The study area encompassed the Yuyuchaqocha lagoon (13°32′43.8″ S, 74°29′19.5″ W) and the surrounding zones benefiting from its waters in the district of Totos, Cangallo Province, Ayacucho Region in Peru (Figure 1). Situated at the headwaters of the basin (4,380 m.a.s.l.), this water body forms part of the Pampas River basin. Motorable road access (≈27.5 km) facilitates community-based monitoring and maintenance activities. The area is characteristic of the Andean puna ecosystem, with minimum temperatures reaching approximately −3 °C during June–August and average annual precipitation ranging from 600 to 800 mm (Castro et al., 2021).

The area is characterized by tall natural grasses and vegetation adapted to cold, dry climates, typical of high Andean grasslands (e.g., Stipa ichu, Rumex peruvianus). It hosts a diversity of native fauna and serves as a vital water source for South American camelids, such as llamas and alpacas, which are raised according to ancestral communal practices. Livestock farming, focused primarily on alpaca fiber production, is the main economic activity in the study area, with 36% of the economically active population engaged in this sector at the provincial level. Subsistence agriculture and livestock rearing, including the cultivation of fodder and pastures, are also practiced (Municipalidad Provincial de Cangallo, 2016). From 2017 to 2024, the district of Totos had an average inequality-adjusted Human Development Index of 0.35 (Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo, 2025). By 2018, it ranked 41st regionally in terms of total monetary poverty (INEI, 2018b), a situation linked to the underdeveloped productive system and low indices of formal employment. These conditions place Ayacucho as the second poorest region nationally. Furthermore, the population faces restricted access to health and education services, coupled with deficient infrastructure. The community's social dynamics revolve around rural communal life and its traditional cultural expressions (Municipalidad Provincial de Cangallo, 2016).

This study aimed to identify recognition patterns and quantify the use of ecosystem services (ES) derived from ancestral ecological knowledge among local residents. To this end, cultural and provisioning ES were selected as indicators of local perceptions regarding human needs fulfilled through ecosystem functioning (Kaltenborn et al., 2020). Regulating ES were excluded from the analysis due to the greater complexity of their perception by the local population. Cultural and provisioning ES were defined according to the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES; Haines-Young, 2023; Supplementary Table S2). Adopting a participatory approach, primary information was collected directly from the social actors involved, and the results were validated with local decision-makers (Madrigal-Martínez et al., 2023).

Primary data collection was conducted through interviews and the development of talking maps, based on the approaches described by Karnad (2022) and Gnecco et al. (2024). To ensure participants' full understanding, all interactions were conducted in the local language, and oral informed consent was obtained regarding the study's objectives, the audio recording of the sessions, and the preservation of anonymity for residents not holding public office.

To plan the intervention, a preparation stage was carried out from September 2024 to March 2025. In that stage, a site visit was conducted to identify the main characteristics of the traditional reservoir and to define the scope of the study. The intervention area falls under the jurisdiction of the Water Resources Council of the Pampas Interregional Basin, a decentralized body of the Peruvian National Water Authority (ANA, 2025). Then, an engaging phase was carried out from April to June 2025 in which the key actors to be involved in the consultation process were identified and raised awareness about the aim of the study. To emphasize the multi-participatory nature of traditional ecological knowledge, three groups associated with the technology under study were included: community actors, municipal actors, and technical actors operating within the study area ( Supplementary Table S3). The technical actors were defined based on the list of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) involved in environmental and agricultural activities in the Ayacucho region (APCI, 2025), as well as the San Cristóbal de Huamanga National University, which offers academic programs related to agricultural production and rural development, and the Water Resources Council of the Pampas Interregional Basin.

