Tamarin monkeys

We have received many tamarin monkeys this year and had to create several groups, and then find different release sites for them. The thing with tamarin monkeys is that yes, they might be small but they are feisty and territorial. We have had several tamarin releases now and we started to struggle finding areas where they could be released. Luckily, some other conservation projects helped us out and granted us permission to set up releases o their land, resulting in two more groups regaining freedom!

Tamarins are lead by a true Amazon, namely a female. The duties of caring for the offspring are shared among the dad, uncles, aunts and siblings. You like girl power? Support our tamarin release efforts!

Of human news

Pedro Andrade's best human supporting actress in the show, Merazonia's own veterinarian Louisa Baillie, has recently injured her knee. She sustained the injury during a typical jungle vet activity: she was following a released anteater to gather a poop sample from him and ensure he was doing well. Unfortunately her leg got stuck in the mud and she damaged her meniscus. She is on the mend but frustrated because she cannot practise her favourite pastime: trail running. We wish her a speedy recovery and admire her dedication to the job. But the anteater (seen here on the right) is happy and free though. Oh yes, and Pedro Andrade Sr. discusses his experiences filming Unknown Amazon in this podcast .

For further questions: don't hesitate to contact us via e-mail or social media!

Baby Boomers and Released Animals!

Wed, 19 May 2021 13:49:27 GMT

We are back from radio silence. We passed through some rough months with few people around, so all our hands were busy scooping up poop! But, volunteer numbers are up again and new animal projects on their way. Our latest success story is the release of a group of tamarin monkeys and... they had babies! We also saw solitary eagles and gave an owl back its freedom. Plus a (non-poop) scoop: Merazonia is on TV soon!

A couple of months ago we released a group of 4 tamarins. Trap camera footage showed that they joined a couple of wild tamarins, which is really positive for them as they will benefit from the local knowledge held by the wild ones. Later trap camera footage there were even two babies!

More babies!

Up at Merazonia we have another group of 5 tamarins that saw two babies born on New Year's Day. They are growing fast, happily riding on daddy Fergal's or proud uncle Jackson's back. Lately, they are getting more and more independent. Their release is imminent. Hopefully more news on that next time.

Solitary eagles!

A group of 3 solitary eagles has regularly been seen circling over the Merazonia reserve, most likely a couple with their young. This might make you shrug your shoulders but solitary eagles are extremely rare – more so than their famous cousin the harpy eagle. An expert told us that in Ecuador no breeding sites are known for this bird so yet another sign that our reserve is in good shape!

Almost famous

In February, Vice TV filmed an episode of Unknown Amazon at Merazonia. In a series of six episodes, several parts of modern day life in the Amazon basin are explored. The show is hosted by journalist Pedro Andrade and the episode filmed at Merazonia focuses on animals. Co-stars of the show are our vet Louisa and co-workers Jeni and Ana. The show is scheduled to air in July. We will keep you posted.

Woolly star

The real star of the TV show is Pedro Jr, a baby woolly monkey that arrived here on the day of filming. Junior was found in the jungle town of Coca and desperately needed a home. He is developing well in Merazonia and recently was joined by another youngster, Chancho – a one armed little bandit that is slowly settling in too. They have started their gradual introduction to our family of bachelor male woolly monkeys: so far so good! Especially Pedro Jr. adores Carlitos.

What else is cooking?

On a human note: we inaugurated our new kitchen! Two very generous friends of the project (and fantastic cooks), completely financed this project and with few volunteers around, it was a good time to bring down the old, rotting kitchen. This is what rose from its ashes: isn't she a beauty?

If you want to start a crowd funding action for us yourself, let us know! We are happy to help you set it up, share ideas and offer support! But you can also join our GIVE US 5-family . Without this growing group of monthly donors we would not have survived the past year and the near future would look gloomy. Please, join them with a one-off or monthly donation and make a difference for many animals!

Fixing up animals

Our vet Louisa and various vet students had busy weeks trying to fix up snakes, owls and anteaters. Despite their best efforts a rainbow boa did not make it: his machete cuts were too severe. A wounded anteater is recovering well thanks to our medics but appears old. We keep an eye on him as he is now foraging our reserve. A band bellied owl was also successfully treated for its injuries It then took various days of flight training but the result can be seen at the end of the compilation video .

More animal news

Moving back to the animals: most the animals at Merazonia are in great shape! The group of free red howlers moves around the trees impressively and fills us with pride. The coastal black howlers in our temporary care are also well; hopefully they can move to a release site on the coast this year.

