The Águas Quentes State Park () is a

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

in the state of

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...

, Brazil

Location

The Águas Quentes State Park is in the municipality of Santo Antônio do Leverger, Mato Grosso. It has an area of . The MT-455 highway runs through the park from north to south. The park is just from the capital,

Cuiabá Cuiabá () is the capital city and the largest city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. It is located near the geographical centre of South America and also forms the metropolitan area of Mato Grosso, along with the neighbouring town of Várz ...

. It is named for its thermal waters, which have temperatures from , used for physiotherapy and treating

rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including a ...

. There is a concession for a hotel operating company until 2041. The hotel has 75 apartments, leisure facilities such as a pool, waterslide, zip lines and restaurant. There are waterfalls, thermal water pools and hiking trails.

Environment

The Águas Quentes State Park is in the Guimarães plateau in the

Paraguay River The Paraguay River (''Ysyry Paraguái'' in Guarani language, Guarani, ''Rio Paraguai'' in Portuguese language, Portuguese, ''Río Paraguay'' in Spanish language, Spanish) is a major river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Bol ...

depression. The park's vegetation is mainly

cerrado The Cerrado () is a vast ecoregion of Tropics, tropical savanna in central Brazil, being present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Maranhão, Piauí, Bahia, Minas Gerais, São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Paraná ...

, including savanna/seasonal forest, savanna with open trees, riverine forest and seasonal submontane forest. As of 2005 the park was 34% deforested, up from 30% deforested in 2002. Tree species include the ''Jacarezinho'', ''Curatella americana'', '' Ceiba speciosa'' and ''

Genipa americana ''Genipa americana'' () is a species of trees in the family Rubiaceae. It is native to the tropical forests of North and South America, as well as the Caribbean. Description ''Genipa americana'' trees are up to 30 m tall and up to 60 cm d ...

''. Fauna includes

tapir Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a Suidae, pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk (proboscis). Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South America, South and Centr ...

peccary Peccaries (also javelinas or skunk pigs) are pig-like ungulates of the family Tayassuidae (New World pigs). They are found throughout Central and South America, Trinidad in the Caribbean, and in the southwestern area of North America. Peccari ...

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted Felidae, wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central America, Central and South America, ...

paca A paca ia a rodent in South and Central America. Paca or PACA may also refer to: People * William Paca (1740–1799), a Founding Father of the United States * Paca Blanco (Francisca Blanco Díaz, born 1949), Spanish activist * Paca Navas (Franc ...

armadillo Armadillos () are New World placental mammals in the order (biology), order Cingulata. They form part of the superorder Xenarthra, along with the anteaters and sloths. 21 extant species of armadillo have been described, some of which are dis ...

howler monkey Howler monkeys (genus ''Alouatta'', monotypic in subfamily Alouattinae) are the most widespread primate genus in the Neotropical realm, Neotropics and are among the largest of the New World monkey, platyrrhines along with the muriquis (''Brachyte ...

and

toucan Toucans (, ) are Neotropical birds in the family Ramphastidae. They are most closely related to the Semnornis, Toucan barbets. They are brightly marked and have large, often colorful Beak, bills. The family includes five genus, genera and over ...

History

The Águas Quentes State Park is the first protected area of Mato Grosso. The Águas Quentes State Park was created by decree 1.240 of 13 January 1978 in an area owned by the Empresa Matogrossense de Turismo with an area of . On 13 August 2010 SEDTUR agreed that SEMA should prepare a management plan for the park. On 17 October 2014 SEMA called on owners or leaseholders of land in the park to provide documentation of their claim. Ownership of the land has been regularised, with all former landowners indemnified. The consultative council was created on 15 December 2014. The management plan was approved on 15 March 2015.

Notes

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aguas Quentes State Park State parks of Brazil Protected areas of Mato Grosso