The next stage of primary-data collection was carried out in two phases. The first phase included eight semi structured interviews and the creation of two participatory maps. Interviews had an average duration of 45 min conducted between July and September 2025. Each participant was interviewed separately. The participants were asked about their organization's vision for collaborative actions with local communities, their stance on the revaluation and application of ancestral knowledge for implementing climate change adaptation measures, their previous and planned interventions, and the limitations they face when operating within the study area. Interviews with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were performed online via Google Meet, while for the other stakeholders were in person. One representative from each institution participated in the interviews. Regarding the creation of the participatory maps in August 2025, 10 participants (80% men and 20% women—aged 30–60 years) took part, including representatives and authorities from the villages of Totos, Huanupampa, and Ramón Castilla. The methodological script applied was structured around the previously defined list of cultural and provisioning ecosystem services ( Supplementary Table S2). Following the introduction of the research team, the workshop objectives, and an explanation of the participatory map methodology, participants were asked to identify and draw the ES they perceived. The entire first phase was conducted in Spanish after confirming participants' full comprehension.

Based on the analysis of the gathered information of the first phase, we carried out a second phase (September 2025) to clear up the varying responses obtained and to validate the results. In this case, we developed participatory maps with community members and authorities of the Huanupampa village, who were previously identified as the direct beneficiaries of the traditional water dam under study. The participation was coordinated by the community president, resulting in an average attendance of 50 people (60% men and 40% women), all of whom were adults aged 30–60 years. The methodological script applied was similar to first phase, and the participants were randomly divided in two groups. The validation phase was conducted in both Spanish and Quechua, the native language of the area.

To identify the ecosystem services, their associated benefits, and to estimate their economic value within the study area, the modified ecosystem services cascade model approach was applied ( Supplementary Figure S1; De Groot et al., 2011). The economic valuation methods were defined based on the frameworks proposed by Toldo Moreira et al. (2024) and Brander et al. (2025), as well as the availability of primary information ( Supplementary Table S4). The primary information about market prices, frequencies of consumption, dates of celebrations, participants of each activity, etc. were provided by local residents and technical actors through the participatory-maps construction and semi structured surveys in the primary data collection. The mapping of ES at the micro-basin scale was performed using QGIS version 3.42.2. All monetary values were initially recorded in the local currency (Peruvian sol) and subsequently converted to U.S. dollars at an exchange rate of US$1.00 = S/3.55.

The Yuyuchaqocha Lagoon covers approximately 10.2 ha (as measured from satellite imagery, May 2014). Fed by a 90.44-ha catchment area, it is surrounded by communal livestock-grazing lands comprising natural pastures and rocky outcrop areas (Figure 2A). At the lagoon's outlet, the Huanupampa community, with support from the NGO Huñuq Mayu Association for Andean Amazonian Development (AAAD–HM), constructed a dam featuring a clay core and stone walls (Figure 2B). This intervention enabled a storage capacity of approximately 142,800 m3. The NGO provided incentives, including tools, technical assistance, and technical training sessions related to the dam's construction, operation, maintenance, and the sustainable use of stored water.

The seasonality of rainfall, evaporation, and infiltration processes determines variations in water levels, influencing the proliferation of macroalgae collected and consumed by local residents (e.g., Nostoc sphaericum), the availability of flooded grazing areas, the development of macrophytes, and the presence of wildlife [e.g., bird species such as the Puna Duck (Spatula puna), Huachua (Oressochen melanopterus), and Yanahuico (Plegadis ridgwayi); and mammals such as the Taruca (Hippocamelus antisensis) and Vicuña (Vicugna vicugna)], as shown in Figure 2C. Local livestock, comprising cattle, sheep, and South American camelids (i.e., alpacas and llamas), as well as wildlife, graze on the vegetation of the seasonal wetlands and use the stored water for drinking. The macrophyte “islands” in the qocha's central areas serve as nesting and feeding sites for wild birds. The permeability of the dam and the reservoir bottom allows infiltration and downstream water outflow; therefore, water catchments were constructed for human consumption (Figures 2D, E) and irrigation purposes (Figure 2F).