On bird news: new company has arrived for our blue and yellow macaw Houdini. Meet Lycius (bottom left photo): perhaps not the best looking blue and yellow macaw (yet), nor in the best shape (yet), but hopefully we can fix him up and create a happy love bird story.

Dark Nights, Bright Days, Free Animals

Thu, 26 Nov 2020 00:18:54 GMT

Merazonia is alive and kicking! The volunteers, donors and our Give us 5! community , are pulling us through the dark pandemic months. We even managed to release many animals, including a second group of red howlers, Toby the tayra and… breaking news: Anku and Nuna, the two jaguarundis.

First: a bit of gloom

It is suspected that the strict lockdown in Ecuador increased hunting activities. Many people were left with no income or support at all and desperation drove more people into the forests to find food or log trees. Therefore, we fear to see an influx of animals in the near future.

The economy was hit hard and the government has cut down on conservation. Many people were fired from the department of environment, including a lot of the national park guards. It sets the tone for the time to come and it will up to NGO’s, private projects, and indigenous communities to stand up for nature.

Stronger together

We encountered our own drama last month when a massive tree fell down and seriously damaged the woolly monkey enclosure. All the monkeys are fine, and have been transferred to another enclosure. But their old home needs replacing as soon as possible. Resources and time are already scarce. But we try to give it a positive spin and are looking into options to create an even better place for them! If you would like to donate towards the woolly area renovation, please click here . Or you can join our Give us 5-community . This group of monthly Merazonia supporters is keeping Merazonia afloat and makes it possible for us to keep improving. Stronger together: it is that simple.

Moving on to the glory

After 9 months of lock down, we seem to finally be getting a breather. Most of the volunteers, dubbed the Lockdown Legends have left but some fresh volunteer blood is trickling in and is taking some weight off the shoulders of our overworked crew. New animals have arrived: two groups of tamarin monkeys, a young red howler money, various parrots and an adorable but seriously wounded coati called Chucho. More animals are already on the waiting list to be brought here. We also welcomed two new rescued dogs to the team: Aliyah and Taz!

For more animal updates please follow us on Facebook and Instagram .

Freedom

Despite everything, we released a decent amount of animals (anteaters, porcupines, sloths) this summer. But the projects that stand out most are the soft release of our red howler monkeys, Toby the tayra, and very recently: the two jaguarundis (felines). Watch the small video compilation .

Howlers Ruby and Pepper have teamed up with Emuya and are now roaming freely throughout the reserve. They are often heard howling around 11 am; it is simply the most beautiful cry of freedom you can think of.

We still give them some extra food and they all look in amazing shape. Ruby and especially Pepper improved their tree climbing skills to a near professional howler level. We are collaborating with a production company called Hive Media who will soon publish a compilation video of all our howler activities. We will keep you posted on that. If you have not seen the amazing video they made about Andy the anteater, click here

Toby tha tayra

A few months ago, Toby the juvenile tayra, a volunteer favourite, was brought to our deep jungle release site. From here, he sort of gently wandered off into the forest when he thought it was time. He was spotted once more a week later by Sarah. He was in good condition and shied away from her instantly, which is perfect behaviour, especially for an animal that was hand-reared by humans!

To top it off, brother and sister jaguarundi, Nuna and Anku, were released a few weeks ago. A lot of work, money, and preparation went into this rehabilitation. So thank you sponsors! We are also grateful to our partners in this conservation project, Tarqui zoo - for the neonate care they gave the cats before Merazonia - and Ecominga for allowing us to use one of their pristine reserves as a release site. The night before release our vet Louisa gave both cats one last big medical check and boy had they grown!

Deep jungle release

The next day, a team of Merazonians along with a representative of the ministry, set off before daylight to walk the cats deep into the Ecominga reserve, crossing rivers and primary rainforest for hours, before opening the carry-on cages and set the cats free. Cautiously they both placed their first steps into the jungle where they were found as orphaned cubs exactly a year ago. At this point, we have no further info on them yet but we will inform you later on!

Thank you all for keeping interest in the work we do and the animals we care for. Be safe!

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Rainforest threats, an anteater that could and how you can help

Sun, 21 Jun 2020 22:34:51 GMT

The Amazon Rainforest is under immense threat. Apart from animal trafficking, nearby plans for oil exploration now form a serious danger for the wildlife and the pristine water sources around here. On the positive side: Andy, the little anteater who starred in an article by The Guardian article this April, has been released successfully! Plus find out how you can help too!

