On August 27th we celebrate Ibiti Day and Muriqui Day, the largest primate in the Americas and a critically endangered species. For Ibiti, the date has a special meaning: it was here that Muriqui House was born, an unprecedented project to preserve the northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus).
Tudo começou com a determinação de Carlinhos Repetto, fundador do Ibiti Projeto. Por meio de relatos de moradores da região, ele sabia que ainda havia muriquis vivendo na Mata do Luna, área ameaçada por desmatamento. Depois de uma incansável busca, Carlinhos conseguiu fazer o primeiro registro fotográfico de um muriqui-do-norte na região, em 2002, confirmando sua ocorrência.
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Destiny transformed
"I'd been looking for this monkey for years," recalls Carlinhos. "This record was very important. It's on the back cover of the first book 'Reserva do Ibitipoca'. The photo of the monkey on the cover is by Araquém (Alcântara). When you open the book, there's a large black and white photo of the monkey, which was the first photographic record."
At the time, Carlinhos found trees in full bloom with muricis, the monkeys' food, marked for felling. He went to the owner of the area and, with the support of his cousin Renato Machado, one of the creators of Ibiti, managed to buy Mata do Luna. This gesture was decisive: it guaranteed the preservation of the forest and started a conservation project that still resonates today.
"It all started there," says Carlinhos. "I shouted from the rooftops that it had to be preserved." And so the story of protecting the muriquis in Ibiti was born.
Hoje, passadas quatro décadas, a luta pela sobrevivência do muriqui continua. O Ibiti Projeto segue com ações de regeneração e conservação, com iniciativas inéditas como o projeto Muriqui House, desenvolvido em parceria com o Muriqui Instituto de Biodiversidade – MIB. Um passo histórico para garantir o futuro da espécie.
Celebrating Muriqui Day is above all celebrating the courage and vision of those who believed that preserving nature can transform destinies.
