The Chapada dos Guimarães National Park () is a
national park
A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...
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.
It is a region of rugged terrain with dramatic cliffs and waterfalls, and contains the geographical centre of the continent.
Background
The origins of the park date to 13 September 1910 when the vice president of Mato Grosso, Colonel Pedro Celestino Corrêa da Costa, concerned about the devastation of vegetation in the headwaters of the
Coxipó-açu,
Manso and
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 ...
rivers, declared that the area was one of public utility.
In 1984 a coalition of environmentalists, artists and intellectuals in the state launched a petition to protest against the act of the government in creating a tourist complex nearby.
In February 1986 a national campaign was launched by NGOs to ask president
José Sarney
José Sarney de Araújo Costa (; born José Ribamar Ferreira de Araújo Costa; 24 April 1930) is a Brazilian politician, lawyer, and writer who served as the 31st president of Brazil from 1985 to 1990. He briefly served as the 20th vice presiden ...
to create the national park.
This finally took place three years later.
Location
The park was created on 12 April 1989 by Law 97.656, with .
It lies in the municipalities of
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 ...
and
Chapada dos Guimarães.
The purpose is to protect significant samples of the local ecosystems and to ensure the preservation of natural and archaeological sites, while supporting appropriate use for visiting, education and research.
The park is in the Pantanal Biosphere Reserve, which also includes the
Pantanal
The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest Flooded grasslands and savannas, flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but i ...
,
Emas and
Serra da Bodoquena national parks, and the
Serra de Santa Bárbara and
Nascentes do Rio Taquari,
Pantanal de Rio Negro state parks.
The park is in the basin of the upper
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 ...
, protecting the headwaters of the
Cuiabá River
The Cuiabá River (Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Rio Cuiabá'') is a Brazilian river in the western state of Mato Grosso that flows in the Río de la Plata Basin. It is a tributary of the São Lourenço River (Mato Grosso), São Lourenço Rive ...
, one of the main feeders of the Mato Grosso
Pantanal
The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest Flooded grasslands and savannas, flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but i ...
.
''Chapada'' is a Brazilian word that means a region of steep cliffs, usually at the edge of a plateau.
The geographical center of South America, formerly considered to be in the city of
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 ...
where it is marked by a white marble obelisk, is in fact located in the park near the town of Chapado dos Guimarães at the "Mirante de Geodésia", a scenic lookout point.
Environment
The climate is tropical, with temperatures ranging from and annual rainfall of .
The rain falls mostly in spring and summer, with a little rain in autumn and winter.
The terrain of the park is characterized by large hills and red sandstone cliffs ranging from in height.
Visitor attractions include mountain peaks, waterfalls and caves.
Fauna includes
Brazilian jaguar,
puma,
pampas deer
The Pampas deer (''Ozotoceros bezoarticus'') is a species of deer that live in the grasslands of South America at low elevations.Geist, Valerius. Deer of the world their evolution, behaviour, and ecology'. Mechanicsburg, Pa: Stackpole Books, 1998 ...
,
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
giant anteater
The giant anteater (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') is an Insectivore, insectivorous mammal native to Central America, Central and South America. It is the largest of the four living species of anteaters, which are classified with sloths in the or ...
and
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 ...
,
maned wolf
The maned wolf (''Chrysocyon brachyurus'') is a large canine of South America. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, and Paraguay, and is almost extinct in Uruguay. Its markings resemble those of a red fox, but it is neither a fox nor ...
,
greater rhea
The greater rhea (''Rhea americana'') is a species of flightless bird native to eastern South America. Other names for the greater rhea include the grey, common, or American rhea; ema (Portuguese (language), Portuguese); or ñandú (Guaraní lang ...
(also known as ''ema'') and
seriema
The seriemas are the sole living members of the small bird family Cariamidae (the entire family is also referred to as "seriemas"), which is also the only surviving lineage of the order Cariamiformes. Once believed to be related to cranes, they ...
. Many other
birds
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...
, including various
parrots
Parrots (Psittaciformes), also known as psittacines (), are birds with a strong curved beak, upright stance, and clawed feet. They are classified in four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genus (biology), genera, found mostly in ...
,
swifts and
scarlet macaws, nest in the
sandstone
Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...
cliffs. The park is threatened by
wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...
in the cooler, drier, windy period of the year, often caused by human activities near or in the park.
Lightning
Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...
does not seem to be a risk, since it is usually followed by rain.
File:Chapada 003 (04).JPG, Mirante de Geodésia
File:Assistindo de camarote.JPG
File:Chapada 012.JPG
File:Crista de Galo.jpg
File:Fresta entre rochas.JPG
Notes
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapada dos Guimaraes National Park
1989 establishments in Brazil
National parks of Brazil
Protected areas of Mato Grosso
Pantanal