In April 2025, the Huanupampa community (Figure 2E) organized and revived the celebration of the pagapu, inspired by the continued observance of this ritual among the inhabitants of the village of Totos. The ceremony was held as an expression of gratitude to local deities, such as Apu (the spirit of the mountains) and Mama Cocha (the spirit of the lagoon), for maintaining the water flow into the qocha and to petition for sustained water levels during the dry season. The ritual involved the offering of symbolic items such as coca leaves, fruits, tubers, liquor, bread, sweets, and tobacco, presented at a rocky site regarded as sacred within the local worldview (Figure 2C). Following the ritual, the community gathered in a festive atmosphere, complete with traditional dances and a performance by a local orchestra. Municipal authorities from the Totos district were invited to participate, and the event was scheduled to take place annually in April.

Ten ecosystem services associated with the qocha were identified by the beneficiary population (Figure 3). Of these, five were provisioning ES, three related to biomass, and two to water; and five were classified as cultural services, linked to community experience and physical interaction (one), representativeness and intellectual enrichment (two), symbolism and spirituality (one), and conservation (one). The identified ES were primarily associated with the biophysical (nine) and geophysical (one) characteristics of Hydrographic Unit 6 (Yuyuchaqocha micro-basin), mainly concentrated along the qocha's shoreline. Other hydrographic units were involved in supporting ecosystem processes or benefiting from the ES through their biomes.

Table 1 presents a detailed description of the 10 ecosystem benefits perceived by the local population, their quantification methods, and the economic and environmental valuation methods. Based on that, Table 2 presents the estimated values for these ecosystem benefits perceived. Their use is primarily concentrated in the community of Huanupampa, except for the benefits associated with recreational visits (3.1.1.1) and educational visits (3.2.1.1), as shown in Figure 4. Five benefits were identified as seasonal, indicating dependence on wet and dry periods, as well as the timing of festive celebrations.

A total monetary value of $10,104.97 was estimated for the ES perceived by the local population in relation to Yuyuchaqocha, equivalent to $990.68·ha⁻¹ of the qocha (Table 3). The detailed calculations are provided in Supplementary Table S5. Noteworthy findings include the active participation of upper secondary school students in educational visits to the qocha, the strong communal organization responsible for its maintenance using traditional methods, and the heightened environmental awareness within the Huanupampa community regarding the conservation of ecosystems influenced by the qocha. Water use for irrigation extends to agricultural areas near the village of Huanupampa (108.24 ha) and along the Puncoruni stream (2.54 ha), with potatoes and maize being the main crops produced. In terms of domestic water consumption, a monthly fee of $0.28 per household was reported for service maintenance.

The ES with the highest value corresponded to the elements of living systems that are resonant in terms of culture or heritage (3.2.1.3), living system elements whose contemporary existence or conservation is vital to people (3.4.2.1), and geophysical system elements with sacred or religious significance (6.4.2.1), as shown in Figure 5. Thus, the highest environmental economic value of the identified benefits was concentrated on the Huanupampa village.

Local inhabitants have perceived 10 ecosystem benefits associated with the traditional water dam implemented in Yuyuchaqocha. Previous research on anthropogenically influenced water ecosystems has reported similar categories of perceived benefits (Gandarillas et al., 2016; Madrigal-Martínez et al., 2023). Among these, freshwater provision services stand out as some of the most significant and easily recognized in mountain ecosystems (García-Llorente et al., 2020). In the socio-ecosystem under study, where the implementation of the traditional dam aimed to increase water availability for use, the benefits perceived by the population are strongly related to water management practices. Consistent with this, cultural benefits such as the pagapu ceremony are deeply intertwined with both water resources and the surrounding ecosystem (Esquivel, 2025). Furthermore, freshwater provision ES has been extended to areas near villages for use, where the adoption of technologies such as pressurized irrigation has reduced dependence on climatic variability (Hermans, 2006).

