Cuniã Ecological Station ( pt, Estação Ecológica de Cuniã) is a strictly protected
ecological station in the states of
Amazonas and
Rondônia, Brazil. It preserves an area of savannah parkland on the border of the Amazon rainforest. The conservation unit is rich in lakes and ponds, and serves as a nursery for various species of fish.
Location

The Cuniã Ecological Station is in the
Amazon biome
The Amazon biome ( pt, Bioma Amazônia) contains the Amazon rainforest, an area of tropical rainforest, and other ecoregions that cover most of the Amazon basin and some adjacent areas to the north and east. The biome contains blackwater and whit ...
, and covers .
It covers parts of the municipalities of
Canutama
Canutama is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Amazonas, considered third largest city of the Purus Medium after Lábrea and Tapauá.
Its population was 15,807 (2020) and its area is 29,820 km².
Geography Conservation
The mu ...
and
Humaitá in the state of Amazonas and
Porto Velho in the state of Rondônia.
90% of the
Rio Madeira Sustainable Yield Forest
The Rio Madeira Sustainable Yield Forest ( pt, Floresta de Rendimento Sustentado Rio Madeira) is a set of managed forests in the state of Rondônia, Brazil.
Three sectors, A, B and C, were created in 1990 but only sectors B and C remain.
The fores ...
(C) overlaps with the ecological station.
The terrain bordering the
Madeira River
The Madeira River ( pt, Rio Madeira, link=no ) is a major waterway in South America. It is estimated to be in length, while the Madeira-Mamoré is estimated near or in length depending on the measuring party and their methods. The Madeira is ...
alternates between
floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
s and
lacustrine plain A lacustrine plain or lake plain is a plain formed due to the past existence of a lake and its accompanying sediment accumulation. Lacustrine plains can be formed through one of three major mechanisms: glacial drainage, differential uplift, and inla ...
s formed by accumulated sediments.
Further from the Madeira are the terraces of the Cuniã and Aponiã rivers.
Much of the station to the north west is interfluvial plateau with very poor drainage.
Average annual rainfall is .
Temperatures range from and average .
The environment is rich in lakes and ponds, and serves as a nursery for various species of fish.
Vegetation is Savannah parkland rather than regular Amazonian forest.
It is classified as open tropical rainforest, with spaced-out individual trees and many clusters of palms, bamboos and lianas.
It provides a favourable environment for wildlife.
Relatively abundant fauna include
paca
A paca is a member of the genus ''Cuniculus'' of ground-dwelling, herbivorous rodents in South and Central America. It is the only genus in the family Cuniculidae. Pacas are large rodents with dots and stripes on their sides, short ears, ...
,
tapir
Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk. Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South and Central America, with one species inh ...
,
armadillo
Armadillos (meaning "little armored ones" in Spanish) are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. The Chlamyphoridae and Dasypodidae are the only surviving families in the order, which is part of the superorder Xenarthra, al ...
,
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the ...
,
macaw and
heron
The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...
.
Aquatic species include
cichla,
arapaima and
pterophyllum.
There are said to be some
Amazonian manatee
The Amazonian manatee (''Trichechus inunguis'') is a species of manatee that lives in the Amazon Basin in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. It has thin, wrinkled brownish or gray colored skin, with fine hairs scattered over its body and a whi ...
in the interior lagoons.
Conservation
The Cuniã Ecological Station was created on 27 September 2001, modified on 21 December 2007 and again modified by law 12.249 of 11 June 2010.
It is administered by the federal
Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation
The Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation ( Portuguese: ''Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade'', ICMBio) is the Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), ...
(ICMBio).
It is classed as
IUCN protected area category Ia (strict nature reserve).
The purpose is to protect the headwaters of the Aponiã and Cuniãzinho streams, tributaries of the middle Madeira River, with ecosystems in the transition from Savannah to Forest, and to support development of knowledge about the biodiversity of the Amazon region.
The villagers of São Carlos and Nazaré often enter the unit at will and make use of the natural resources, since there are poor controls.
An ordinance of 9 January 2012 provided for a consistent and integrated approach to preparing management plans for the conservation units in the
BR-319 area of influence. These are the
Abufari Biological Reserve
Abufari Biological Reserve ( pt, Reserva Biológica do Abufari) is a biological reserve in the state of Amazonas, Brazil.
It is mostly lowland tropical rainforest, with very diverse flora and fauna.
Location
The Abufari Biological Reserve is in ...
, Cuniã Ecological Station,
Nascentes do Lago Jari and
Mapinguari national parks,
Balata-Tufari,
Humaitá and
Iquiri national forests, and the
Lago do Capanã-Grande,
Rio Ituxi,
Médio Purus and
Lago do Cuniã extractive reserves.
The Cuniã-Jacundá Integrated Management (GICJ: Gestão Integrada Cuniã-Jacundá) is a proposed management organization that would take responsibility for three federal conservation units in Rondônia, the Cuniã Ecological Station,
Jacundá National Forest
The Jacundá National Forest ( pt, Floresta Nacional de Jacundá) is a sustainable-use national forest in the state of Rondônia, Brazil.
Location
The Jacundá National Forest is in the Amazonia biome and covers .
The forest covers parts of the ...
and the Lago do Cuniã
extractive reserve
An extractive reserve ( pt, Reserva Extrativista or RESEX) is a type of sustainable use protected area in Brazil.
The land is publicly owned, but the people who live there have the right to traditional extractive practices, such as hunting, fishin ...
.
All three are managed by ICMBio and have complementary objectives in maintaining a total of of Amazon biome and its transition to savannah.
Notes
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunia Ecological Station
2001 establishments in Brazil
Ecological stations of Brazil
Protected areas of Amazonas (Brazilian state)
Protected areas of Rondônia
Protected areas established in 2001