Iguaçu National Park (Portuguese: Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, pronounced [ˈpaʁki nasi.oˈnaw du iɡwaˈsu, – nasjoˈnaw -]) is a national park located in Paraná State, Brazil. The park covers a total area of 185,262.5 hectares (457,794 acres) and stretches about 420 kilometers (260 miles) long. Of this, 300 kilometers (190 miles) are natural borders formed by bodies of water, and the Argentine and Brazilian sides together cover approximately 260,000 hectares (640,000 acres). The park was established by federal decree number 1035 on January 10, 1939, and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986. It is managed by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio).
The park shares a border with Iguazú National Park in Argentina. It is home to one of the world’s largest waterfalls, which spans about 2,700 meters (8,900 feet). The park is also home to many rare and endangered species of plants and animals, including the giant otter and the giant anteater. The mist created by the waterfall supports the growth of dense vegetation.
History
The Iguaçu National Park is named after the Iguazu River, which flows through the area. About 50 square kilometers of the river’s path includes the famous Iguaçu Falls.
This park is the most important in the Prata Basin. It is home to many different plant and animal species, making it the first national park in Brazil to have a Management Plan. The park’s main goal, as planned by André Rebouças, is to protect natural ecosystems that are important for the environment and scenery. This helps scientists study the area, teaches people about nature, and allows visitors to enjoy the outdoors and experience ecological tourism.
The park is both impressive and innovative. In 1876, André Rebouças, an engineer, wrote about creating a national park to protect the area for future generations. He described the region as having "all possible preservation, from the beautiful to the sublime" and "an unmatched flora" at the "magnificent Iguaçu waterfalls." His ideas helped start the movement to protect the falls.
On November 17, 1986, during a UNESCO meeting in Paris, the Iguaçu National Park was recognized as a Natural Heritage of Humanity. It is one of the largest forest protection areas in South America.
Location
The Park in Brazil shares boundaries with the following cities: Foz do Iguaçu, Medianeira, Matelândia, Céu Azul, São Miguel do Iguaçu, Santa Terezinha de Itaipu, Santa Tereza do Oeste, Capitão Leônidas Marque, Capanema, and Serranópolis.
It is located in the westernmost part of the state of Paraná, within the Iguaçú River basin, 17 kilometers (11 miles) from the city center of Foz do Iguaçu. The Park borders Argentina, where the Iguazu National Park, established in 1934, is located. The boundary between the two countries and their national parks follows the Iguaçú River. This river begins near the Serra do Mar mountain range near Curitiba and flows for 18 kilometers (11 miles) through Paraná. The river’s mouth, where it meets the Paraná River, is 18 kilometers downstream from the Falls. This meeting of rivers forms the shared border of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay.
Fishing rules were announced on October 2, 2008, and apply to conservation areas and their buffer zones in the Paraná River basin. These areas include the Morro do Diabo State Park, Rio do Peixe State Park, Aguapeí State Park, Mico Leão Preto Ecological Station, Ivinhema State Park, Ilha Grande National Park, Caiuá Ecological Station, and Iguaçu National Park. The Santa Maria Ecological Corridor connects the Iguaçu National Park to the protected areas along Lake Itaipu and, through these areas, to the Ilha Grande National Park. The Park is part of a proposed Trinational Biodiversity Corridor, which aims to link conservation areas in Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina within the Upper Paraná ecoregion.
Tourism
The part of the park that is open to visitors and includes the areas managed by Cataratas do Iguaçú S/A covers about 0.3% of the entire park’s area.
The most impressive feature of the park is the Iguaçú Falls, which form a semicircle that is 2,700 meters wide. The water falls from a height of 72 meters (236 feet). The number of waterfalls changes depending on the flow of the Iguaçú River, ranging from 150 to 300. In addition to the waterfalls, the park has other attractions, such as diverse wildlife, Poço Preto (the Black Well), the Macuco Waterfall, the Visitors Center, and the Santos Dumont Statue. The statue was created by VASP, a former airline company, to honor Santos Dumont, known as the "Father of Aviation," for his role in helping establish the area as a National Park. In 2014, the park welcomed 1,550,700 visitors.