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Bosawás Biosphere Reserve

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The Bosawás Biosphere Reserve is a tropical rainforest in Nicaragua designated as a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1997. At approximately 20,000 km (2 million hectares) in size, the reserve (i.e. nucleus plus buffer zone) comprises about 15% of the nation's total land area. It is the second largest rainforest in the Western Hemisphere , after the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil . Bosawás is largely unexplored, and is extremely rich in biodiversity .

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22-578: Located within the state of Jinotega in northern Nicaragua, Bosawás overlaps the homelands of two of Nicaragua's indigenous peoples, the Mayangna and the Miskito , in an area which has abundant natural resources, most notably timber and gold . About 130,000 inhabitants practice subsistence farming within the boundaries, about 35,000 of them indigenous Miskito and Mayangna people. The Bosawás Biosphere Reserve developed over time out of conflicts between

44-442: A characterization prior to the selection, characteristics linked to the will, disposition towards indigenous work, their ideals and that these elements work in favor of others. Visualized as indicated, he is appointed as the first councilor, delegating community work responsibilities. There are five councilor positions, successively up to the fifth, the jobs are operational signed by a higher position, each of these transitory stages has

66-682: A cool climate at an average temperature of 25 °C and a distance of 142 km from Managua (2h 44 min, by Carr.Panamericana / Panamericana Nte./CA-1). Source: National Institute for Development Information (INIDE) - Nicaragua. Statistical Yearbook 2016 - 18 The department generates its own power through Lake Apanás Dam, which is also a tourist attraction. Isabelia Mountain Range contains several cloud forests peaks and massifs such as Chimborazo (1,688 m), Datanlí Diablo (1,550 m) with "la Bujona" waterfall. Also, Penas Blancas Massif (1,700 m) containing several water drops, and Bosawás Biosphere Reserve ,

88-418: A period of one year and in the hierarchical order the rods are transferred in a symbolic way, concluding with the thickest rod which is that of the mayor of vara and is the last position to later be able to assume a position of elder council. Every January 6, the different regions or gullies meet as well as the councils and the board of directors, the candle of rods consists of gathering all the rods, carrying out

110-520: Is named after Mount Saslaya. Its entire range is within the Bosawás Biosphere Reserve. Jinotega Department Jinotega ( Spanish pronunciation: [xinoˈteɣa] ) is a department of Nicaragua . Its departmental head is Jinotega . It is located in the north of the country, on the border with Honduras . The Department of Jinotega has a population of 483,404 (2021 estimate) and covers an area of 9,222 km . It

132-483: Is now El Salvador and Nicaragua . The Matagalpa are one of the most important cultures in the historical development of the Nicaraguan territory, but they lack precise information that can legitimize their ethnic origin. Most of the studies carried out on this original group have achieved great advances, but they always remain empty that they do not allow to indicate with certainty said origin. The strongest theory

154-539: Is one of the 15 most extensive departments in the country. Founded on October 15, 1891. In addition, Jinotega is home to various indigenous peoples, including the Cacaopera and the Nahua . The city of Jinotega "Las Brumas" is the departmental capital of the homonymous department with an urban population of 53 265 inhabitants in the year 2017. It is located in a valley at an altitude of 1,003.87 meters above sea level with

176-461: Is that which attributes the Matagalpa are of Chibcha origin from South America . Their cultivation of cacao , corn and beans show some Mesoamerican influence. However, historians believe their ceramic style known as "Ceramica Negra" and "Naranja Segovia" show Mayan influence and have been found in abundance in towns near Estelí . According to the archaeologist Edgard Espinosa, Director of

198-466: Is very high, with vascular plant species considered to be in the thousands. Bosawás also is rich in invertebrate and vertebrate taxa . Within Bosawás live an estimated 100,000 to 200,000 insect species; the number is believed to be higher, however a closer estimate is not possible due to the area being relatively unexplored. Quetzals and guacamayas are present in significant numbers, along with

220-699: The Sandinista government and indigenous Miskitu and Mayangna. As part of the peace process coming out of armed conflict between the Sandanistas and the Mayangna and Miskitu, the Nicaraguan government signed the 1987 Autonomy Law of the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua (Law 28) that formally recognized indigenous and Afro-descendant communities' territorial rights in the region. The subsequent Chamorro government set aside three large reserves, Bosawás being

