Turning Our Farm Back Into a Jungle.

I can't believe we just bought this place. This is an expansive wilderness teeming with apex predators, rare ancient trees and bizarre alien looking life forms like this giant worm we found. Giant worm! And we've bought a plot of land here so that we can protect it from these guys. Cows are everywhere and right in the middle of our new land is actually an old farm that we're now giving back to nature because here there's a rare alignment of climate and terrain that allows the ecosystem to grow back faster than almost anywhere else on earth. Eight years ago this was completely deforested. It was grazed entirely to the ground and now it's towering above me. So we've joined forces with the team that's building a nature reserve from scratch here. Together we're going to reveal the ecosystem's secrets, save a rare species from extinction and transform this into this. The higher we get up into these mountains the cloud is just covering the road completely and we're just driving through just a thick dense fog. These are the cloud forests near Medellin, Colombia and this place is special because here three different worlds collide. From the south you have the very tip of the mighty Andes mountain range. To the north the vast Caribbean plains and out west the wild Chocodarian rainforest. So here the flora, fauna and funga from all three ecosystems mix together resulting in an exceptionally high concentration of different species. But when the fog clears you quickly realize why this environment is in so much danger. This behind me is the main threat to the forest around here. It's a cow pasture and it doesn't even make sense to have them here because the mountains are so steep and the land is inaccessible. It's just not efficient. But it was a practice that came over in colonial times and now it's just a super common way to make a living around here. This area where I am right now is known as the Milky Way. So if we don't do something about it then all of the pristine forests around here will just become like this, a cow field. And there's only... And there's only one way to stop that from happening. So this is as far as the car is going to take us. So now we're about to follow this guy. This is Gato and we're going down there. By the way, if you're enjoying the channel, why don't you subscribe? It helps us a lot and that actually helps the planet. Cheers. You see that's the house where we're going over there. Meet the team who are building a nature reserve from scratch. Christian handles the big picture, managing the logistics and finances needed to keep it growing. Then there's Sebastian. He's an ecologist, a specialist in rare flowers who can identify all the bizarre unknown species hiding in the forest. And Mauro, a local naturalist who knows exactly what this land needs to thrive. Together they're following a three-step plan. Step one is buying land. Since buying the first parcel in 2016, the reserve has grown to 700 hectares that are now permanently protected from deforestation. But it's just got even bigger. For this mission, Ecosia together with the Planet Wild community are buying another 53 hectares for the reserve. Our new piece of land is made up of two parts. A dense, mostly unexplored forest and a former farm that literally still has cows on it. And that brings us to step two. The most beautiful thing about this project. To turn this degraded farm back into a lush forest, all we have to do is absolutely nothing. Let me explain. This specific ecosystem has a superpower. Right here, humid air sweeps from the lowlands up the steep mountains and crashes into the cold air at high elevations. This creates permanent heavy moisture at just the right temperature, letting nature regenerate much faster than in most places on Earth. And the healthy forest right next to the farm is really important too. The wind, birds and other animals carry seeds over from the healthy forest into the degraded pasture, basically planting the trees without any human intervention. Fast-growing tree ferns shoot up first, forming a tall, dense canopy where pioneer trees start to thrive. And before long, the jungle is back. But there are certain species that are so rare, they still need a little help from us. And that is step three. The team explores the forest in search of nearly extinct or unknown species. And there's one that has only 70 individuals left in the world. It's Magnolia polyhypsophila, an ancient tree species that evolved alongside the dinosaurs. And we're trying to bring them back from the brink of extinction. Tomorrow, we're going to explore our newly purchased land to see if we can discover any unknown rare magnolias in order to collect their seeds and save the species. And the night before our hike, we already get a taste for how wild this place is. One of their wildlife cameras just spotted a puma. Even though these cats can weigh in as much as 100 kilograms or 220 pounds, they're not technically big cats. And this makes a lot of sense once you hear their terrifying roar. In total, they know that five wildcat species live on the reserve, including the freaky looking jaguarundi and the elusive clouded tiger cat, which was only just discovered as its own species. It's incredible to see them returning to this forest already. And it makes you wonder what else we might find. So it's early in the morning. We're sitting out from the house to see our new plot of land for the first time. I mean, look at these leaves. I feel like a child. There's so high biodiversity that you can actually do much with a limited amount of funding. You know, we have five felon species. We have more than 18 hummingbird species. We have at least three magnolia species. By conserving only this relatively small piece of land, you get an impact on conservation for many, many different species. So you get a lot of bang for the buck in terms of conservation. For this project, Ecosia teamed up with Planet Wild. They're restoring nature through monthly