November 20-26

The fifteenth study site of the expedition was in the High Andes, between November 20th and 26th, 2017. This site is the highest in the protected area, with an altitudinal gradient from 4,800 to 6,044 m asl. The camp was established at Chokollo on the border with Peru. The biodiversity assessment was carried out between 4,800 and 5,300 m asl.

The topography includes high mountains with snow-capped peaks and large glacial lakes. The vegetation is composed of grass communities and shrubs that do not exceed 100 cm in height. The ground level vegetation grows in the form of cushions or rosettes. Vegetation formations associated with water bodies, known as bofedales, are essential for a diversity of wildlife and domestic camelids.

In total, 75 plant species, 11 species and subspecies of diurnal butterflies and 52 vertebrate species were recorded, of which 53 are new species for Madidi, 1 for Bolivia and 2 for science.