JUAN AMARILLO WETLAND: HISTORY, CHARACTERISTICS, FLORA AND FAUNA - GEOGRAPHY - 2025

The Juan Amarillo or Tibabuyes wetland is located in the capital of Colombia, Bogotá, specifically in the towns of Suba and Engativá. The name Tibabuyes is of Chibcha origin, and means "land of farmers." With its 234 hectares, it is the largest wetland in the Sabana de Bogotá.

The Tibabuyes is recognized for its wide variety of fauna and flora, which endows that part of the city with outstanding biodiversity. However, the main affectation of this aquatic body is related to pollution, as it is estimated that it is one of the wetlands with the most cleaning problems in the city.

Bogotá is a city known for its wetlands, with more than 12 of considerable size. The Juan Amarillo wetland was formed through the separation of the great Humboldt Lake, 60 thousand years ago; the conquest and colonization changed its limits. Its main tributary is the Juan Amarillo River, also known as the Arzobispo River or the Salitre.

History of the wetlands of Bogotá

In the beginning, more than 60 thousand years ago, the Bogotá savannah was dominated by the Humboldt Lake, which corresponded to a moor climate.

Over time, the savanna was acquiring a warmer climate, which led to the lake drying up to a large extent. Finally, its waters were distributed through the Bogotá river, although isolated parts remained. Thousands of years later, these became the wetlands.

The aquatic geography of the Bogotá savanna has changed dramatically since the Spanish colonization, which founded the city of Santa Fe de Bogotá. The city was built on a north-south axis, with the different water bodies as borders.

Quickly, the wetlands became dumps for sewage, establishing contamination that still persists, especially in the Juan Amarillo wetland. This situation altered the Muisca indigenous tradition, which considered the wetlands sacred.

History of the Juan Amarillo wetland

The formation of the Juan Amarillo wetland does not differ from that of the rest of this type of aquatic body in the Bogotá savanna. By the aborigines, the Juan Amarillo wetland was known as Tibabuyes, which in the Chibcha language means "land of farmers."

This aquatic space was the center of ancestral celebrations, such as the well-known Flower Festival, which concentrated the chief power of different areas of the Bogotá savannah.

The Juan Amarillo was also part of the Humboldt Lake, which was reduced through thousands of years and remained, already in the colony, surrounded by farms and cattle herds. In independent Colombia, the adjacent lands were used to plant food and that its waters served as irrigation and nutrients.

In the middle of the 20th century, a process of deviation of the course of the Juan Amarillo River was carried out, which resulted in the reduction of the volume of water in the wetland. This resulted in increased sedimentation and the modification of the flora.

Pollution is the main problem facing this wetland which, however, has become a place for recreation and bird watching.

characteristics

The wetland is located in the Bogota towns of Engativá and Suba. More specifically, it limits to the west with the Santa Cecilia, Lisbon and the Bogotá River neighborhoods. Also, to the east it borders the 91 cross-section and the Almirante Colón and Ciudad Hunza neighborhoods.

To the north, the wetland borders different residential areas, grouped into neighborhoods such as Cañiza, San Cayetano, Rubí, Nueva Tibabuyes, Villa Rincón and Atenas. Finally, south of the Juan Amarillo wetland is the Ciudadela Colsubsidio, Bolivia and Bachué.

Its body of water is fed through the Juan Amarillo and Negro rivers. However, the largest current source of food is supplied mainly by storm water and wastewater.

The extension of the wetland is 234 hectares, which makes it the largest in the Bogotá savanna. Despite this, in the last century the Tibubayes wetland has lost most of its surface due to the relocation of its tributaries.

After the change in the course of the Juan Amarillo River, artificial pools were formed in the wetland. Similarly, other areas were transformed into grasslands, reducing the water surface.

The constructions that have been carried out around the wetland are other causes of the reduction of its space. All this has led to the contamination situation being consolidated in its waters.

Flora

Aquatic plants are prominent in the Juan Amarillo wetland, although many of them are parasitic in nature. For this reason, on many occasions they need to be removed frequently.

Floating plants are the most common in wetland waters. Ferns and duckweed are the most commonly found, gently decorating the water surface.

However, the buchón is the aquatic plant that causes the most problems. Its controlled existence promotes the reduction of aquatic pollution, but if it expands excessively, it ends up killing the water body and the entire ecosystem, as it makes it impossible for them to access oxygen.

Also in the wetland there are aquatic plants such as papyrus or cattail, although in insignificant quantities. The same happens with shore plants, such as barbascos and cartridges.

Finally, trees and shrubs occupy a distinguished place on the shores of the wetland. Most of these have been imported, so it is common to see trees as different as the guayacán and the willow, as well as the trumpet, the oak and especially the eucalyptus, which feed on the waters of the wetland.

Fauna

The most relevant animals in the wetland consist mainly of birds. This is why the Tibabuyes has become a sighting area for all those who love birds.

At river level there are different species of duck, such as Oxyura jamaicensis and Anas discors. However, the most common animal in the wetland is the heron, especially the white one.

The variety in herons is reflected in the existence of several species, such as Butorides striata, Ardea alba and Butorides virescens. The colors of these animals vary between white and black.

In addition to herons, the owl is also frequently sighted, especially the Pseudoscops clamator, along with its chicks.

Contamination

The diversion of the Juan Amarillo river, the construction of residential areas very close to the wetland, the discharge of sewage and the proliferation of parasitic plants are the main causes of contamination of the Tibubayes wetland.

To deal with pollution, the Juan Amarillo wetland will have a water treatment plant in the near future that will be in charge of cleaning the river with the same name. This will keep your wetland less affected by sewage.

References

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2. Guzmán, A., Hes, E. and Schwartz, K. (2011). Shifting Governance Modes in Wetland Management: A Case Study of Two Wetlands in Bogotá, Colombia. Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space. 29 (6). 990-1003. Recovered from journals.sagepub.com.
3. López, L., & Guillot, G. (2007). Analysis of the dynamics of the Juan Amarillo Wetland (Colombia) and its sustainability. Acta Biológica Colombiana, 12 (1), 127. Recovered from magazines.unal.edu.co.
4. Editorial Bogotá El Espectador. (August 28, 2013). The problems of the Juan Amarillo wetland. The viewer. Recovered from elespectador.com.
5. Drafting El Tiempo. (2016, October 31). Humedal Juan Amarillo now has more oxygen thanks to recovery. Time. Recovered from eltiempo.com.
6. Rosselli, L. (2012). Wetland habitats of the Sabana de Bogotá Andean Highland Plateau and their birds. Aquatic Conservation. Marine and Freswater Ecosystem. Recovered from onlinelibrary.wiley.com