Merazonia sits on an area of land known as Block 28. Sadly, the majority of Ecuador’s Amazonian region is divided up into these oil blocks, reflecting the government’s plan for continued seismic testing and oil exploration all over the country. Currently, a Chilean-Ecuadorian joint venture have received the rights for oil exploration.

Disrupting nature

The potential drilling site is 8 km in a direct line from Merazonia. The drilling of oil will create sound pollution, ground vibrations, and will create physical barriers that will disrupt one of the most biodiverse corridors in the world. Based on trap camera data, we expect the migratory patterns of many species, including pumas, jaguars, and oncilla to be disrupted. Future drilling will also have a high risk of oil spills due to the high level of tectonic activity in the area. This could result in contamination of one of the largest watersheds in the world.

Aguanta Pastaza

But a local movement is waking up and people are uniting under the name Aguanta Pastaza! Aguanta Pastaza aims to protect this corridor by providing more sustainable ways for the local community to advance economically, for example eco-tourism and education. If you are interested in helping, please follow them on Instagram @aguanta_pastaza or Facebook @PastazaAguanta for more information.

Happy anteater

But is is not all doom and gloom. Remember Andy the anteater? The star of the article in The Guardian at the beginning of the pandemic? Well... we are no longer collecting termites for him as he has been released and is doing really well on his own!

Andy arrived here last July. He used to fit in the palm of our hand and was raised on a costly diet to obtain enough vitamin K, among other things. Gradually, he was introduced to real termites and started foraging under supervision, making sure he kept growing well and did not get into (too much) trouble.

In May we decided he was ready and so away he strolled into the sunset. Occasionally we still see him and on his last weigh in, he was 3.5 kilos, having gained 1/3 of his body weight since being released! Jungle life has been treating Andy well.

Did You Know?

Anteaters are edentante, meaning they have no teeth!
Anteaters tongues can be up to 61 cm long.
Anteaters sleep about 15 hours a day, similar to sloths who sleep about 15-18 hours a day

Lockdown legends

As for the future of Merazonia: we currently still have some volunteers (aka the lockdown legends) left that have been with us throughout the entire pandemic. We are so thankful for their continued support but soon they will all have to leave us and we have no idea when new volunteers will be able to arrive.

Our rehabilitation policy is the reason why we don't open Merazonia up to the public. The less human contact, the more likely an animal will be able to be set free. Volunteer fees have kept us afloat up till now, along with a growing group of supporters abroad.

Be part of our community

So if you want to help us from afar, consider joining our GIVE US 5!-community . For a small fee per month (you pick yourself!) you can join us and help us get through the difficult times ahead of us. This so we can continue to rehabilitate and release amazing and freedom craving animals, such as Andy.

Guardian and BBC Spotlight Merazonia

Fri, 03 Apr 2020 00:06:02 GMT

Both the renowned English newspaper The Guardian as well as the BBC paid attention to the struggle wildlife centres around the world face in times of corona. The stories feature our resident veterinarian Louisa Baillie and manager Jeni Taylor, alongside some of our more adorable animals. You can read the article here or watch the BBC-clip o n our Youtube channel here .

The part about Merazonia on the BBC starts 19 minutes into the show. If you are in the UK you can also watch it on the BBC iPlayer . Or you can find just the Merazonia part of the show on our own Youtube channel .

In the upcoming months, we will lift your spirits with stories of recent successful releases. Despite the difficulties we face in our day to day operations, we managed to release a considerable amount of animals! But this month we focus on the challenges we face along with many other wildlife centres around the world.

Funding

Many of the centres receive little or no governmental aid, and have to be creative in finding resources. A lot goes into a rehabilitation: rescued animals often need to recover and get the medical attention; after that a lot of time and money goes into preparing them for a life back in the wild; and finally there are costs involved in monitoring them post release.

Louisa Baillie, Merazonia's veterinarian since 2009 said in The Guardian: "Our day-to-day operations rely on the fees that volunteers pay, which covers the cost of food and medicine for the animals." Though some volunteers have become stuck in Ecuador since the borders closed on 16 March, “as soon as the borders open, almost everyone will go home".

