January 2011 - Recent News in Peru

Recent research in northwestern Peru discovered that Coca leaves were chewed over 8,000 years ago. This discovery pushes back to first known coca use by at least 3,000 years. An international team of researchers discovered calcium-rich rocks in ruins beneath house floors. Such rocks would have been burned to create lime, which is chewed with coca to release more of its active chemicals. This discovery is also monumental because researchers believe that widespread use did not occur until later, and it was originally restricted to a privileged class. The chewing of coca leaves for medicinal purposes has been known to be at least as old as the Inca civilizations. Alkaloids within the leaves have mildly stimulating effects and can reduce hunger, aid digestion, and reduce the effects of high-altitude environments. International efforts to curb coca production in the Andes because of its association with cocaine are currently occurring, however some argue that chewing coca is a deeply-rooted economic, social, and even religious tradition in the Andes.



For over seven years, there has been a bitter dispute between Yale and the Peruvian government. Yale has finally agreed to return relics from Machu Picchu in time for the centenary of what Peru calls the re-discovery of Machu Picchu. The agreement comes from a media campaign by Peruvian President Alan Garcia and his government, who marched in Lima and Cusco and even appealed to U.S. President, Barack Obama, to intervene. Peru says about 46,000 artifacts were lent in 1911 and never returned. The artifacts include mummies, ceramics, and gold and bronze pieces which were lent soon after Machu Picchu’s official discovery by Yale scholar, Hiram Bingham. Yale claims the number of pieces is far smaller and only 330 are suitable for display in a museum, and that they returned boxes of artifacts over 80 years ago. The two parties seem to have come to an agreement that Yale will return the artifacts as long as they can continue to study them. The centenary of Machu Picchu in July 2011 is planned to be a large, festive event.



In December, a rare, endangered owl was spotted for the first time in 26 years. Bird-watchers on a tour spotted a long-whiskered owlet in the Abra Patricia Reserve in northern Peru. The tiny species has a bizarre appearance, with long bristles around its beak and delicate feathers that extend into whiskers. Its formal Latin name, Xenoglaux loweryi, means "strange owl." The long-whiskered owlet is listed as endangered because of its very limited range of approximately 73 square miles, which is threatened by deforestation. The bird’s habitat is restricted to cloud forests and the bird is nocturnal so visitors had an once-in-a-lifetime birding experience in northern Peru.





This three news pieces from January 2011 in Peru to was written by a Peru travel expert at Peru For Less available to help you custom design your exciting vacation.