Centro Bahía Lomas of the Faculty of Sciences of Universidad Santo Tomás is located in Punta Arenas, Chile. The center promotes research, education and social awareness about the conservation of the wetland Bahía Lomas located at Tierra del Fuego, Chile. This research centre is part of an effective conservation process, and is one of the Management Plan’s strategic objectives for that area. The center was developed in partnership with Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences (USA).
Who We Are
We are a research centre working towards the effective conservation of Bahía Lomas, a Ramsar site and a “site of hemispheric importance” of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN). The center has three main objectives: (1) to develop and carry out scientific research into migrant shorebirds; (2) to facilitate education, public awareness, and capacity building in various ways; and (3) to promote tourism and economic development associated with the conservation of Bahía Lomas. Bahía Lomas, located at the eastern mouth of the Strait of Magellan on the island of Tierra del Fuego (Chile), is among the most important wetlands for shorebirds in the Southern Hemisphere. With a width of 69 km and a 10-meter tidal range, its intertidal area extends up to 590 km2 . The bay is known especially as the most important site in South America for the Red Knot Calidris canutus rufa and the second most important location in South America for the Hudsonian Godwit Limosa haemastica, supporting
Strategic Paternerships
- Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences
- National Petroleum Company (ENAP)
- Patagonian Ecological Group
- Leñadura Bird Rehabilitation Centre (CRAL)
- Ministry of the Environment for the Region de Magallanes y Antártica Chilena through Centro Bahía Lomas participation in the Regional Environmental Education Committee (CREA)
- “PAR Explora Magallanes”
- Natural History Museum “Rio Seco” 8. Network of Birds and Wild Life Observers (ROC)
Priority Thematic Lines
- Research on conservation objects defined in the Bahía Lomas Management Plan.
- Education, public awareness, and capacity building, regarding wetlands and shorebirds.
- Developed special interest tourism in order to contribute to local development.