"the jaguar (""Panthera onca""), ocelot (""Leopardus pardalis""), marsh deer (""Blastocerus dichotomus""), giant anteater (""Myrmecophaga tridactyla""), giant armadillo (""Priodontes maximus""), giant otter (""Pteronura brasiliensis""), chestnut-bellied guan (""Penelope ochrogaster""), black-and-tawny seedeater (""Sporophila nigrorufa"") and the mussel ""Lamproscapha ensiformis"". Pantanal Matogrossense National Park The Pantanal Matogrossense National Park () is a national park in the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Pantanal Matogrossense National Park has an area of . It is in the Pantanal biome. The park was created by decree nº 86.392 on 24 September 1981, and is managed by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation"
"Pantanal The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay. It sprawls over an area estimated at between . Various subregional ecosystems exist, each with distinct hydrological, geological and ecological characteristics; up to 12 of them have been defined (RADAMBRASIL 1982). Roughly 80% of the Pantanal floodplains are submerged during the rainy seasons, nurturing an astonishing biologically diverse collection of aquatic plants and helping to support a dense array of"
"endangered due to smuggling), the crowned solitary eagle, the maned wolf (""Chrysocyon brachyurus""), the bush dog (""Speothos venaticus""), the South American tapir (""Tapirus terrestris"") and the giant anteater (""Myrmecophaga tridactyla""). Common species in the Pantanal include the capybara (""Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris"") and the yacare caiman (""Caiman yacare""). According to 1996 data, there were 10 million caimans in the Pantanal, making it the highest concentration of crocodilians in the World. The Pantanal is home to one of the largest and healthiest jaguar (""Panthera onca"") populations on Earth. Most fish are detritivores, primarily ingesting fine particles from sediments and plant surfaces. This is"
"of lack of oxygen (McClain 2002)). The vegetation of the Pantanal, often referred to as the ""Pantanal complex"", is a mixture of plant communities typical of a variety of surrounding biome regions: these include moist tropical Amazonian rainforest plants, semiarid woodland plants typical of northeast Brazil, Brazilian ""cerrado"" savanna plants and plants of the ""Chaco"" savannas of Bolivia and Paraguay. Forests usually occur at higher altitudes of the region, while grasslands cover the seasonally inundated areas. The key limiting factors for growth are inundation and, even more importantly, water-stress during the dry season. The Pantanal ecosystem is home to 3500"
"of the Pantanal. Landscapes include open canopy alluvial forest in areas subject to flooding and open canopy submontane forest in areas with elevations of . The well-spaced tree forming the upper layer do not exceed in height and let light through to the dense understory, which includes many representatives of the Rubiaceae, Melastomataceae and Piperaceae families. Common tree species include Attalea speciosa, Euterpe precatoria Euterpe oleracea, Leopoldinia piassaba, Bertholletia excelsa and Hevea brasiliensis. There are scattered areas of dense canopy Atlantic alluvial rain forest with emergent evergreens reaching in height. This type of vegetation includes significant numbers of palm trees"
"in North America. There are an estimated 700 species of birds, including spoonbills, and 26 species of parrots, including the endangered hyacinth macaw. The Pantanal is also home to the capybara, the world's largest rodent. Fish thrive in this wetland environment (over 260 species have been noted). Illegal poaching, deforestation, overfishing, pollution from human sewage, agricultural pesticides, and metal pollutants are taking an increasing environmental toll on the area. In 2007, Brazil had identified nine sites that fulfill criteria for wetlands of international importance according to the Ramsar Convention, seven of which are mainland wetlands. They include three National Parks:"
"environmental reserve in the world. It is home to one of the richest ecosystems ever found to date, with periodically flooded seasonal forests. It displays the largest concentration of neo-tropical fauna, including several endangered species – mammals, reptiles and fish – and it also serves as habitat for a variety of native birds, as well as those migrating from other areas in the Americas. The Pantanal is one of the best places in Brazil for flora and fauna observation and for fishing – permitted only between March and October – due to its abundance of animals. It has a total"
