Mangroves are interface areas between terrestrial and aquatic environments, with rich biodiversity and a great capacity for storing “blue carbon.” These ecosystems, known as nurseries of life, play a fundamental role in both climate regulation and climate change mitigation, as well as in generating income for local communities.

The existence of well-preserved natural mangrove areas is essential for ensuring fish stocks and providing ecosystem services such as protection against extreme events and prevention of coastal erosion. Aiming to contribute to positive actions like these in the territory of the Great Atlantic Forest Reserve, SPVS launched the project Between Mangroves and Crabs: Strengthening conservation in the territory of the Great Atlantic Forest Reserve through ecological restoration actions, fauna monitoring, and strengthening strategic actors in the territory.

The project’s restoration areas are located near one of the most important roosting and breeding areas for the red-tailed parrot, Ilha Rasa. The project’s actions aim to enrich these areas with tree species that provide shelter, nesting sites, and food for the rare parrots of the Paraná coast, aiding in their maintenance and promoting their reproduction in the territory. The restoration actions also aim to contribute to the conservation of the mangroves of the Guaraqueçaba Ecological Station by recovering former buffalo pastures located in its contributing basins.

The Guaraqueçaba Ecological Station is a Conservation Unit created in 1982, managed by ICMBio, which aims to protect one of the best-preserved mangrove remnants in southern Brazil. The project has a direct interface with this Conservation Unit, which partially overlaps with the Papagaio-de-cara-roxa Natural Reserve. Research actions are also planned in other mangrove areas of the Guaraqueçaba Environmental Protection Area (APA), within the limits of the Guaricica Natural Reserve, located in Antonina-PR.

The project intends to establish dialogues with different actors to contribute to strengthening the management mechanisms of the region’s mangroves through articulation, promotion, and facilitation of dialogues between public authorities and traditional communities, and training on the topics addressed by the project.