Use of Puerto Blest field station and biodiversity laboratory
The Puerto Blest field station, which has been equipped and furnished by
the project, continues to be in high demand and is regularly visited by student
groups, particularly from UNC. A booking system is now in operation. UNC has
purchased additional furniture for the field station. This investment by UNC
into the field station would never have happened had the Darwin Initiative not

Ameletopsidae

Caracteres diagnósticos

Las familias de Plecoptera en Patagonia

The Biodiversity Laboratory in Bariloche,equipped using funding from our
Darwin Initiative project, is now receiving funding support from CONICET in agreement with APN. A management committee has been established composed of representatives
from APN, UNC and Darwin Initiative.

The Laboratory is used by the Darwin Initiative staff to process specimens and is also used by UNC staff and students for a wide variety of biodiversity research projects.

Identification guides A second non-specialist leaflet on freshwater insects of NHNP
has been published and is available at interpretation centres around NHNP and has also
been sent to local schools. In addition we have produced a poster and a 2009
calendar on wetlands and freshwater insects which are on display around NHNP
and are available for purchase by visitors to NHNP (see Annex 6). Project
partners have continued to produce specialist keys, checklists and taxonomic
works during the year and a non-specialist field guide to freshwater insects of
Patagonia is currently in an advanced stage of development. We expect to
complete this before the end of the project                                                                                                     

 Equip field station
The Puerto Blest field station, which has been equipped and furnished
by the project, continues to be in high demand and is regularly visited by
student groups, particularly from UNC. A booking system is now in operation.
UNC has purchased additional furniture for the field station. This investment
by UNC into the field station would never have happened had the Darwin
Initiative not first put resources into the field station to make it viable.
For the second year, the field station has also been used by an international
workshop on tree ring analysis. The international Southern Connections
conference in 2010 has booked the field station for a field excursion for
delegates.                                                                                               
Training courses
Darwin Initiative staff members have maintained contacts with local Bariloche schools.
A workshop for 10-year old children was held in March 2009. Contacts have now
been made with three schools in the Bariloche area. Most schools in Bariloche
are private but we been focussing our efforts by targeting schools in poor
areas of the town. A series of six guided tours, focussing on freshwater
insects and wetland habitats, close to Puerto Blest were held by Pessacq for
touristic visitors to NHNP. Following these tours a number of volunteers came
forward to assist in the Biodiversity Laboratory. 

Local people, who had previously met project staff
while they were sampling at Lake Mascardi, contacted APN when they saw a large
amount of foam accumulating on the lakeside. Darwin assistants met locals,
sampled and analysed the foam, and later explained that this was a harmless
biofoam generated by strong winds and wave action. However, this illustrates
increasing awareness about wetland pollution that the project has generated
amongst local people who previously had little consciousness of wetland
conservation issues.

As a result of our activities a local commercial rafting company has become
enthusiastically involved in biomonitoring and now explain the importance of wetland
conservation to tourists                                                                                         

1. Building infrastructure in the Nahuel Huapi National Park (NHNP) to provide a wetland interpretation centre where tourists, sport fishermen, students and researchers will be able to study freshwater insects and understand their role in freshwater ecosystems.
2. Development of Identification guides, a reference collection and an inventory of freshwater insects for the National Park.
3. Dissemination of results through scientific publications, a dedicated website, reports to DI, posters and simple foldout identification charts, local and national media.

The Nahuel Huapi National park in Patagonia Argentina shelters a fraction of the largest temperate rainforest area of South America, the Valdivian Rainforest which has been recently included among the most threatened eco-regions around the world by the Global 2000 initiative launched by WWF and the World Bank. Hence, the area makes an interesting Biodiversity hotspot in the country

 
The freshwater insect biodiversity of Argentina is threatened by human impacts. At present, the freshwater insect fauna is poorly known and knowledge is constrained by a lack of adequate identification guides and reference collections. In addition, there is poor public understanding of the importance of wetlands for biodiversity and providing basic human needs. Our project will address this need by: (a) building infrastructure in the Nahuel Huapi National Park, which has been identified as one of the most important conservation areas in Argentinean Patagonia; (b) providing a wetland interpretation centre where tourists, sport fishermen, students and researchers will be able to study freshwater insects and understand their role in freshwater ecosystems; (c) developing identification guides, reference collections and an inventory of freshwater insects for the National Park. 

All the Institutions host and partners are involved in the planning and design of the project:

• Natural History Museum (NHM): Coordination of project. Specialist identification of Chironomidae and simulidae. Participation in fieldwork. GIS expertise. (Steve Brooks, Luis Hernandez and Malcolm Penn)
• Museo de Ciencias Naturales de La Plata (UNLP): Coordination of project within Argentina. Storage, curation and databasing of insect collections. Specialist identification of Ceratopogonidae, Trichoptera. Participation in fieldwork. (Gustavo Spinelli and Mariano Donato)
• Instituto de Limnologia de La Plata (ILPLA): Supervision and training of research students who will be involved in collection and identification of freshwater insects. (Javier Muzon and Julieta Massaferro)
• Centro Regional Universitario Bariloche (UNC): Logistical and equipment (including boats) support for fieldwork. (Karin Heinnemam)
• Biological Station Puerto Blest (EBPB): Logistical support for fieldwork. Facilities for storage and identification of freshwater insects. Teaching, training and interpretation facilities. EBPB Manager (Premoli) will assist with fieldwork and provide access and support at the field station
• Administracion Parques Nacionales (APN): Logistical and equipment (including 4x4 vehicle) support for fieldwork. Susana Seijas assists with fieldwork and provide local contacts and information on suitable localities in national park.
• Universidad de la Patagonia, Esquel, Chubut (UNP): will provide laboratory facilities. Specialist identification of Coleoptera. (Miguel Archangelsky and Pablo Pessaq)