Los Roques Archipelago ( Miranda region, VENEZUELA )

Yann Arthus Bertrand

The Los Roques Archipelago, 170 kms (105 miles) off the coast of Venezuela, still lives up to Christopher Colombus's description of it as "an earthly paradise". It is surrounded by a coral reef and consists of about 50 small, flat, sandy islands, called los cayos (keys), and many coral coves, all of which enclose a large central lagoon. It is an important reserve for many species including turtles, sharks, dolphins, grouper, large shellfish and birds. In 1963 a scientific foundation was set up to protect the species more threatened by overfishing. In 1972, for the same reason and in order to more effectively protect the region from booming tourism, the Venezuelan government made the archipelago a national park. This may also have been done to guard against treasure hunters and those who plunder wrecks. For two centuries these remote islands were the haunt of buccaneers who lay in wait for Spanish galleons laden with gold from the Americas.

• "I know her... Mother Earth, she breathes in the forests, she flows through the rivers and crashes on the shore with the sea. I feel her arms around me, nurturing me and all she asks of me in return is to love her, care for her, nurture her."

from Pachamama*.

*Pachamama means "Mother Earth" in the old Inca language of S. America.