Pilón Lajas Biosphere Reserve and Communal Lands (''Reserva de Biosfera y Tierra Comunitaria de Origen Pilón Lajas'') is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

located in the departments of

La Paz La Paz, officially Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Aymara language, Aymara: Chuqi Yapu ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With 755,732 residents as of 2024, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities by populati ...

( Sud Yungas, Larecaja and Franz Tamayo provinces) and Beni ( José Ballivián Province), in their northern and western parts, respectively, about 350 km northeast of

and 50 km west of San Borja. It lies largely within the

Bolivian Yungas The Bolivian Yungas is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Yungas of central Bolivia. Setting The ecoregion occurs in elevations ranging from on the eastern slopes of the Andes in Bolivia, extending into a small ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

. The main river that flows in the Pilon Lajas area is the Quiquibey River. As of 2004, the indigenous population of Pilón Lajas was 1,394, distributed across 25 communities. Predominantly these residents are members of the Mosetén, Tsimané, and Tacana peoples, but they also include intermarried

Quechuas Quechua people (, ; ) , Quichua people or Kichwa people may refer to any of the Indigenous peoples of South America who speak the Quechua languages, which originated among the Indigenous people of Peru. Although most Quechua speakers are nativ ...

, Aymaras, Lecos and Yuracarés.

Establishment

Pilón Lajas was declared a

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

in 1977. The Bolivian government designated it an indigenous territory and biosphere reserve through Supreme Decree 23110, issued in 1992. The multiethnic Tsimané Moseten Regional Council (; CRTM) was formed in 1992 and received the title to the reserve as a Native Community Land or TCO in 1997.

References

External links

www.parkswatch.org / Pilón Lajas Biosphere Reserve and Communal Lands

''Reserva de Biosfera y Tierra Comunitaria de Origen PILÓN LAJAS''
(Spanish) Protected areas of Bolivia Geography of La Paz Department (Bolivia) Geography of Beni Department Protected areas established in 1992 Biosphere reserves of Bolivia Native Community Lands in Bolivia {{FranzTamayoProvince-geo-stub