Serra dos Órgãos National Park
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Serra dos Órgãos National Park ( pt, Parque Nacional da Serra dos Órgãos: "Organs Range") is a
national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...
in the state of
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. It protects the
Serra dos Órgãos The Serra dos Órgãos ("Organ Range") is a mountain range in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It contains the Serra dos Órgãos National Park. Location The Serra dos Órgãos is the name of the region of the Serra do Mar in the central pa ...
mountain range and the water sources in the range. It was the third national park to be created in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.


Location

The Serra dos Órgãos National Park is located about a one-hour drive from the city of
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
. The
BR-116 BR-116 is a federal route of highways of Brazil and the longest highway in the country, with of extension. The road connect Fortaleza, Ceará, one of the largest Northeast Brazil metropolises, to the southern city of Jaguarão, Rio Grande do ...
highway leads through the park. The origin of the unusual name is credited to early
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
settlers who thought the ''ensemble'' of the hill tops resembled the pipes of
organs In biology, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function. In the hierarchy of life, an organ lies between tissue and an organ system. Tissues are formed from same type cells to act together in a f ...
in European
cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
s. The park is part of the larger
Serra do Mar The Serra do Mar (, Portuguese for ''Sea's Ridge'' or ''Sea Ridge'') is a 1,500 km long system of mountain ranges and escarpments in Southeastern Brazil. Geography The Serra do Mar runs parallel to the Atlantic Ocean coast from the state ...
chain of mountains, and the most accepted theory about its origin is that it rose about 60 million years ago during earthquakes that caused the
Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
to rise. That means it is located in a geologically unstable location, although no incident has ever been recorded in the area. The Park's area is . It has ten peaks higher than and six other peaks over high. The lowest point in the park is located in the relatively flat municipality of
Magé Magé () is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. ''Magepe-Mirim'' () was established in 1566 by Portuguese colonists. It is considered to be a calm place, especially compared to nearby Rio. Politics In the October 5th, ...
, at . The highest peak is ''Pedra do Sino'' (Bell Rock), at . The most famous formation in the park is the ''Dedo de Deus'' (God's Finger) peak, which resembles a left hand with its
index finger The index finger (also referred to as forefinger, first finger, second finger, pointer finger, trigger finger, digitus secundus, digitus II, and many other terms) is the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the thumb and the mid ...
stretched, pointing towards the sky. It is high and can be seen in the background of the
flag A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...
of
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
state.


History

The Serra dos Órgãos National Park was created on 30 November 1939 as the third national park in Brazil. The purpose of the park was to protect the headwaters of the rivers that flow into the Fluminense basin, and to protect the spectacular mountains. The park was created by the government of
Getúlio Vargas Getúlio Dornelles Vargas (; 19 April 1882 – 24 August 1954) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who served as the 14th and 17th president of Brazil, from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1954. Due to his long and controversial tenure as Brazi ...
by decree law 1822 of 30 November 1939 with an area of about . It covered parts of the municipalities of
Magé Magé () is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. ''Magepe-Mirim'' () was established in 1566 by Portuguese colonists. It is considered to be a calm place, especially compared to nearby Rio. Politics In the October 5th, ...
,
Petrópolis Petrópolis (; ), also known as The Imperial City, is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the Southeast Region, Brazil, Southeast Region of Brazil. It is located in the state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro, northeast of the ci ...
and
Teresópolis Teresópolis (, , , ) is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Rio de Janeiro, in a mountainous region known as ''Região Serrana''. The Serra dos Órgãos National Park lies partly within the city limits. The city is known as the hom ...
. Various buildings and other infrastructure were built in the 1940s such as the natural swimming pool, administrative buildings, warehouses, garage, staff quarters and four shelters on the Trilha do Sino (Bell Trail). The park had about 250 employees, including waiters in the mountain shelters. In the 1960s, with the national capital transferred from Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia, the park lost funding and the facilities were allowed to deteriorate. The shelters and some of the staff homes were lost. Efforts were made to restore the park from 1980, including publication of the management plan and purchase of land to regularize the park's tenure. Decree 90023 of 2 August 1984 delimited the area of the park as . In the 1990s the municipality of
Guapimirim Guapimirim (, from Tupi 'little spring', ''guapi'' 'spring', ''mirim'' 'little'), is a Brazilian Municipality in the state of Rio de Janeiro around 50km(31 miles) from its state capital, the city of Rio de Janeiro. Its in a region known as Baixad ...
was split off from Magé, and also contains the biggest part of the park. From the 1990s the old buildings have been restored and new ones built. The park was included in the
Central Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest Mosaic The Central Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest Mosaic ( pt, Mosaico da Mata Atlântica Central Fluminense is a protected area mosaic in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The mosaic is inland, to the east of the city of Rio de Janeiro. History A p ...
, created in 2006.


