Itatiaia National Park

Itatiaia National Park
Itatiaia National Park
Parque Nacional do Itatiaia
IUCN category II (national park)
	View in January 2014
Nearest city	Resende, Rio de Janeiro
Coordinates	22°22′30″S 44°36′43″W / 22.375°S 44.612°WCoordinates: 22°22′30″S 44°36′43″W / 22.375°S 44.612°W
Designation	National park
Created	14 June 1937
Administrator	ICMBio

Itatiaia National Park (Portuguese: Parque Nacional do Itatiaia), established in 1937, is the oldest national park in Brazil. It is located on the border between the states of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais.

Location[]

The Itatiaia National Park is the oldest national park of Brazil, created on 14 June 1937 by President Getúlio Vargas. The park is in the Mantiqueira Mountains. It covers parts of the municipalities of Itatiaia and Resende in Rio de Janeiro state, and Bocaina de Minas and Itamonte in Minas Gerais state. It is mountainous and rocky with altitudes ranging from 540 to 2,791 metres (1,772 to 9,157 ft). The highest point is the Black Needles peak (Pico das Agulhas Negras).^[1]

The higher part of the park contains the origins of 12 river basins that supply the Rio Grande (Grand River), a tributary of the Paraná River, and the Paraíba do Sul, the most important river in Rio de Janeiro state. The lower part of the park has lush Atlantic Forest vegetation and wide rivers with natural pools and waterfalls.^[1]

The Pico das Agulhas Negras is the state' third highest mountain at 2,878 metres (9,442 ft). The park attracts bird watchers from all over the world with its 350 species of birds. Other attractions include hiking and rock climbing. The park is surrounded by the Serra da Mantiqueira Environmental Protection Area which provides an ecological buffer zone for the park.

The high area of the park is accessible through an entrance about 35 km from the main entrance and gives access to the Pico das Agulhas Negras and Prateleiras complex. The low area of the park is much closer to the city of Itatiaia and has many waterfalls, such as Véu da Noiva with 45 meters. The low area has also a Natural History museum. Itatiaia means "many-pointed rock" in the Tupi language.

Gallery[]

Itatiaia National Park Overview
Pico das Agulhas Negras, the highest peak in the National Park
Itatiaia National Park
Véu de Noiva waterfall
Melanophryniscus frog, symbol species of the park
Frilled coquette

Notes[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b The Itatiaia National Park – ICMBio.

Sources[]

The Itatiaia National Park, ICMBio, retrieved 2016-05-01

show v t National parks of Brazil
Amazon	Acari Amazônia Anavilhanas Araguaia Cabo Orange Campos Amazônicos Jamanxim Jaú Juruena Mapinguari Monte Roraima Nascentes do Lago Jari Pacaás Novos Pico da Neblina Rio Novo Serra da Cutia Serra da Mocidade Serra do Divisor Serra do Pardo Tumucumaque Mountains Viruá
Atlantic Forest	Alto Cariri Aparados da Serra Araucárias Boa Nova Campos Gerais Caparaó Descobrimento Guaricana Iguaçu Itatiaia Monte Pascoal Pau Brasil Saint-Hilaire/Lange São Joaquim Serra da Bocaina Serra da Capivara Serra das Lontras Serra de Itabaiana Serra do Gandarela Serra do Itajaí Serra dos Órgãos Serra Geral Tijuca
Caatinga	Chapada Diamantina Furna Feia Serra das Confusões Sete Cidades Ubajara Catimbau
Cerrado	Brasília Cavernas do Peruaçu Chapada das Mesas Chapada dos Veadeiros Emas Grande Sertão Veredas Nascentes do Rio Parnaíba Sempre Vivas Serra da Bodoquena Serra da Canastra Serra do Cipó
Coastal Marine	Abrolhos Fernando de Noronha Ilhas dos Currais Jericoacoara Jurubatiba Sandbank Lagoa do Peixe Lençóis Maranhenses Superagüi
Pantanal	Chapada dos Guimarães Ilha Grande Pantanal Matogrossense

show Authority control
General	Integrated Authority File (Germany) VIAF 1 WorldCat
National libraries	United States

Itatiaia National Park

Contents

Location[]

Gallery[]

Notes[]

Sources[]

Further reading[]