Editing Venezuela (section)

=== Biodiversity and conservation ===
{{Main|Natural regions of Venezuela|Fauna of Venezuela|Flora of Venezuela|National symbols of Venezuela|List of birds of Venezuela|Environmental issues in Venezuela|List of national parks of Venezuela}}
[[File:Curacao-Icterus-Icterus-2013.JPG|thumb|The national animal of Venezuela is the [[Venezuelan troupial]].]]

Venezuela lies within the [[Neotropical realm]]; large portions of the country were originally covered by [[tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests|moist broadleaf forests]]. One of 17 [[megadiverse countries]],<ref>{{cite news|title=South America Banks on Regional Strategy to Safeguard Quarter of Earth's Biodiversity |url=http://www.conservation.org/xp/news/press_releases/2003/091603_andean_eng.xml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031004032107/http://www.conservation.org/xp/news/press_releases/2003/091603_andean_eng.xml |archive-date=4 October 2003 |work=Conservation International |date=16 September 2003}}</ref> Venezuela's [[habitat]]s range from the Andes Mountains in the west to the Amazon Basin rainforest in the south, via extensive ''llanos'' plains and Caribbean coast in the center and the Orinoco River Delta in the east. They include [[deserts and xeric shrublands|xeric scrublands]] in the extreme northwest and coastal [[mangrove]] forests in the northeast.<ref name="LOC_2005" /> Its [[cloud forest]]s and lowland [[rainforest]]s are particularly rich.{{sfn|Dydynski|Beech|2004|p=42}}

[[fauna of Venezuela|Animals]] of Venezuela are diverse and include [[manatee]]s, [[three-toed sloth]], [[two-toed sloth]], [[Amazon river dolphin]]s, and [[Orinoco Crocodile]]s, which have been reported to reach up to {{convert|6.6|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} in length. Venezuela hosts a total of 1,417 bird species, 48 of which are endemic.<ref>{{cite web|last=Lepage|first=Denis|url=http://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/checklist.jsp?lang=EN&region=ve&list=clements|title=Checklist of birds of Venezuela|website=Bird Checklists of the World|publisher=Avibase|access-date=4 May 2007|archive-date=22 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522022438/http://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/checklist.jsp?lang=EN&region=ve&list=clements|url-status=live}}</ref> Important birds include [[ibis]]es, [[osprey]]s, [[kingfisher]]s,{{sfn|Dydynski|Beech|2004|p=42}} and the yellow-orange [[Venezuelan troupial]], the national bird. Notable [[mammal]]s include the [[giant anteater]], [[jaguar]], and the [[capybara]], the world's largest [[rodent]]. More than half of Venezuelan avian and mammalian species are found in the [[Amazon Rainforest|Amazonian forests]] south of the Orinoco.<ref name="Bevilacqua_2002">{{Cite web |last1=Bevilacqua |first1=M |last2=Cardenas |first2=L |last3=Flores |first3=AL |year=2002 |title=State of Venezuela's forests: A case study of the Guayana Region |publisher=World Resources Institute |url=http://archive.wri.org/page.cfm?id=1607&z=? |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215051848/http://archive.wri.org/page.cfm?id=1607&z=%3F |archive-date=15 February 2009 |access-date=10 March 2007 |display-authors=etal |url-status=dead}}</ref>