Responsible wildlife rehabilitation

Donations are our second source of income and they become more and more important every year in order to fund new rehabilitation areas, fix up the old ones and buy expensive tracking material - needed once the animals are ready to be released. This red howler monkey for example was released in a group in our reserve two years ago. Thanks to her radio collar, we were able to track her and her group to assure their wellbeing and assist them in the initial hard first months of liberty, before becoming independent.

Rising Wildlife Activity in Merazonia

Sat, 13 Jul 2019 23:16:00 GMT

Conservation also means: Do nothing. Letting the forest recover on its own takes time but a forest free of human dangers brings back biodiversity.

The Merazonia reserve has gone through an amazing recovery since we created it 15 years ago. Emblematic animals such as the jaguar, Andean bear and the puma have started to appear again! On our YouTube channel you can find various videos of animals filmed by our trail cameras.

Mammals and birds

But there has also been an enormous increase in the quantity and variety of birds that we see nowadays. The beautiful bright orange cock of the rock for example, was a rare sight but is now spotted on a daily basis. The sounds of a nearby lek (a place where male birds come to display) can be deafening.

So what did we do to achieve this? Well, the honest answer is: nothing. Before we bought the land, there had been logging activity going on in the area. And some of the land was used for cattle grazing. The forest had deteriorated. There were few primates left, less birds - both important seed dispensers. Small mammals disappeared and without them, the forest could no longer sustain bigger animals.

Reforestation

Yes, we initiated some small-scale reforestation projects that helped to restore degraded or logged areas but we mostly did nothing. The rainforest is perfectly capable of restoring itself if left alone. And that is what it did. At first, we were thrilled to see smaller animals return, such as the tamarin monkey. Nowadays, people don't bat an eyelid when a group of noisy tamarin monkeys passes by the human living area at the reserve.

We monitor the reserve continuously with trail cameras. Even though at times the results are disappointing when the same little mouse or bird makes an appearance a thousand times in 3 weeks. But the thrill of checking the cameras remains. It is the ' Life is like a box of chocolate' feeling: you never know what you’re gonna get! Seeing deer, smaller felines such as the stunning ocelot, or the majestic puma pass by, never gets boring. A recent selection is shown in this YouTube video.

Jaguars and bears

But once in a while, you look at the screen and your heart starts racing even faster. That is when you see a massive mammal such as the Andean bear or the jaguar leisurely pass by! Jaguars especially, have become scarce and are a highly endangered species. Only an estimated 15,000 are left in the wild, of which about 5 percent is melanistic. These are better known as black jaguars such as the one pictured at the head of this article and below. When animals like these roam around, it means that the entire food chain is present in your forest and that your conservation efforts are paying off.

And the good thing is that we are not alone. In the region various conservation projects are flourishing and have their own focus, such as in Sumak Kawsay . Apart from ecological education and amphibian research, this nearby project also monitors wildlife movement with cameras. They recently captured the same young male jaguar as us (see photo bottom left) on various occasions with their cameras. Sharing this info gives us all a better idea of when the animals are here, for how long and how they move around.

Sustainable Alternatives

It is also encouraging to see more and more conservation projects arise in the region, such as Muyu that focuses on environmental education and promotes alternative economic development.

Together we stand stronger and prove that there are alternatives to hunting, logging, mining and oil exploration: all things that remain an imminent danger to the recovering but still fragile forest of this special and remarkable region of the world with its unique biodiversity.

With more and more people and communities realising that conservation efforts pay off and that there are eco friendly alternatives for logging, for example, the hope grows we can turn the tide. And with that, give animals such as this black jaguar the space it needs to thrive.

Saving a Sloth: the Story of Alí

Fri, 14 Jul 2017 21:20:20 GMT

It seems only yesterday that baby three-toed sloth Alí arrived here not older than a day, crying and soaking wet. Her survival changes were next to nothing. But now, a year later, she has grown well and is preparing for a free life in the jungle! Read more and watch a small compilation video of Alí here.

Alí was confiscated at the nearby police checkpoint of Mera on a drizzly Sunday night, the 14th of August 2016. She was maybe one or two days old, weighing merely 280 grams and cried during the entire trip to Merazonia. It was heartbreaking. At this age the survival changes for a three toed sloth such as Alí, are next to nothing.

So we tried not to get our hopes up, but we did get into action immediately, starting intensive care and contacting sloth experts. People spontaneously offered help too, such as our Ecuadorian volunteer Belén, who showed up the next day with the vital ingredient for a delicate three-toed baby sloth: fresh goat’s milk.

