By Oliver Griffin and Alexandra Valencia GUATAVITA, Colombia/PALUGUILLO, Ecuador (Reuters) - Rural communities in the Andes of Colombia and Ecuador are fighting to protect fragile high-altitude wetlands that regulate the area's water cycles,

Rural communities in the Ecuador and Colombia Andes are fighting to protect a fragile wetland ecosystem. Activists argue the wetlands need to be protected for their water-conserving abilities, particularly in times of drought.

Drought has led to rotating water rationing in Bogota, Colombia's capital of almost 10 million people, while Ecuador's energy grid has been pushed to the brink, prompting power cuts to conserve water in dams.