"with – the Pantanal region of the southwestern Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul. The Pantanal region, whose name derives from the Portuguese word ""pântano"" (meaning ""swamp” or ""marsh""), is a wetland, or alluvial plain, that covers parts of central-western Brazil, eastern Bolivia and eastern Paraguay. Eighty per cent of the wetland’s total area is in Brazil, where it occupies more than 140,000 km². It is frequently referred to as one of the largest freshwater wetland ecosystems in the world. As part of the Paraguay floodplain, it is a depository for seasonal floodwaters from the Paraguay"
"characteristic of fish living in South American flood-plains in general. Fish migration between river channels and flood-plain regions occurs seasonally. These fish have many adaptations that allow them to survive in the oxygen-depleted flood-plain waters. In addition to the caiman, some of the reptiles that inhabit the Pantanal are the yellow anaconda (""Eunectes notaeus""), the gold tegu (""Tupinambis teguixin""), the red-footed tortoise (""Geochelone carbonaria"") and the green iguana (""Iguana iguana""). The Pantanal region includes essential sanctuaries for migratory birds, critical nursery grounds for aquatic life, and refuges for such creatures as the yacare caiman, deer, and Pantanal jaguar. The main"
"tapirs, hyacinth macaws, herons, and jabiru storks, among others. The Pantanal received the recognition as National Patrimony in the Constitution of 1988 and as Patrimony of the Humanity and Reserve of the Biosfera from UNESCO. According to World Wide Fund for Nature (1999), there exist in the Pantanal 650 species of birds, 80 of mammals, 260 of fish and 50 of reptiles. It is a region of great importance for preservation of biodiversity, considered one of the biggest centers of reproduction of fauna of America. Already more than 263 species of fish, 122 species of mammals, 93 species of reptiles,"
"Nearby are the buttes of Mt Urucum, which contain vast mineral deposits. In 1878 it was raised to the category of city. The ecoregion Pantanal is the most important plain of all humid areas in South America. Its large territory meets in the Mato Grosso do Sul, is known as South Pantanal and the city of Corumbá serves as its entrance door. The Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul is recognized as one of the most exuberant and diversified natural reserves on the planet. The great diversity of the fauna is one of its great attractions: caiman, anacondas, fish, capybaras,"
"known plant species. The Pantanal ecosystem is also thought to be home to 1000 bird species, 400 fish species, 300 mammalian species, 480 reptile species and over 9000 subspecies of invertebrates. The apple snail is a keystone species in Pantanal's ecosystem. When the wetlands are flooded once a year, the grass and other plants will eventually die and start to decay. During this process, decomposing microbes deplete the shallow water of all oxygen, suffocating larger decomposers. Unlike other decomposing animals, the apple snail have both gills and lungs, making it possible for them to thrive in anoxic waters where they"
"animal species. The name ""Pantanal"" comes from the Portuguese word ""pântano"", meaning wetland, bog, swamp, quagmire or marsh. By comparison, the Brazilian highlands are locally referred to as the ""planalto"", plateau or, literally, high plain. The Pantanal is a huge, gently-sloped basin that receives runoff from the upland areas (the Planalto highlands) and slowly releases the water through the Paraguay River and tributaries. The formation is a result of the large, concave pre-Andean depression of the earth's crust, related to the Andean orogeny of the Tertiary. It constitutes an enormous internal river delta, in which several rivers flowing from the"
"conditions of the Pantanal region, which is characterised by high temperatures and periods both of flooding and high humidity, and of drought. The cattle are rustic and hardy, capable of surviving periods of food scarcity, and resistant to some diseases. Pantaneiro The Pantaneiro is a cattle breed from the Pantanal region of Brazil, where it has been raised for more than three hundred years. It is now considered to be at risk of extinction. The Pantaneiro derives from Spanish cattle brought to the Americas by the ""conquistadores"" at the time of the colonisation of the Río de la Plata basin,"
"the Pantanal, one of the largest inland wetlands on Earth. The mean average temperature of the region is around 26 °C [2] and varies only slightly between 22-23 °C in June and July and 28-29 °C from October to February. The annual rainfall is just over 1000 mm, with a short dry season in June and August with monthly rainfall below 30 mm. Arroyo Concepción Arroyo Concepción is a town in Bolivia. In 2010 it had an estimated population of 5060. Arroyo Concepción is the second largest town in the County (Municipio) Puerto Quijarro in the province of Germán Busch."