The perceived ES were valued at $990.68 per hectare of qocha, amounting to a total of $10,104.97 per year. Similarly, Baba and Hack (2019) estimated $1,895.04·ha⁻¹ (€1,633·ha⁻¹) for nine ES identified by local communities in the agro-pastoral system of the Sakabansien dam in Benin (West Africa). Both reservoirs, classified as small dams (Yuyuchaqocha: 10.2 ha; Skabansi: 3.13 ha), are situated in regions affected by evident poverty conditions (The United Nations Development Programme, 2025). However, the characteristics of the influence area of the water body, the dam, and its flooded zone, as well as the socio-economic and productive features of the population, account for variations in value. In the case of Yuyuchaqocha, the influence area hosts low-density flora and fauna that are mainly dependent on rainfall. No productive activities, such as aquaculture, occur within the flooded area, and local production systems are primarily oriented toward self-consumption patterns. Furthermore, the low costs associated with using these benefits by low-income populations reduce the monetary value transferred to the service.

Among the ES previously reported for similar biomes (Costanza et al., 2014; De Groot et al., 2020; Madrigal-Martínez et al., 2022; Xie et al., 2017; Yaping, 1998) but not perceived by the population under study, aesthetic appreciation (6.2.1.4 CICES) and artistic inspiration (6.3.1.1 CICES) stand out. The perception of ES associated with recreation suggests an understanding of the beauty of the landscape. However, their absence among the services recognized by the population may be related to the qocha's distance from the villages (i.e., its remoteness and altitudinal difference limit its integration as part of the local landscape). Conversely, the need to hike to visit the site enables the use of the biome's scenic beauty as an ES linked to family recreation activity (3.1.1.1 CICES). Regarding artistic inspiration as an ES, the difficult access (approximately 4 h of travel) for painters and artisans to the qocha from the city of Huamanga (home to an art school), along with the lack of an established artistic tradition in the district (i.e., a mainly agricultural population), limits its recognition.

The inhabitants are aware of the intrinsic relationship between conserving the qocha and maintaining the benefits it provides. The presence of cultural ecosystem services related to the preservation and mysticism of the biome, together with the absence of ecosystem services linked to the hunting of wild animals, reflects this collective awareness. In this way, rural communities maintain sustainable management practices of their surroundings, even in areas with high levels of monetary poverty (≈50%) (INEI, 2018b,a). This is particularly relevant in rural communities with subsistence economies (Barrientos-Fuentes and Torrico-Albino, 2014), which are subject to the relative aging of their population (i.e., migration of younger inhabitants; Pinilla et al., 2008), where processes of economic valuation and the transmission of ancestral ecological knowledge may be diminished (Brandt et al., 2013).

Of the 10 ES identified in the qocha, this study showed that the locals perceive one ES linked to education (CICES 3.2.1.1), particularly benefiting children living in the villages of Huanupampa and Totos. The development of curiosity, appreciation, and care for nature depends on both the duration and degree of exposure to the environment (Schultz, 2000, 2002). In this regard, fostering children's and youth's immersion in nature, along with an understanding of its value and opportunities for direct and indirect interaction through recreation, helps cultivate early environmental awareness of protection (Chawla, 2006; Kellert, 2002; Wells, 2000). Thus, the presence of this service promotes the sustainability of the ES associated with species conservation in the area (CICES 3.4.2.1) by enabling the education of future generations in the care of nature. Complementarily, it fosters the understanding of the controlled use of species such as Nostoc sphaericum, which provides a valuable nutritional contribution (Méndez-Ancca et al., 2023) and is promoted by the state (Law No. 31825, 2023.

One of the main strengths of this research was the careful involvement of local stakeholders as a primary source of information, which increased the reliability of the results obtained and significantly reduced the likelihood of information inference. This approach has been employed by authors such as Evangelista et al. (2024) and Madrigal-Martínez et al. (2023) to identify local ecological knowledge (LEK), primarily related to the adoption of customs and practices inherent to rural environments. In our case, this approach enabled a comprehensive analysis of the ES associated with a qocha, an ancestral agricultural technology for climate change adaptation (Carrasco-Torrontegui et al., 2021) and conceived as a nature-based solution for sustainable water management (Morante-Carballo et al., 2024).

