The Ilhabela State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual de Ilhabela) is a

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It protects an area of

Atlantic Forest The Atlantic Forest ( pt, Mata Atlântica) is a South American forest that extends along the Atlantic coast of Brazil from Rio Grande do Norte state in the northeast to Rio Grande do Sul state in the south and inland as far as Paraguay and th ...

on an archipelago in the South Atlantic off the northeast coast of the state, including most of the mountainous island of São Sebastião.

Location

The Ilhabela State Park is in the

Vale do Ribeira Vale do Ribeira is a region in the south of the state of São Paulo and the northeast of the state of Paraná, Brazil. It contains a large part of the Ribeira de Iguape River valley, from which it takes its name, as well as the coastal Iguape-Can ...

region of southern São Paulo. It covers 85% of the municipality of Ilhabela, São Paulo. It has an area of , covering all or part of twelve islands, two islets and two reefs. The archipelago includes the island of São Sebastião, which holds the municipal seat, and the smaller islands of Búzios, Vitória and others. On São Sebastião the park boundary starts at an altitude of along the São Sebastião channel, dropping to between Ponta da Sela to the south and Ponta das Canas to the north, and coming down to the shore around Ponta do Boi. The other islands are completely contained within the park.

History

The Ilhabela State Park was created by Governor

Paulo Egydio Martins Paulo is a Portuguese, Spanish, Swiss, and Italian masculine given name equivalent to English Paul. Notable people with the name include: *Paulo Jr. *Paulo Jr. (footballer) *Paulo Almeida, Brazilian footballer *Paulo André Cren Benini (born 1983 ...

by decree 9.414 of 20 January 1977. The purpose was to fully protect the flora, fauna and natural beauties of the islands in the municipality of Ilhabela, and to allow use for educational, recreational and scientific purposes. The consultative council was formed in 2004, including representatives of the public sector, civil society and

caiçaras Caiçaras () are the traditional inhabitants of the coastal regions of the southeastern and southern Brazil. They form a distinct group of people, descended from Africans, indigenous people, and Europeans. Their traditional way of life based on ...

communities. The park is included in the Atlantic Forest Preservation Project (PPMA), a partnership between the São Paulo Environment Secretariat and the German bank KfW.

Environment

The Ilhabela State Park preserves 3% of the remaining

in the state of São Paulo. Terrain ranges from beaches up to mountain ridges, with the slopes covered in forest. The island of São Sebastião includes the peaks of Baepi: , Papagaio: and São Sebastião: . The mountains intercept the moist air coming from the sea to produce a tropical humid climate with high rainfall. There are thousands of streams and over 250 waterfalls of many sizes. In the coastal plains meandering rivers support mangroves. In the sea the islands, islets and reefs support diverse flora and fauna. Vegetation includes forest,

restinga Restingas () are a distinct type of coastal tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest in eastern Brazil. They form on sandy, acidic, and nutrient-poor soils, and are characterized by medium-sized trees and shrubs adapted to the drier and nut ...

and mangroves. The forest includes trees from high, and epiphytes such as

Bromeliaceae The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, (Lilianae ''sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are grass and grass-like flowering plants (angiosperms), the seeds of which typically contain o ...

, Guzmania and Orchidaceae. It supports hundreds of species of mammals, reptiles and birds, many endemic and some endangered. Mammals include robust capuchin monkeys,

Brazilian squirrel The Brazilian squirrel (or Guianan squirrel) (''Sciurus aestuans'') is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus'' endemic to South America. It is found in South-eastern Colombia, Brazil, Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname and Venezuela Vene ...

(''Sciurus aestuans'') and

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southwes ...

(''Leopardus pardalis''). The giant Atlantic tree-rat (''Phyllomys thomasi'') is endemic to the Ilhabela

. Birds include toucans,

pionus ''Pionus'' is a genus of medium-sized parrots native to Mexico, and Central and South America. Characteristic of the genus are the chunky body, bare eye ring (which can vary in color), and short square tail. They are superficially similar to Amaz ...

parrots,

Brazilian tanager The Brazilian tanager (''Ramphocelus bresilius'') is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is endemic to eastern Brazil and far northeastern Argentina, occurring in the coastal region from Paraíba and southwards to Santa Catarina and M ...

(''Ramphocelus bresilius''),

solitary tinamou The solitary tinamou (''Tinamus solitarius'') is a species of paleognath ground bird. This species is native to Atlantic forest of eastern Brazil. Taxonomy All tinamou are from the family Tinamidae, and in the larger scheme are also ratites. Un ...

(''Tinamus solitarius''), black hawk-eagle (''Spizaetus tyrannus''),

brown-backed parrotlet The brown-backed parrotlet (''Touit melanonotus'') also known as the black-backed parrotlet, the black-eared parrotlet, and Wied's parrotlet, is a small () green parrot found in south-eastern Brazil from Bahia to southern São Paulo. It has a dar ...

(''Touit melanonotus''), penelopes and black-fronted piping guan (''Pipile jacutinga''). The archipelago is also a refuge for migratory birds.

Visiting

The park is open for visits from 9:00 to 16:30 daily. The Trilha da Água Branca (White Water Trail) is of medium difficulty, leading through rich Atlantic Forest vegetation where many species of birds may be seen. It leads to several waterfalls. The park can provide guides for groups taking this trail by prior appointment. The park is home to caiçaras communities, whose people engage in occupations such as fishing and making handicrafts, and celebrate popular traditional festivals such as the Congada de São Sebastião.

Notes

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ilhabela State Park State parks of Brazil Protected areas established in 1977 1977 establishments in Brazil Protected areas of São Paulo (state)