"surrounding plateau merge, depositing their sediments and erosion residues, which have been filling, throughout the years, the large depression area of the Pantanal. This area is also one of the distinct physiographic provinces of the larger Parana-Paraguay Plain area. The Pantanal is bounded by the Chiquitano dry forests to the west and northwest, by the Arid Chaco dry forests to the southwest, and the Humid Chaco to the south. The Cerrado savannas lie to the north, east and southeast. The Pantanal has an average yearly rainfall of , but is fed by the upper Paraguay River. Its average temperature is"
"especially alligators, capybaras and birds, among other wild animals. SESC's Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN) increases by one-third the total area of this preserved ecosystem in the State of Mato Grosso. Over 160 different species of birds have been observed in the Pantanal, and still many species in the area have not yet been identified. The Águas Quentes State Park, the first protected area in Mato Grosso, is known for the healing powers of its thermal waters. The Gruta da Lagoa Azul State Park (Portuguese: ""Parque Estadual Gruta da Lagoa Azul"") is a state park in the state of Mato"
"the world largest plain covered with water, is the habitat for almost a thousand species of animals, with many aquatic birds. The Pantanal covers 12 municipalities and presents an enormous variety of flora and fauna, with forests, natural sand banks, savannahs, open pasture, fields and bushes. The city Bonito, in the mountain of Bodoquena, has prehistoric caverns, natural rivers, waterfalls, swimming pools and the Blue Lake cavern. Mato Grosso do Sul has humid subtropical and tropical climate. The annual rainfall is 1,500 mm. January is the warmest month, with mean maxima of 34 °C (93.2 °F) and minima of 24"
"size. It is located in the north-eastern portion, known as ""Poconé"" Pantanal, not far from the Pantanal National Park. It is a mix of permanent rivers, seasonal streams, permanent and seasonal floodplain freshwater lakes, shrub-dominated wetlands and seasonally flooded forests, all dedicated to nature preservation, and was designated a Ramsar Site of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. Otuquis National Park and Integrated Management Natural Area is a national park of Bolivia in the Pantanal. The entrance to Otuquis National park is through the town of Puerto Suarez. Pantanal The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest"
"Beni and the Mamoré carry both passenger and freight traffic; rapids on the Madeira prevent river traffic farther into Brazil. Near the Paraguayan border, shallow sandy streams carry the seasonal runoff into the Pilcomayo or Paraguay rivers. Also, the Pantanal, the world's largest wetland of any kind, has some of its area in Bolivia. Despite the fact that eastern Bolivia is described a lowland in when seeing the general topography of the country there are mountains and mountain ranges well beyond the Andes. The most notable of these mountains are the forested Serranías Chiquitanas in eastern Santa Cruz Department. The"
"research. The park is in the Pantanal Biosphere Reserve, which also includes the Pantanal, 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, protecting the headwaters of the Cuiabá River, one of the main feeders of the Mato Grosso Pantanal. ""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"
"is one of its tourist attractions. In the north is the Amazonian forest, with a biodiversity originally covering half of the state. Much of this has been disrupted and cleared for logging, agricultural purposes, and pastures. The Xingu National Park and the Araguaia River are in Mato Grosso. Further south, the Pantanal, the world's largest wetland, is the habitat for nearly one thousand species of animals, and many aquatic birds. Located in the Mato Grosso is the Chapada dos Guimarães, a unique environment of sandstone mountains that have eroded into amazingly varied terrain. The terrain of the Mato Grosso is"
"cavern in Brazil, Aroe Jari, extends nearly 1,550 meters and several prehistoric inscriptions can be found inside. The Pantanal's backbone is the Paraguay River, which cuts through the region from north to south. The Miranda, Aquidauna, Taquari and Cuiaba rivers flow into the Paraguay River. From October to April, the high waters reveal outsized lakes, bays, river branches and outlets. The Transpantaneira Highway connects the town of Pocone to Jofre Port, along the Cuiabá River bank. It is a dirt road with 126 wooden bridges, and extends for 149 km. On the way, it is possible to observe wild animals,"
"breed through the use of bulls of the zebuine cattle breeds introduced to the Pantanal region during the twentieth century; influence of zebuine cows was excluded, as the mitochondrial DNA was found to be entirely taurine. The Pantaneiro was the principal breed of the Pantanal for several centuries. It is now considered to be at risk of extinction. In 2003 a population of less than 1000 was reported. The Pantaneiro is a small breed; the coat is short, and brown or reddish-brown in colour, with a tendency to lighten on the back. It is well adapted to the extreme climatic"