For the fungi, an account was provided by R.W.G. Dennis<ref>Dennis, R.W.G. "Fungus Flora of Venezuela and Adjacent Countries". Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1970</ref> which has been digitized and the records made available on-line as part of the Cybertruffle Robigalia database.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cybertruffle's Robigalia – Observations of fungi and their associated organisms |publisher=cybertruffle.org.uk |url=http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/robigalia/eng/index.htm |access-date=9 July 2011 |archive-date=29 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229121452/http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/robigalia/eng/index.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> That database includes nearly 3,900 species of fungi recorded from Venezuela, but is far from complete, and the true total number of fungal species already known from Venezuela is likely higher, given the generally accepted estimate that only about 7% of all fungi worldwide have so far been discovered.{{sfn|''Georgia Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments'' |2013|p=36}}
[[File:Shakira posando.JPG|thumb|289x289px|Crocodile in Hato El Cedral in [[Apure State]]]]
Among plants of Venezuela, over 25,000 species of [[orchidaceae|orchids]] are found in the country's cloud forest and lowland rainforest ecosystems.{{sfn|Dydynski|Beech|2004|p=42}} These include the ''flor de mayo'' orchid (''[[Cattleya mossiae]]''), the national flower. Venezuela's national tree is the [[Tabebuia chrysantha|araguaney]]. The tops of the tepuis are also home to several carnivorous plants including the marsh pitcher plant, [[Heliamphora]], and the insectivorous bromeliad, [[Brocchinia reducta]].

Venezuela is among the top 20 countries in terms of [[endemism]].<ref name="GFW">{{cite web|title=Venezuela: Overview |publisher=Global Forest Watch |url=http://www.globalforestwatch.org/english/venezuela/ |access-date=10 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061208045046/http://www.globalforestwatch.org/english/venezuela/ |archive-date=8 December 2006}}</ref> Among its animals, 23% of [[reptile|reptilian]] and 50% of [[amphibian]] species, including the [[Mannophryne trinitatis|Trinidad poison frog]], are endemic.<ref name="GFW" /><ref>Jowers, M., & Downie, J. (2004). Distribution of the frog Mannophryne trinitatis (Anura: Dendrobatidae) in Trinidad, West Indies. ''Living World'', ''2004''.</ref> Although the available information is still very small, a first effort has been made to estimate the number of fungal species endemic to Venezuela: 1334 species of fungi have been tentatively identified as possibly endemic.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/venefung/eng/endelist.htm |title=Fungi of Venezuela – potential endemics |publisher=cybertruffle.org.uk |access-date=9 July 2011 |archive-date=27 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327204413/http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/venefung/eng/endelist.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> Some 38% of the over 21,000 plant species known from Venezuela are unique to the country.<ref name="GFW" />

Venezuela is one of the 10 most biodiverse countries on the planet, yet it is one of the leaders of deforestation due to economic and political factors. Each year, roughly 287,600 hectares of forest are permanently destroyed, and other areas are degraded by mining, oil extraction, and logging. Between 1990 and 2005, Venezuela officially lost 8.3% of its forest cover, which is about 4.3&nbsp;million ha. In response, federal protections for critical habitat were implemented; for example, 20% to 33% of forested land is protected.<ref name="Bevilacqua_2002" />  The country's [[biosphere reserve]] is part of the [[World Network of Biosphere Reserves]]; five [[wetlands]] are registered under the [[Ramsar Convention]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Peck |first=D |year=2000 |title=The Annotated Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance: Venezuela |website=The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands |publisher=Ramsar Convention Secretariat |url=http://www.ramsar.org/profile/profiles_venezuela.htm |access-date=10 March 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070211110943/http://ramsar.org/profile/profiles_venezuela.htm |archive-date = 11 February 2007}}</ref> In 2003, 70% of the nation's land was under conservation management in over 200 protected areas, including 43 national parks.<ref>{{cite web |title=Biodiversity and Protected Areas—Venezuela |year=2003 |publisher=World Resources Institute |website=EarthTrends Country Profiles |access-date=10 March 2007 |url=http://earthtrends.wri.org/pdf_library/country_profiles/bio_cou_862.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070703053321/http://earthtrends.wri.org/pdf_library/country_profiles/bio_cou_862.pdf |archive-date=3 July 2007}}</ref> [[list of national parks of Venezuela|Venezuela's 43 national parks]] include Canaima National Park, [[Morrocoy National Park]], and [[Mochima National Park]]. In the far south is a reserve for the country's Yanomami tribes. Covering {{convert|32000|sqmi|km2|0|abbr=off}}, the area is off-limits to farmers, miners, and all non-Yanomami settlers.

