Villarrica National Park is located in 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 ...

, in the La Araucanía and Los Ríos regions of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, near

Pucón Pucón (Mapudungun: "entrance to the cordillera") is a Chilean city and commune administered by the municipality of Pucón https://www.mipucon.com/ sitio web. It is located in the Province of Cautín, Araucanía Region, 100 km to the south ...

. The centerpiece of the park is a line of three volcanoes stretching transversely to the Andean range: Villarrica,

Quetrupillán Quetrupillán ("blunted", "mutilated"; also known as Ketropillán) is a stratovolcano located in Los Ríos Region of Chile. It is situated between Villarrica and Lanín volcanoes, within Villarrica National Park. Geologically, Quetrupillán is ...

, and

Lanín Lanín is an ice-clad, cone-shaped stratovolcano on the border of Argentina and Chile. It forms part of two national parks: Lanín in Argentina and Villarrica in Chile. It is a symbol of the Argentine province of Neuquén, being part of its f ...

. Other mountains in the park include Quinquilil volcano (), also known as ''Colmillo del Diablo'', and Cerro Las Peinetas, which lies on the border between

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and Chile. It ranges in elevation from to at Lanín Volcano. The

drainage divide A drainage divide, water divide, ridgeline, watershed, water parting or height of land is elevated terrain that separates neighboring drainage basins. On rugged land, the divide lies along topographical ridges, and may be in the form of a singl ...

between the

Toltén River Toltén River is a river located in the La Araucanía Region of Chile. It rises at Villarrica Lake, close to the city of the same name. Its major tributary is the Allipén River. From its confluence with the Allipén, the river follows a braided ...

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...

and the

Valdivia River The Valdivia River or Río Valdivia, as it is known locally, is a major river in southern Chile. It is the continuation of the Calle-Calle River, from the point where it meets the Cau-Cau River in the city of Valdivia. The Valdivia river ends in C ...

basin runs through the park and marks the boundary between the

Cautín Province Cautín Province ( es, Provincia de Cautín) is one of two Provinces of Chile, provinces in the southern Chilean Regions of Chile, region of La Araucanía Region, La Araucanía (IX), bounded on the north by Arauco Province, Arauco and Malleco Prov ...

and the

Valdivia Province Valdivia Province ( es, Provincia de Valdivia; ) is one of two provinces of the southern Chilean region of Los Ríos (XIV). The provincial capital is Valdivia. Located in the province are two important rivers, the Calle-Calle / Valdivia River and ...

. A portion of the park is included in the

Bosques Templados Lluviosos de los Andes Australes Bosques Templados LLuviosos de los Andes Australes (Temperate Rain forests of the Austral Andes) is a Biosphere Reserve in southern Chile. It was declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2007. The reserve protects a large portion of the Valdivian t ...

Biosphere Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

Flora and fauna

The park protects

Valdivian temperate rainforest The Valdivian temperate forests (NT0404) is an ecoregion on the west coast of southern South America, in Chile and Argentina. It is part of the Neotropical realm. The forests are named after the city of Valdivia. The Valdivian temperate rainforest ...

habitat. Roble (''Nothofagus obliqua'') and Raulí (''Nothofagus alpina'') trees are found at lower elevations.

Coihue ''Nothofagus dombeyi'', Dombey's beech, coigue, coihue or coigüe (from Mapudungun ''koywe'') is a tree species native to southern Chile and the Andean parts of Argentine Patagonia. It is a fast-growing species that can live in a wide range of ...

s occur in the wettest areas. At higher elevations, forests are dominated by the

Araucarias The Araucarias Biosphere Reserve is located in the Andes range, in south-central Chile. It comprises the Conguillío National Park and the Alto Bío-Bío National Reserve. The main feature of this Biosphere Reserve is the massive presence of Arauca ...

(''Araucaria araucana''). The park's forests provide habitat for wildlife such as pumas, chillas,

culpeo The culpeo (''Lycalopex culpaeus''), also known as culpeo zorro, Andean zorro, Andean fox, Paramo wolf, Andean wolf,Comparative ecology of two South American foxes, 'Dusicvon ariseus' and 'culpaeus' by Warren E. Johnson. Doctoral dissertation. Io ...

pudú The pudus (Mapudungun ''püdü'' or ''püdu'', es, pudú, ) are two species of South American deer from the genus ''Pudu'', and are the world's smallest deer. The chevrotains (mouse-deer; Tragulidae) are smaller, but they are not true deer. The ...

es,

coypu The nutria (''Myocastor coypus''), also known as the coypu, is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent. Classified for a long time as the only member of the family Myocastoridae, ''Myocastor'' is now included within Echimyidae, the family of t ...

Harris's hawk The Harris's hawk (''Parabuteo unicinctus''), formerly known as the bay-winged hawk, dusky hawk, and sometimes a wolf hawk, and known in Latin America as peuco, is a medium-large bird of prey that breeds from the southwestern United States south ...

lesser grison The lesser grison (''Galictis cuja'') is a species of mustelid from South America. Description Lesser grisons have a long, slender body, short legs, and a bushy tail. They have a long neck and a small head with a flattened forehead and rounded ea ...

Molina's hog-nosed skunk Molina's hog-nosed skunk, also called the Andes skunk (''Conepatus chinga''), is a skunk species from South America. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western ...

s, and the rare monitos del monte.

Hot springs

The Termas Geométricas hot springs system is located in a ravine in the park forest. The system consists of 60 hot springs that are accessible to visitors on a series of rambling wooden plank boardwalks.

References

{{Authority control National parks of Chile Protected areas of La Araucanía Region Protected areas of Los Ríos Region Valdivian temperate rainforest Protected areas established in 1940 1940 establishments in Chile