missions that are community funded by people dressed like you. If you don't know them yet, definitely check out their channel where they've also posted this video. There's a link in the description. After a two hour hike, we finally reached the forest on our new land. So this here is the actual entrance to the forest. And I mean, look at this. That's crazy. It has this like mystical vibe. We're descending into this dense, dense forest. I can't wait to see what's in there. You must surrender yourself and all of your camera equipment to the rain. Some sort of huge worm. What did you find? Oh my God. This is the cloud forest. And I mean, you can see why. We're in the middle of a cloud. And that permanent moisture, along with the incredible steepness of these mountains, means that there's so many different habitats. And that leads to an incredible explosion of life. Because of how humid it is, the plants can get all their moisture from the air and simply grow on top of each other. One big tree can host thousands of plants. And these create tiny micro ecosystems where all sorts of other things can live. A single tree in a cloud forest is like a whole ecosystem by itself. And a lot of creatures can spend all their life cycles on the tree without ever leaving the tree. As well as countless plants, amphibians and insects that can be found only here, Sebastian has set up camera traps to see if anything bigger walks through here. Okay, so we've just reached the first of our camera traps. We're going to see what we found. Oh my God. It's an ocelot, the undisputed king of the truly small cats. It punches way above its weight class, hunting prey like deer and monkeys that should be out of its league. It's so dominant that it actually dictates the population of every other small cat in this forest. Biologists call it the ocelot effect. Basically, it runs the neighborhood. And this is a place where we're going to have our lunch break. It's insane. Navigating these streams is often the only way to access the super remote parts of the reserve. So if we want to find those rare magnolia trees and all the other undiscovered species hiding in here, we need to learn how to get down these waterfalls. We are not only going to buy a piece of land, but we also will train our team and equip our team with gear that they need to get around in very steep territory. So we are doing training on canyoning, tree climbing, first aid, so that they can move safely here. It's a very steep terrain. It's humid. There's no mobile phone coverage in many places. So you have to know how to get around. So as well as buying this land, we're also funding the salaries of two rangers who look after it year round and trainings just like this to allow them to search for endangered species they can then conserve. Back on the trail, deep into the dense forest, we stumbled upon old scratch marks of the biggest cat found here in the reserve. Right here, we have evidence of the ultimate apex predator. It's the jaguar, the biggest cat in all of the Americas. It's incredible to see this because it means that they're already using this reserve as a corridor. And this is a big deal. They need up to 100 square kilometers of healthy, connected forest to survive. So finding one here means the ecosystem is thriving. I just can't believe it. But rebuilding a healthy ecosystem isn't just about saving animals. It's also about transforming the lives of the people who live here. This is Luz Dari. Many locals like her used to rely on cutting down these forests to survive. But the conservation project offered her a chance to protect the landscape instead of logging it. Today, Luz Dari is a birding guide. She spends her days exploring the forest she once had to clear. OK, something crazy just happened. So we're exploring our forest and we just came across this tree. Mauro somehow spotted it. Magnolia polyhypsophila, which is a species of magnolia that we thought there were only 70 of left in the entire world. And now, 71. It's so young. Mauro is climbing the tree to check its health and see if he can find any seeds to collect. If we don't do this, very few seeds will actually produce a new tree. So the team here learned how to best grow them in their nursery and where to plant them for a maximum survival rate. And in the process, Mauro seems to have developed a supernatural connection with the magnolias, allowing him to feel exactly when the seeds are ready to harvest. Waking up, for example, on a Sunday and thinking, I have to go to that tree, I have to go to tree number 24, because, I don't know, I have to go. And I get to the tree and, precisely, the fruit is open and ripe. And this has happened to me many times with several trees and I stay like, God, what is this? So it's 6pm right now, we've been at it for 12 hours and we're just on our way back, but the kind of the darkness is starting to come in. We're not exactly sure this is the right path, but we'll see, I guess. So we've almost made it back and the night has fallen and it's crazy. The jungle just becomes a completely different place because some creatures only come out at night. Oh, what the hell? To be in here surrounded by the buzzing of the insects and the singing of all the frogs, it's just amazing to think that the farm that's also on our land, which is currently empty and doing nothing for nature, will soon transform back into this thick, dense forest full of life. The craziest thing is that we haven't even scratched the surface. Being here, you know there's just so much more to discover and that's why it's so important to protect places like this and to support this project. You can help this project for free and many others like it just by switching to Ecosia. Ecosia is a search engine that uses 100% of its profits for the planet. It only takes about 30 seconds to get started and every search helps grow real trees where they're needed most. So thanks so much for searching and making a difference. Hope you enjoyed the video. See you next time.