The environmental economic value of cultural ES can surpass that of provisioning services in rural mountain socio-ecosystems. In this context, involvement at the educational level, the continuity of communal work, and the persistence of cultural celebrations evidence that the need to transmit and preserve traditional knowledge is a concept well assimilated by the community. However, limited articulation with neighboring communities and local government bodies was documented. This represents a threat to the consolidation of strong governance and constrains the strengthening of the community's capacity for action (e.g., the implementation of complementary actions that reinforce non-perceived ecosystem services). Therefore, developing integrated policies aimed at strengthening social capital could enhance the implementation of resilient and equitable solutions for water security (Muñoz et al., 2025). Additionally, internal disconnection was observed, mainly associated with historical social conflicts and contrasting religious tendencies. On one hand, the armed conflict experienced in Peru during the late 20th century fostered intergenerational fragmentation through migratory processes (Ciurlizza Contreras et al., 2014), diminishing the active participation of younger generations in communal work and restricting their involvement to festive rituals and celebrations. On the other hand, the incompatibility between the religious beliefs of some parts of the population and traditional spiritual practices can limit participation and, consequently, the transmission of the local worldview.

This disconnection has opened the way for seeking structural improvements to the traditional water dam, maintaining an understanding of the benefits associated with the dam's presence, but becoming detached from the potential ecosystem benefits related to traditional practices (e.g., self-management capacity for maintenance, structural flexibility). This trend aligns with the dependence of rural mountain communities on provisioning ecosystem services (Madrigal-Martínez et al., 2023), the ease of perceiving such services in water ecosystems (Grizzetti et al., 2016), and the increasing pressures on water availability (CENEPRED, 2025). Hence, there is a pressing need to strengthen the technical capacities of mountain communities by merging traditional and modern technologies. This is particularly critical in the Andean context, where water resource management relies on integrated local environmental knowledge shaped by a worldview that balances the ecosystem and the community (Oshun et al., 2021).

We identified several limitations that restricted our complete understanding of all the ES associated with the qocha as part of the LEK related to water management. First, the analysis was limited only to provisioning and cultural services. Their selection aimed to document the benefits directly recognized and desired by the community, as opposed to the indirect benefits essential for ecological subsistence, which are associated with regulating and supporting services (in the CICES classification, both categories are considered regulating services; Jones and Chikwama, 2021; Small et al., 2017). In this context, it was found that the low educational level of the residents (approximately 34.7% with completed secondary education) and the widespread use of Quechua as a mother tongue (approximately 92%; INEI, 2018a) could represent a communication barrier for conducting the workshops. To address this, a methodological script covering the key topics was prepared, and the support of a Quechua-speaking professional was included to facilitate open communication and bidirectional understanding. It is worth noting that the collective workshops fostered feedback among participants, enabling consensus-building and reducing subjectivity in the information provided. In this process, the use of talking maps facilitated the understanding of territorial dynamics (Evangelista et al., 2024), allowing for the synthesis and environmental economic valuation of ES. By emphasizing the use of primary data collection (i.e., interviews, workshops, and field visits), the study intentionally avoided the application of the benefit transfer method.

This study represents an initial effort to systematize and valorize the ecosystem services provided by a qocha, understood as local ecological knowledge for water management in the Andean region of Peru. In this regard, it is necessary to continue developing collaborative research that addresses this type of analysis in diverse contexts. Particular attention should be given to the study of cultural ES, due to the existing scientific information gap, and to the assessment of regulating ES through the integration of scientific knowledge (i.e., in-situ monitoring) and local knowledge (i.e., stakeholder perception and social value). This approach could facilitate the syncretism between traditional and modern technologies to enhance the impact of interventions. In addition, disseminating the results at various organizational levels (e.g., municipal and communal authorities, local communities, management actors, etc) would foster the integration of the local worldview into management plans, contributing to their legitimacy and sustainability, and promoting the involvement of institutions engaged in the intervention of mountain water socio-ecosystems.