The Humaitá National Forest () is a

national forest National Forest may refer to: * National forest or state forest, a forest administered or protected by a sovereign state ** National forest (Brazil) ** National forest (France) ** National forest (United States) ** State Forests (Poland) ** The N ...

in the state of Amazonas, Brazil.

Location

The Humaitá National Forest is in the

Humaitá Humaitá is a List of cities and towns in Paraguay, town and Districts of Paraguay, district on the Paraguay River in southern Paraguay. During the Paraguayan War, it served as the main Paraguayan stronghold from 1866 until its fall in August 186 ...

municipality of the state of Amazonas. It covers an area of . The forest is bounded by the border with

Rondônia Rondônia () is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northern subdivision of the country (central-western part). It is bordered by Acre (state), Acre in the west, Amazonas, Brazil, Amazonas in the north, Mato Grosso in the east, and Bo ...

to the south, the

Madeira River The Madeira River ( ) 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 the biggest tributary of ...

to the west and the

Trans-Amazonian Highway The Trans-Amazonian Highway (official designation BR-230, official name Rodovia Transamazônica ) was introduced on September 27, 1972. It is 4,000 km long, making it the third longest highway in Brazil. It runs through the Amazon forest and ...

(BR-230) to the north. The

Campos Amazônicos National Park The Campos Amazônicos National Park () is a National park in the states of Rondônia, Amazonas and Mato Grosso, Brazil. Location The Campos Amazônicos National Park covers parts of the municipalities of Novo Aripuanã (66.69%), Manicoré ( ...

is some distance east of the national forest. The national forest is in the lower plateau of the western Amazon, consisting of extensive flat areas with occasional formations of higher land. Altitudes range from above sea level. Drainage is poor, and small lakes form in the rainy season and later disappear. The forest is in the Madeira River basin, on the right bank of the Madeira. The "white water" rivers draining the forest contain large amounts of sediment and form fertile floodplains. The main rivers in the forest are the

Maici River Maici River is a river of Amazonas state in north-western Brazil. The Maici River is a left tributary of the dos Marmelos River Dos Marmelos River () is a river of Amazonas state in north-western Brazil. It is a tributary of the Madeira River, ...

, a headwater of the Marmelos, and the Maicimirim and Machado rivers, direct tributaries of the Madeira.

Environment

The national forest is in the

Amazon biome The Amazon biome () 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 river, blackwater and whitewa ...

. Average annual rainfall is . Temperatures range from with an average of . Vegetation is mostly dense rain forest (94.19%) or contact between savannah and rain forest (5.52%), with a small amount of open rain forest (0.29%). The forest includes areas that are periodically flooded, areas on the slopes and areas higher up, each with distinctive vegetation. There are some deforested areas within and immediately surrounding the forest. Some of the deforestation may have occurred before the forest was established, but recent deforestation has been detected close to areas occupied by livestock along BR-230.

History

The Humaitá National Forest was created by decree 2.485 of 2 February 1998 and is administered by the

Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation The Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation ( Portuguese: ''Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade'', ICMBio) is a government agency under the administration of the Brazilian Ministry of the Environment. It is nam ...

(ICMBio). It is classed as

IUCN protected area category IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources) with the objective of sustainable multiple use of forest resources and scientific research, with emphasis on methods for sustainable exploitation of native forests. The advisory board was established on 17 June 2010 with 17 members from different institutions. 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 BR-319 is an federal highway that links Manaus, Amazonas to Porto Velho, Rondônia. The highway runs through a pristine part of the Amazon rainforest. It was opened by the military government in 1973 but soon deteriorated, and by 1988 was imp ...

area of influence. These are the

Abufari Biological Reserve Abufari Biological Reserve () 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 the Amazon biome in the municipal ...

, Cuniã Ecological Station, Nascentes do Lago Jari and

Mapinguari Mapinguari or mapinguary are mythical monstrous jungle-dwelling spirits from Brazilian folklore. They are said to protect the Amazon rainforest and its animals. According to folklore, when humans grow too old they can transform into man-eating M ...

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 extractive reserves. The management plan was approved on 10 July 2013.

Notes

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Humaita National Forest 1998 establishments in Brazil National parks of Brazil Protected areas of Amazonas (Brazilian state)