Project Update: January 2014
Field trip to Suchitán volcano and specimens sorting, mounting and labelling
We travelled to Santa Catarina Mita on August 2013, at Jutiapa where Suchitan Volcano is located. Suchitan volcano arises from 900 to 2200 m asl, at the lower part are located various patches of oak forest. Oak forest is principally endangered by coffee crops. At the upper are located various patches of cloud forest that are endangered principally by pastures.
We collected five samples in both ecosystems. Samples consisted of 4.5 l of leaf litter. All samples were processed at the laboratory of the insect collection of the University Rafael
Landivar of Zacapa city. For processing the samples we used MaxiWinkler sacs and leaf litter arthropods specimens were extracted and collected in 95% ethanol.
Weevil specimens from Suchitán volcano and from Acatenango and Atitlán volcanoes were sorted and double mounted on insect pins. Then specimens were dried at 50 °C and labelled with collecting and ecological data. Species from the families Entiminae, Molytinae and
Conotrachelini were the most common.
Aracnids and rover beetles were also sorted and stored in vials with 95% ethanol for interchanging them with the insect collections of the Biology Institute of UNAM and the
Autonomous University of Hidalgo; both from Mexico.
Selection of volcanoes for the elaboration of technical studies
As part of this project we propose to regularise two volcanoes into the Guatemalan
Protected Area Systems. Most of the volcanoes of Guatemala were protected in 1956 but they lack a technical study and a management plan. In November 2013 we had a meeting with protected areas technician from the National Council of Protected Areas at Jutiapa district for selecting potential sites for doing the technical studies. The Protected Areas
Technician, Ing. Carlos Way, proposed Volcanoes Chingo and Tecuamburro at Jutiapa and
Santa Rosa districts.