A likely pre-Inca cemetery, containing 200 skeletons as well as ceramics, was discovered in a 70-by-15 meter cave located a three-hour hike away from Nuevo Jordán, in the northern department of Amazonas, state news agency Andina reported Friday.
Some of the tombs were damaged by local farmers who went scavenging for valuable objects, said Professor Pablo Huertas Gastelo, who discovered the alleged pre-Incan cemetery.
According to Huertas, a 200-meter deep cave home to a rare species of nocturnal bird that navigates by echo location, and circular stone buildings that reportedly belong to a pre-Incan culture were also found in the area.
The oilbird, also known as Guácharo, is a slim, long-winged bird that leaves its breeding cave at night in search of fruit trees. It is not considered to be in danger of extinction, as often reported, but is likely to become endangered if deforestation persists, as trees provide the only source of food for these fruit-eating birds.
