Chaco National Park
Encyclopedia
The Chaco National Park is a national park
of Argentina
, located in the province
of Chaco
. It has an area of 150 km². It was created in 1954 in order to protect a sample of the Eastern Chaco, composed mainly of warm lowlands, with an annual summer rainfall between 750 and 1,300 mm.
This park is a protected area for the quebracho tree
s. Forests of quebracho colorado chaqueño (Schinopsis balansae
) were once located in the north of Santa Fe
and the western half of Chaco, and had entered the northeast region of the province of Corrientes
. Its strong wood and its abundant tannin
caused it to be over-exploited for a century.
The area harbors several environments: scrubland, savanna
, swamp
s, and small lakes. The scrubland is the habitat of the red quebracho (Schinopsis lorentzii
), white quebracho (Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco
), algarrobo (Prosopis alba
), and lapacho (Tabebuia
spp.), all of which are commercially valuable species. The fauna includes large predators such as cougars. In the lakes one finds Yacare Caiman
s and Capybara
s. Elsewhere there are armadillo
s, South American Tapirs and Plains Viscacha
s, as well as birds (more than 340 species). The fauna also includes the Black Howler Monkey (Alouatta caraya
).
Indigenous communities of the Mocoví and Toba
peoples are found in the protected area.
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, located in the province
Provinces of Argentina
Argentina is subdivided into twenty-three provinces and one autonomous city...
of Chaco
Chaco Province
Chaco is an Argentine province located in the north of the country, near the border with Paraguay. Its capital is Resistencia on the Paraná River opposite the city of Corrientes...
. It has an area of 150 km². It was created in 1954 in order to protect a sample of the Eastern Chaco, composed mainly of warm lowlands, with an annual summer rainfall between 750 and 1,300 mm.
This park is a protected area for the quebracho tree
Quebracho tree
Quebracho is a common name in Spanish to describe very hard wood tree species. The etymology of the name derived from quiebrahacha, or quebrar hacha, meaning "axe-breaker".-Species:...
s. Forests of quebracho colorado chaqueño (Schinopsis balansae
Schinopsis balansae
Schinopsis balansae is a hardwood tree which forms forests in the subtropical Gran Chaco ecoregion of north-eastern Argentina, and Paraguay. It is also found in the wild Pantanal vegetation in Brazil. Some of its common names are quebracho colorado chaqueño and quebracho santafesino...
) were once located in the north of Santa Fe
Santa Fe Province
The Invincible Province of Santa Fe, in Spanish Provincia Invencible de Santa Fe , is a province of Argentina, located in the center-east of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise Chaco , Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Buenos Aires, Córdoba, and Santiago del Estero...
and the western half of Chaco, and had entered the northeast region of the province of Corrientes
Corrientes Province
Corrientes is a province in northeast Argentina, in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by : Paraguay, the province of Misiones, Brazil, Uruguay, and the provinces of Entre Rios, Santa Fe and Chaco.-History:...
. Its strong wood and its abundant tannin
Tannin
A tannin is an astringent, bitter plant polyphenolic compound that binds to and precipitates proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids.The term tannin refers to the use of...
caused it to be over-exploited for a century.
The area harbors several environments: scrubland, savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
, swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
s, and small lakes. The scrubland is the habitat of the red quebracho (Schinopsis lorentzii
Schinopsis lorentzii
Schinopsis lorentzii is a hardwood tree, native of the Paraguayan subtropical area, which forms forests in Gran Chaco region of Argentina, in Paraguay, and Bolivia. Some of its common names are coronillo, quebracho Cornillo , quebracho chaqueño, quebracho colorado santiagueño, quebracho macho, and...
), white quebracho (Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco
Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco
Quebracho blanco is a South American tree species, which is found in the northern regions of Argentina. It must not be confused with other species also known as quebracho, but belonging to the genus Schinopsis.-Growth:Quebracho blanco wood is uniformly yellow-ochre, without differences between...
), algarrobo (Prosopis alba
Prosopis alba
Prosopis alba is a South American tree species that inhabits the center part of Argentina, the Gran Chaco ecoregion and part of the Argentine Mesopotamia. It is known as Algarrobo Blanco in Spanish, which means "white carob tree"...
), and lapacho (Tabebuia
Tabebuia
Tabebuia is a neotropical genus of about 100 species in the tribe Tecomeae of the family Bignoniaceae. The species range from northern Mexico and southern Florida south to northern Argentina, including the Caribbean islands of Hispaniola and Cuba...
spp.), all of which are commercially valuable species. The fauna includes large predators such as cougars. In the lakes one finds Yacare Caiman
Yacare Caiman
The Yacare caiman is a species of caiman found in central South America, including northeastern Argentina, Uruguay eastern Bolivia, central/south-west Brazil, and the rivers of Paraguay...
s and Capybara
Capybara
The capybara , also known as capivara in Portuguese, and capibara, chigüire in Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador ronsoco in Peru, chigüiro, and carpincho in Spanish, is the largest living rodent in the world. Its closest relatives are agouti, chinchillas, coyphillas, and guinea pigs...
s. Elsewhere there are armadillo
Armadillo
Armadillos are New World placental mammals, known for having a leathery armor shell. Dasypodidae is the only surviving family in the order Cingulata, part of the superorder Xenarthra along with the anteaters and sloths. The word armadillo is Spanish for "little armored one"...
s, South American Tapirs and Plains Viscacha
Plains Viscacha
The Plains Viscacha or plains vizcacha is a species of rodent in the Chinchillidae family. It is the only living species within the genus Lagostomus. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay. The plains viscacha is the largest species of the family Chinchillidae...
s, as well as birds (more than 340 species). The fauna also includes the Black Howler Monkey (Alouatta caraya
Black Howler
The Black howler is a species of howler monkey, a large New World monkey, from northeast Argentina, east Bolivia, east and south Brazil and Paraguay. Together with the brown howler, it is the southernmost member of the Alouatta genus. Only the adult male is black; adult females and juveniles of...
).
Indigenous communities of the Mocoví and Toba
Toba (tribe)
The Toba are an ethnic group in Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. They are part of a larger group of indigenous inhabitants of the Gran Chaco region, called the Guaycurues. As of 2005, there are 47,951 Toba in Argentina, living in the provinces of Chaco, Formosa and Santa Fe.The Toba name themselves...
peoples are found in the protected area.