", but temperatures can fluctuate from . Floodplain ecosystems such as the Pantanal are defined by their seasonal inundation and desiccation. They shift between phases of standing water and phases of dry soil, when the water table can be well below the root region. Soils range from high levels of sand in higher areas to higher amounts of clay and silt in riverine areas. Elevation of the Pantanal ranges from above sea level. Annual rainfall over the flood basin is between , with most rainfall occurring between November and March. In the Paraguay River portion of the Pantanal, water levels"
"area of 230,000 square kilometres, covering 12 townships in the States of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul. To the North, there are the Paracis, Azul and Roncador mountains. To the East, the Maracaju Mountain Range. To the South, the Dodoquena Mountain Range. And, to the West, the Paraguayan and Bolivian swamps. The Pantanal is so diverse that researchers subdivided it in sub-regions. Each ""Pantanal"" – North and South – has its own natural features, activities and ideal period for visitation. Campo Grande was one of the 18 candidates to host games of the 2014 FIFA World Cup which"
"Pantanal cat The Pantanal cat (""Leopardus colocola braccatus"") is a Pampas cat subspecies, a small wild cat native to South America. It is named after the Pantanal wetlands in central South America, where it inhabits mainly grassland, shrubland, savannas and deciduous forests. The Pantanal cat is brown agouti on the back with a little darker spinal crest. In the face it has two transverse dark lines across each cheek. Its ears are reddish on their base, creamy-white on the outer side and bordered with a black band. Its throat is whitish and blending into orangish towards the sides and on"
"annually. Concentrations of lime in the soil around the area where Bonito is located is responsible for the transparency of the waters and for the existence of a wide variety of geological formations. Local activities include diving in caverns, observing the underwater fauna and walking along trails in the forest. Places like Gruta Lago Azul (Blue Lake Cave) and the Fazenda Estancia Mimosa, Aquario Natural (Natural Aquarium), and the rivers Sucuri, Prata, and Formoso, are popular. The Pantanal is an ecological destination in the heart of Brazil. It is the largest flooded lowland on the planet and the third largest"
"although they are specifically named for the Pantanal wetlands of Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay. It has also been reported from agricultural land, and therefore must have some limited tolerance for human disturbance. The Pantanal cat is diurnal and solitary. It feeds on small mammals such as cavies, ground-dwelling birds, small lizards, and snakes. Home ranges are between . Hybrids between the Pantanal cat and oncilla are known from Brazil. In 1994, it was suggested that its distinct pelage colour, pattern and cranial measurements warrant a specific status. But results of phylogeographic analysis did not support this. The validity of the"
"the belly. It has some dark brown rosettes on the flanks and stripes on the legs between elbow and wrist. The tip of the tail and paws are black. It is about the size of a domestic cat. There is a single report of a wild melanistic individual from Brazil, although this coat pattern has also been observed in some captive specimens. Pantanal cats are found from sea level to in east-central Brazil, Uruguay, and neighbouring regions of central South America (Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina). Within this region, they inhabit a range of habitats from open grassland to dense forest,"
"risk of desertification due to the degradation of vegetation cover and soil. The Pampa is characterized by the amount of herbaceous species and several typologies of the country, composing in some regions, environments integrated with the Araucária forest. The flat plains of the Gaucho plains and plateaus and the soft-wavy reliefs are colonized by pioneering species that form an open savanna vegetation. The Pantanal is an alluvial plain influenced by rivers that drain the basin of the Upper Paraguay, where it develops a fauna and flora of rare beauty and abundance. This ecosystem is formed by largely sandy terrains, covered"
"varied and includes cliffs, canyons, and waterfalls. The biologically rich Pantanal, one of the world's largest wetland/prairie ecosystems, is also located within this state. Much environmental degradation has occurred to the Pantanal since the late 20th century because of development, and efforts to contain or slow it have had limited success. The Pantanal has a habitat similar to that of the Everglades in Florida in the United States, although the Pantanal is on a much larger scale. In 1977, the state was split into two halves, with Mato Grosso do Sul being organized as a new state. The Bororo Indians"
"America, particularly in the Pantanal region, the largest tropical wetland area in the world, which is flooded seasonally by the Paraguay River. The broad-snouted caiman (""Caiman latirostris"") occurs in central and eastern South America, its range including southeastern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay and northern Argentina, within the drainage systems of the Paraná, Paraguay, Uruguay and São Francisco Rivers. Caimans spends much of their time basking on mudflats or in sunlit, muddy jungle streams. In the dry season, large numbers may accumulate in pools as the surrounding land dries up. They can move on land with some rapidity, hiss when disturbed,"