Eight animals that you will only find in Colombia, on the subject of World Animal Day

This October 4 is celebrated the world animal day. According to the World Organization for Animal Protection, It is a date that seeks to stop the extinction of species and It coincides with the birth of Saint Francis of Assisi, the so-called patron saint of animals.

History says that in 1182, Saint Francis of Assisi, then the son of a wealthy merchant, stripped himself of all material riches and his comforts to serve and help everyone in need, but not only people but also everyone animals and living beings, under the philosophy that if they were “sons of God” they were also his brothers. Thus was born the popular Franciscan order.

Six centuries later, in 1978, the United Nations (UN) approved the Universal Declaration of Animal Rights, in which it establishes the rights of animals and the consequences that ignorance of them has caused.

According to the Alexander von Humbdolt Biological Resources Research Institute, Colombia has 27,167 species of vertebrates, including 1,999 birds, 4,913 fish, 520 mammals, 743 reptiles and 849 amphibians, and 11,764 insects.

Colombian biodiversity means that its territory is home to 8,803 endemic species, that only inhabit the national territory, this in consequence to evolutionary and ecological processes.

Here we show you eight of the most unique animals that you can only find in Colombia, the second most diverse country in the world.

1. Sword-billed hummingbird

Colombia has the largest number of hummingbird species in the world. The sword-billed hummingbird is the only one of its species that it may have a beak larger than its body.

2. Blue-billed Curassow

Also known as Colombian peacock bass, It is located in the department of Magdalena, north of Colombia. The galliform bird measures about one meter and its colors can vary depending on its sex; if it is male it is black and blue elevations on its beak, while the female has blue details at the base of the beak.

3. Chunk head turtle

It is a brown turtle that has a shell approximately 20 centimeters long. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), they can be found when heavy rains occur around the San Juan and Baudo rivers in the department of Chocó, to the southwest of the country.

4. Gorgona Blue Lizard

They are found on Gorgona Island and both males and females are completely blue, a characteristic that makes them unique. Currently, the species is in danger of extinction.

5. Glass frog

It is quite peculiar for its transparent “color”, allowing you to see all your organs. The species is found in the Amazon.

6. Monkey Zocay

Also called an ornate marmoset, it has white fur on its legs. Although its habitat is not entirely located, it goes around the eastern mountain range to the Guaviare river.

7.Johngarthia de Malpelo

It is a land crab belonging to Malpelo, but lives in the Valle del Cauca.

8. Handley’s Tunato

It was seen for the first time in 1951 in the department of Antioquia. According to WWF, it took 50 years to see him again since the habitat of this species is very limited.