Environment

The climate is tropical superhumid, with 80% to 90% relative humidity caused by moist air from the Atlantic most of the year. Average temperatures range from , but may reach and may fall below freezing in the highest parts. Average rainfall is , with more rain in the summer (December to March) and a dry season in the winter from June to August. The south east side facing the ocean receives more rain than the north west side. The park is in the
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 ...
biome, and due to the high rainfall has rich vegetation, much of it unique to this biome. More than 2,800 species of plant have been recorded including 360 of orchids and over 100 bromeliads. Up to the lower slopes are covered by typical lowland rainforest. From the vegetation is montane forest, with significant variations depending on the conditions in each area. In many places the upper canopy is with emergent trees reaching up to . From there is cloud forest, typically trees of with crooked trunks covered in epiphytic moss and plants such as bromeliads and orchids. The understory has shrubs and the outcrops are populated by ferns and mosses. There are various endemic species. Above the vegetation is high montane, with open fields and small woody shrubs. 347 species have been found in this environment of which 66 are endemic to this ecosystem. The park is one of the few natural habitats of species of ''
Schlumbergera ''Schlumbergera'' is a small genus of cacti with six to nine species found in the coastal mountains of south-eastern Brazil. These plants grow on trees or rocks in habitats that are generally shady with high humidity, and can be quite differen ...
'', which were developed into the colourful "Thanksgiving Cactus" and "Christmas Cactus", widely grown as house plants. Serra dos Órgãos 02.jpg, Serra dos Órgãos main peaks (from left to right): Escalavrado (1 406 m), Dedo de Nossa Senhora (1 320 m), Dedo de Deus (1 692 m), Cabeça de Peixe (1 680 m) and Santo Antônio (1 990 m). Teresopolis-DedoDeus1.jpg, God's Finger (Dedo de Deus) Agulha do Diabo.jpg, Devil's Needle (Agulha do Diabo), 2050 m Serra dos ÓrgãosBrazil.jpg, View of the park in
Teresópolis Teresópolis (, , , ) is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Rio de Janeiro, in a mountainous region known as ''Região Serrana''. The Serra dos Órgãos National Park lies partly within the city limits. The city is known as the hom ...
, part of the
Serra do Mar The Serra do Mar (, Portuguese for ''Sea's Ridge'' or ''Sea Ridge'') is a 1,500 km long system of mountain ranges and escarpments in Southeastern Brazil. Geography The Serra do Mar runs parallel to the Atlantic Ocean coast from the state ...
mountain range Nascer do Sol no Dedo de Deus.jpg, Sunrise ParqueOrgaos-Pool.jpg, Swimming pool with mineral water Trilha do Parque Nacional da Serra dos Órgãos Sede Petrópolis.jpg, Trail at the park,
Petrópolis Petrópolis (; ), also known as The Imperial City, is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the Southeast Region, Brazil, Southeast Region of Brazil. It is located in the state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro, northeast of the ci ...
Trilhas de Guapimirim.jpg, Forest trail in
Guapimirim Guapimirim (, from Tupi 'little spring', ''guapi'' 'spring', ''mirim'' 'little'), is a Brazilian Municipality in the state of Rio de Janeiro around 50km(31 miles) from its state capital, the city of Rio de Janeiro. Its in a region known as Baixad ...
Trilha Suspensa.jpg, Suspended trail into the woods Granja Comary - Escalavrado - Inverno Teresopolis.jpg, Lake Comary in Teresópolis, with the ''Escalavrado'' and the God's Finger (far right) peaks in the background


References


Sources

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Serra dos Orgaos Orgaos National parks of Brazil Protected areas established in 1939 Protected areas of Rio de Janeiro (state) 1939 establishments in Brazil Protected areas of the Atlantic Forest