242-696: The August 2021 massacre of nine indigenous people and sexual assaults of indigenous women in Sauni As. The name is derived from three natural features: The Bo cay River, Mount Sa slaya and the Was puk River. It includes all of Nicaragua's Saslaya National Park . The Cordillera Isabella crosses the reserve area, and the Coco River forms the northern border with Honduras . Bosawás has an estimated of 10,000 km of forest. The botanical diversity of Bosawás

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264-611: The Battle of San Jacinto by the Congress of The Republic of Nicaragua. The declaration also includes a statue built in their honor. They are documented throughout Nicaragua's history fighting for the right of the Republic, in many battles against foreign governments. In Nicaragua, the initiation of the regidores (first positions of the indigenous structure) consists of the council of elders appointing an indigenous person who possesses

286-629: The National Museum, the Matagalpa had their highest level of splendor in the ninth century, precisely when the Mayan civilization began to decline and when the Chorotega and Nahua migrations to the western half of Nicaragua began. Their greatest enemies were the Nicaraos , a Nahua branch that enslaved and captured Cacaoperas for human sacrifice. They were further displaced at the hands of

308-741: The Nicaraos from Jinotega , Esteli , Boaco , and parts of Matagalpa , particularly the Sebaco valley , one of the most fertile areas in Nicaragua which the Nahuas still inhabit today. This resulted in tribal warfare between the Cacaoperas and the Nicaraos and was a major factor in how the Cacaoperas became one of the most organized, fierce and battle-hardened tribes in Central America by

330-426: The celebration of a ritual, preparing the act of handover to the aldermen, mayors symbolically receive their rods, having completed their period of preparation in each of the positions. Regarding the indigenous people, there is an article in their legal statutes that mentions what refers to elections, specifying the constitution of an indigenous electoral council for a specific period in Nicaragua. This regulatory body

352-454: The central mountains of Nicaragua. In 1856 they were decisive to defeat William Walker 's filibusters in the Battle of San Jacinto on 14 September 1856, where a column of 60 Matagalpa people with bow and arrows fought at the side of Nicaraguan Patriots winning that battle, which marked the end of Walker adventure in Nicaragua. The "Indios Flecheros de Matagalpa" were declared National Heroes of

374-560: The largest and most powerful eagle found in the Americas , the harpy eagle ( Harpia harpyja ). These, however, are just a few of the 700 Nicaraguan bird species potentially found in the reserve, which has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International . Pumas and jaguars , considered powerful top predators of the food chain, are present in the reserve, and tapirs ( Tapirus bairdii ) are their favorite prey. The Saslaya moss salamander ( Nototriton saslaya )

396-530: The largest biosphere reserve in Central America with about 22,000 km . There are various restaurants and markets throughout the department of Jinotega, that serve various fruits, vegetables, meats, and drinks. The city of Jinotega is in the vicinity of the artificial Lake Apanas. The town of San Rafael del Norte located about 20 minutes north of Jinotega City, was General Sandino 's Headquarters against US Marine's forced occupation of Nicaragua in

418-400: The largest, with its nucleus comprising approximately 7% of Nicaragua's total land area (the rest constitutes the reserve's buffer zone). The creation of Bosawás, declared without indigenous consultation, was initially considered a violation of the region's constitutionally guaranteed territorial autonomy. However, after negotiation and consultation with local Mayangna and Miskitu communities, by

440-541: The late 1920s and early 1930s. San Rafael has a really nice neoclassical parrish church across the leafy Main Square, and a small museum dedicated to Sandino and his wife, Blanca Aráuz . 13°05′00″N 86°00′00″W  /  13.08333°N 86.00000°W  / 13.08333; -86.00000 Cacaopera people The Cacaopera people also known as the Matagalpa or Ulúa ., are an Indigenous people in what

462-462: The late 1990s, indigenous territorial boundaries were demarcated, title was granted to the indigenous communities, and the idea of Bosawás as a biosphere reserve was embraced. In January 2020, as part of an ongoing series of murders of indigenous people in Bosawás over land conflicts, several Mayangna people living in Bosawás were killed and kidnapped by mestizo settlers (colonos) seeking to steal indigenous land. This has repeated many times, including

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484-500: The time of the Spanish arrival. They also built stone statues representing their chieftain and warriors. They were feared by the Spanish because they were very brave and effective with their bows and other arms, which have earned them the nickname "indios flecheros" (archery indians) in Nicaragua. It took 300 years for the Spanish to submit them, even at the time of Nicaragua's Independence in 1821, there were many Matagalpas free in

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