🌎 Brazil’s new path for migration

Known in Brazil as the dourada, the gilded catfish is a true marvel of nature, performing the longest freshwater migration on the planet. It lays its eggs around the source of the Amazon River, where the Peruvian Andes transition into rainforest, but after hatching the fish embark on an epic journey downstream, feeding and maturing around the estuary of the Amazon, more than 11,000 kilometers away in the Brazilian states of Pará and Amapá. Once reaching adulthood, they swim all the way back, up to the headwaters of one of the world’s longest rivers, to reproduce and spawn. 

With its migration spanning almost the entire breadth of South America, the survival of the gilded catfish relies on river systems spread across several different nations and states, making cooperation and joint action crucial — a reality shared by scores of migratory animal species around the globe.

But, as the world’s climate and environment delegates gathered last week in the central-western Brazilian city of Campo Grande for the latest meeting (COP15) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), they were forced to address a stark piece of data…

Don’t miss out! Upgrade to unlock full access. The process takes only seconds with Apple Pay or Stripe. Become a member.

We’re here for readers who want to truly understand Brazil and Latin America — a region too often ignored or misrepresented by the international media.

Since 2017, our reporting has been powered by paid subscribers. They’re the reason we can keep a full-time team of journalists across Brazil and Argentina, delivering sharp, independent coverage every day.

If you value our work, subscribing is the best way to keep it going — and growing.