Saving a sloth

Saving a sloth is hard work. Throughout the first few months of Alí’s life, we fed her milk every other hour. Any parent of a newborn knows how tough those broken nights can be. And even with this care, Alí balanced between life and death several times. But with our veterinarian Louisa on her side, she pulled through every time and kept growing bigger and stronger. Also because Alí’s ‘dealer’ Darwin and his loyal team of goats provided her with her preferred fix: fresh milk!

Little by little more leaves were added to the mix and less milk was given. In the wild she would have been weaned already, but well, we take extra caution with her because it is a fragile animal and because we are not her natural mommy. She hardly drinks milk anymore though and mostly eats fresh leaves and buds, as she is supposed to. We took her out to explore the jungle every day and she climbed higher and higher into bigger and bigger trees.

Radio telemetry

She has been living in trees by herself ever since and rarely comes down to greet us. When she does, we weigh her and monitor her physical development. We also decided to equip her with a radio tracker, so that we can monitor her movements and locate her in case she decides it is time to move deeper into the jungle.

We are able to do so thanks to a grant given to us by the Sacramento zoo. With this grant we bought several radio collars specifically designed for sloths, one of which will be put on little Alí. Not only can we make sure she is safe, but it will also provide us with valuable scientific data on the behaviour and natural movement of sloths. A big thank you to Laura, Geri and Thomas from International Veterinary Care for securing us the grant and bringing the equipment personally to Ecuador!

Merazonia receives many trafficked animals throughout the year. For one animal to survive and flourish again, it usually takes a lot of passion and dedication from our team and our volunteers. Alí has had a minimum of contact with people. A select few of our team gave Alí the attention that a baby sloth needs to survive. And we were only able to do so because of the many great volunteers that are passing through our centre, attending all the other creatures in our care.

Wildlife rehabilitation

In our experience the best results in wildlife rehabilitation are reached when people come together. Not only here at Merazonia but through the collaboration of different wildlife players such as rescue centres, biologists, authorities and donors. We are especially thankful to Tinka Plese from the Colombian ngo AIUNAU : without the information she shared with us, it is doubtful if Alí would have survived those critical first months. And she still is of great help.

We also appreciate the input of Sam Trull of the Sloth Institute in Costa Rica for her advice on release protocols and radio collars; we are grateful for the ad hoc help we received from Kelly and Sarah of the Amazoonico rescue centre in Napo, Ecuador; and we thank Victor Curicama – head of the department of Biodiversity of the Ministry of Environment Pastaza – for his support and the information he provided on the type of leaves that wild sloths eat.

Living in the Merazonia reserve

Alí still has an important step to make in becoming independent by letting go of that last bit of security and warmth we provide her with. But before she is really going to explore the wild wide jungle, we thought we would inform you on how she has been doing, as we know she has a special place in the hearts of many. For us it will surely be a tough and bittersweet moment to see our youngest daughter leave the nest. We hope she will be taking it easy and that she will be skanking it slow for many years to come within the Merazonia wildlife reserve!

Blue Headed Parrots Released!

Sat, 15 Apr 2017 21:52:26 GMT

Merazonia released its first group of 15 blue-headed parrots. Reintroducing this species is difficult but the birds have been monitored since their release in January and we are now confident to say that the reintroduction is a success!

Most parrots in the centre are the victim of illegal trafficking. During their time in captivity, they often lost their survival instincts. Blue-headed parrots are among the most trafficked birds in the Americas and can live up to 30 to 40 years. So the need for a viable reintroduction program is important for their future survival.

Release protocol

So along with two parrot experts from the Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center in Texas, we created a protocol that would give them the best chance to survive in the wild. The protocol consisted of feeding them as many wild fruits, flowers and berries as we could find, to prepare them for foraging.

We also started blowing a whistle every time we were about to feed them. The idea behind this was that once they were free, the sound of the whistle would lead them back to the feeding platforms placed outside their enclosure, where we could feed them during the initial first months of the release.

Liberation

A few days before the release, the parrots were divided into two groups, separating the couples. Parrots mate for life, and this method would ensure us that the first group would have the opportunity to explore the surroundings, while keeping them close to the enclosure to see their partners. This technique prevents them from flying away instantly and getting lost. When the second group was released a few days later, group one was able to show them the ropes of life outside.

Keeping the birds around Merazonia provides them with a safe environment to start a life back in the wild and gives us the chance to monitor them. All birds have a chip to identify them with, but two of them - one from each group - also had a radio tracker on their tail so we could gather data on their movements and make sure the group was doing all right.