[[File:LakeVal.jpg|thumb|[[Valencia Lake]], formerly praised by [[Alexander von Humboldt]] for its beauty, is massively polluted due to the countless sewage systems pouring residuals.<ref>Jafé, Espiño, Benítez, Gardinali (1995): Pollution chronology of Lake Valencia, Venezuela. Springer Verlag. New York Inc.</ref>]]Venezuela was one of the few countries that did not enter an [[Intended Nationally Determined Contributions|INDC]] at [[COP21]].<ref>[https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-12-08/after-two-decades-of-stumbles-carbon-market-pioneers-revving-up#media-2 Carbon Markets Are Making a Slow, But Steady, Comeback] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002070611/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-12-08/after-two-decades-of-stumbles-carbon-market-pioneers-revving-up#media-2 |date=2 October 2017}}. [[Bloomberg.com]] (8 December 2015). Retrieved on 15 June 2016.</ref><ref>[http://www4.unfccc.int/submissions/indc/Submission%20Pages/submissions.aspx INDC – Submissions] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213114249/http://www4.unfccc.int/submissions/indc/Submission%20Pages/submissions.aspx |date=13 February 2016}}. .unfccc.int. Retrieved on 15 June 2016.</ref> Many terrestrial ecosystems are considered [[IUCN Red List of Ecosystems#Risk Categories|endangered]], specially the [[dry forest]] in the northern regions of the country and the [[coral reef]]s in the [[Caribbean]] coast.<ref name="Foundations">{{cite journal|display-authors=1|last1=Keith|first1=D.A.|last2=Rodríguez|first2=J.P.|last3=Rodríguez-Clark|first3=K.M.|last4=Aapala|first4=K.|last5=Alonso|first5=A.|last6=Asmussen|first6=M.|last7=Bachman|first7=S.|last8=Bassett|first8=A.|last9=Barrow|first9=E.G.|last10=Benson|first10=J.S.|last11=Bishop|first11=M.J.|last12=Bonifacio|first12=R.|last13=Brooks|first13=T.M.|last14=Burgman|first14=M.A.|last15=Comer|first15=P.|last16=Comín|first16=F.A.|last17=Essl|first17=F.|last18=Faber-Langendoen|first18=D.|last19=Fairweather|first19=P.G.|last20=Holdaway|first20=R.J.|last21=Jennings|first21=M.|last22=Kingsford|first22=R.T.|last23=Lester|first23=R.E.|last24=Mac Nally|first24=R.|last25=McCarthy|first25=M.A.|last26=Moat|first26=J.|last27=Nicholson|first27=E.|last28=Oliveira-Miranda|first28=M.A.|last29=Pisanu|first29=P.|last30=Poulin|first30=B.|last31=Riecken|first31=U.|last32=Spalding|first32=M.D.|last33=Zambrano-Martínez|first33=S.|title=Scientific Foundations for an IUCN Red List of Ecosystems|journal=PLOS ONE|date=2013|volume=8|issue=5|page=e62111|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0062111|pmid=23667454|pmc=3648534|bibcode=2013PLoSO...862111K|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Assessments |url=https://iucnrle.org/assessments/ |website=UCN Red List of Ecosystems |publisher=IUCN-CEM |access-date=22 September 2018 |archive-date=22 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180922173722/https://iucnrle.org/assessments/ |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Rodríguez |first1=J.P.|last2=Nassar|first2=J.M.|last3=Rodríguez-Clark|first3=K.M.|last4=Zager|first4=I. |last5=Portillo-Quintero|first5=C.A.|last6=Carrasquel|first6=F.|last7=Zambrano |first7=S.|title=Tropical dry forests in Venezuela: assessing status, threats and future prospects|journal=Environmental Conservation |volume=35|issue=4|year=2009|pages=311|issn=0376-8929|doi=10.1017/S0376892908005237 |doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 |s2cid=85838371}}</ref>

There are 105 protected areas in Venezuela, which cover around 26% of the country's continental, marine and insular surface.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}}