The fauna of São Paulo counts 1,306 species, including birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, amphibians, molluscs and arthropods, according to the latest inventory of the Municipality’s Wildlife Division, in 2021.
Of this total, 236 are endemic to the Atlantic Forest, that is, they occur exclusively in this biome, and fight for survival in the remaining native vegetation fragments in the city.
Most of these species are birds. There are 497 in total, 128 of which are endemic.
“The city of São Paulo has, in fact, an astonishing diversity of birds”, says ornithologist Luís Fábio Silveira, professor at the USP Museum of Zoology.
“This happens mainly because, in the entire peripheral region of the city, around the urbanized space, we have areas with native forest still preserved, such as the Serra da Cantareira State Park, in the north zone, and the regions of Parelheiros, of the Guarapiranga dam. and Billings dam and the Curucutu conservation unit, in the south zone”, he says.
In addition to the conserved areas on the edges of the city, the municipality is home to 113 urban parks. “These parks in the middle of the city, on the other hand, are important for being a crossing point for many of these birds”, explains Silveira.
This is the case, for example, of the araponga (Oxyruncus cristatus), which is usually seen at least once a year in Ibirapuera Park, but is endemic to the Atlantic Forest.
“It is a very critical animal for preservation, which needs a forested area to live. When it appears in the middle of the city, it is an indication that that fragment is well preserved”, says biologist Leticia Bolian Zimback, project coordinator at the Division of Fauna of the Municipal Secretariat for the Green and the Environment.
Although the Atlantic Forest corresponds to practically a third of the territory of the city of São Paulo, the area of vegetal cover of the city had its size reduced in the last two decades. According to digital mapping carried out by the Secretariat of the Green, it fell by 760.14 km2, in 2002, to 735.99 km2in 2020, which is equivalent to 48.2% of the area of the municipality.
The native vegetation includes fragments of primary and secondary forest and also areas of lowland and swamp forest, among others. Most (56.34%) of the vegetation cover, however, is made up of forests, gardens, squares and parks with exotic species, where there is little or no respite for the local fauna.
The vegetation cover rate per inhabitant in the municipality is, on average, 62.88 m2 per person. In the analysis by region, however, there are quite unequal numbers – in Parelheiros, which is a sparsely populated neighborhood, the vegetation cover rate is 1,996.19 m2 per inhabitant, while in Sapopemba, the least forested region of the city, this rate is only 5.22 m2 Per inhabitant.
With the fragmentation of the forest, the native species are isolated and are, therefore, threatened. The advance of real estate speculation, as well as deforestation, also puts endemic fauna and flora at risk.
“Without a doubt, the big problem today is real estate speculation in the city, not only from a legal point of view, but also from land grabbing and illegal invasion of land, and animals are sensitive to this”, says Silveira.
One of the forest fragments located in the central region of São Paulo is the Trianon Park, on Avenida Paulista. There are preserved native species threatened with extinction, such as the jussara palm (Euterpe edulis), the cedar (Cedrela fissilis) and pau-brasil (Paubrasilia echinata).
It was in the Trianon that biologists found, in 2013, a population of little frogs (Adenomera marmorata), an endemic species of the Atlantic Forest. Recently, a new species of amphibian was described in the city, the thrush of fog (Brachycephalus ibitinga), with a unique record in the Varginha Municipal Natural Park, also in the south zone.
There are also records of at least six different species of primates in the city. the howler monkeys (Allouatta howler), for example, can be seen frequently in the region of Serra da Cantareira and Horto Florestal, in the north.
Whoever strolls through the region of Parque da Independência, in Ipiranga (south zone), can come across the friendly white-tufted marmoset (Callithrix jacchus). The species belongs to the Brazilian fauna, but is allochthonous in the city of São Paulo, that is, it does not have its origin in the city.
In the region of Colônia Crater, in Parelheiros, the dark-eared marmoset (Callithrix aurita), a seriously endangered species, according to biologist Leticia Zimback.
The City of São Paulo, through the Secretariat for the Green and the Environment, says it intends to expand green areas through the creation of new conservation units (UCs) and private natural heritage reserves (RPPNs). The ministry informs that it also plans to implement the payment for environmental services (PSA), a financial compensation mechanism aimed at citizens who maintain or restore ecosystems on their properties.
In addition, the secretariat states that the felling of trees due to real estate development must be authorized and compensated with native species in the same place of impact.
The vegetation of São Paulo is divided into 15 categories: primary and secondary native forest in advanced stages (1); secondary native forest in medium stage (2); secondary native forest in initial stage (3); altitude forest (4); lowland forest (5); altitude fields (6); swamp forest (7); floating aquatic plants (8); urban woods (9); urban reforestation vegetation (10); arboreal-shrub or arborescent vegetation (11); agriculture (12); squares, parks and central beds with arboreal individuals (13); herbaceous-shrubby vegetation (14); and mixed (15), with two or more categories.
.