Results

After three months outside, the results are very promising! From the 15 birds we initially released, we can still observe 4 to 8 of them occasionally visiting the feeding platforms, but they have become more and more independent so we could diminish their food supply. More excitingly, several of them appear to have integrated in a group of wild blue headed parrots that live in and around our reserve. And there is no better school than one that is headed by wild birds!

Only three of the fifteen birds are still too tame to leave the release site area and prefer to hang around here. They have access to food, fly around contently, keep out of danger and occasionally come over to greet a volunteer passing by.

Partners

All in all, we are happy with the result. A special thanks goes out top Alex Girard who initiated this project; parrot experts Janice D. Boyd and Donald J. Brightsmith from the Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center at Texas A&M, who provided us with vital information for the release plan; The Ministry of environment, Pastaza for their collaboration and assistance; our intern Victor Grivegnée-Dumoulin from the University of Sherbrooke, Canada who devoted himself to the post release monitoring along with fellow ornithologist Normand Fleury.

The knowledge gained from this release along with the follow up monitoring of the birds will be of great value to the scientific community because there is very limited accessible scientific data about blue-headed parrots available.

Volunteers

Many volunteers have been involved in this release too by feeding and cleaning the birds for years until we could form a coherent group that had a chance surviving in the wild. Thank you allyou’re your hard work. Among the volunteers, some might be relieved to hear that the group’s ringleader, number 4120, aka assh*le , is free now too and will no longer be dive-bombing innocent, well meaning volunteers!

merazonia

Merazonia in the spotlight on TV

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Nature struck. Now it is time to rebuild

Merazonia's quarantine was devastated by a catastrophic river flooding. In just hours, rising waters destroyed the facilities that took years to build. So, we've launched Operation Phoenix – our bold plan to create a brand-new health centre for rescued wildlife.

Read on for more detailed information

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55-34-10-14-2: Numbers with meaning

These numbers might look random but they tell our story. Last year, we received 55 new animals, released no less than 34, transferred 10 to a more adequate location and sadly couldn't save 14. But the cherry on the cake of numbers is bright red : we had 2 howler babies born in the wild!

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Release news and healthcare plans

Want to stay up to date?

To not miss a beat, make sure to follow us on Instagram @merazonia_refuge

"Precious Pepi prepares for life in the jungle"

A story by volunteer Jason Brendel

2022: Back On Track

Want to stay up to date in 2023?

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The Adventures of Whistler

One reality of running a wildlife rescue centre in the middle of the rainforest is the fact that we are surrounded by trees. Lots and lots of trees. It's one of the things that makes Merazonia feel so special: being nestled so deeply in the jungle, submersed in nature.

The vanishing act

Nocturnal concerns

Assemble the troops!

A glimpse of Whistler

Safe and sound

Merazonia on Vice TV

Support Junior

Tamarin monkeys

Baby Boomers and Released Animals!

Woolly star

What else is cooking?

More animal news

Top Stories 2020: All For One and One For All

Support us for survival

Bush dog

Dark Nights, Bright Days, Free Animals

Merazonia is alive and kicking! The volunteers, donors and our Give us 5! community , are pulling us through the dark pandemic months. We even managed to release many animals, including a second group of red howlers, Toby the tayra and… breaking news: Anku and Nuna, the two jaguarundis.

First: a bit of gloom

Stronger together

Moving on to the glory

Toby tha tayra

Deep jungle release

Rainforest threats, an anteater that could and how you can help

Disrupting nature

Aguanta Pastaza

Happy anteater

Did You Know? ﻿

Lockdown legends

Be part of our community

Guardian and BBC Spotlight Merazonia

The part about Merazonia on the BBC starts 19 minutes into the show. If you are in the UK you can also watch it on the BBC iPlayer . Or you can find just the Merazonia part of the show on our own Youtube channel .

Funding

Responsible wildlife rehabilitation

Rising Wildlife Activity in Merazonia

Saving a Sloth: the Story of Alí

Saving a sloth

Radio telemetry

Wildlife rehabilitation

Living in the Merazonia reserve

Blue Headed Parrots Released!

Merazonia released its first group of 15 blue-headed parrots. Reintroducing this species is difficult but the birds have been monitored since their release in January and we are now confident to say that the reintroduction is a success!

Release protocol

Results

Partners

Volunteers

Did You Know?