The
Amazon may have all the fame and glory, but the Pantanal
is a far better place to see wildlife. In the Amazon,
the animals hide in the dense foliage, but in the
open spaces of the Pantanal, wildlife is visible to
the most causal observer. The Pantanal is vast wetlands
in the center of South America; it is about half the
size of France – some 230.000 sq km. The region covers
areas in Bolivia, Paraguay, but the most part is in
Brazil. Pantanal is a paradise for wild life watchers
and photographers, because they may encounter a concentration
of the many species. As many as 230 species of fish,
650 of birds, 80 of mammals and 50 of reptiles have
been identified. A visit to Pantanal will be an unforgettable
experience.
You can access the Pantanal from the North via the
capital of state Mato Grosso (MT), Cuiabá (Brazil),
or via the capital of state Mato Grosso do Sul (MS),
Campo Grande in the South. Two thirds of the Pantanal
is located in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, and
one third is located in Mato Grosso. For the budget
traveler it might be cheaper to go via Cuiabá and
rent a car and take the dirt road (Transpantaneira)
that goes straight into the Pantanal, in the direction
of the town Porto Jofre. Along the road the wild life
are rich, where you may observe the fauna & flora
from the car. Another option is to go via Campo Grande,
where you will have the possibility to one more experience
except the fauna & flora of Pantanal, you may
also visit the paradise of transparent, crystal clear
waters in the rivers around the town of Bonito, MS.
There are also options of river cruisers departing
from Corumba, MS in Brazil, a border town to Bolivia.
The
Pantanal has its flooded season generally from the
end of December until May, and the rivers overflow
making the region a large flooded plain with shallow
waters. The fish and reptiles disperse themselves
and the other animals concentrate in the dry areas.
During this time, the means of transportation are
by horse, tractors and boats. In the season of dryness
(months from June until the beginning of December),
the water lowers and the rivers and many lagoons start
to appear on the plain, and may end up dry. During
this period one may see a great concentration of animals
(mammals, birds and reptiles) feeding around the lagoons
and the riverbanks. Worth to note is that region has
a tropical climate and the winter time is during June
through September, when the temperature is quit hot
daytime but can fall nighttime dramatically approaching
0°C. The south may have a couple of degrees less in
average than in the north of Pantanal.
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