National Parks and Wildlife Safaris in Bolivia

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National Parks and Wildlife Safaris Tours in Bolivia

The  national parks and reserves in Bolivia were created for the protection, preservation and survival of Bolivia`s diverse wildlife. Since the late 1980s and early 1990s certain groups, both local and international, have been struggling to conserve endangered areas. In 1992 the United Nations organized ECO-92, a massive meeting held in Brazil to discuss the more serious global environmental issues, especialy the fate of the Amazon basin. Is there an answer to these problems?

The Uyuni Dry Salt Lake  

Spreading over 12.00 square kilometers, it is considered to be the world-s largest salt flat. With the mountains and the sky as its only frontiers, images suspended by solar radiation, mirages and optical illusions caused by crystallization on the ground and other amazing phenomena can be seen. Within the lake, there are virgin uninhabited islands that are the habitat of immense cacti and strange flowers. This series of landscape and natural wonders captivate and bewitch the visitor from the moment of arrival. The Uyuni Dry Salt Lake forms part of Lake Minchin, a Salt Lake or prehistoric inland sea, which covered most of the south west of Bolivia. When it dried up, it left behind the west zones of Lake Poopo and lake Uru Uru and the Uyuni and Coipasa salt flats. In the center of this immense desert there are scattered islands, Isla Pescado or Fish Island (Incahuasi) is the most spectacular, due to the enormous cacti, over 8 meters tall, found there. The views of the salt sea, which changes color according to the light as the day progresses are particularly beautiful from it and are a real pleasure for lovers of photography. Expeditions are organized to this unreal place, with its transparent landscape and its vegetation that tries to escape from the constant threat of the salt that floods its coasts.  

The Eduardo Avaroa National Park  

South of the Uyuni Dry Salt Flat is the Eduardo Avaroa Andean National Wildlife Reservation, with its extraordinary lakes, and enormous diversity of wildlife and some spectacular geysers, live volcanic craters and unusually shaped rocks, covering 7.147 square kilometers. Laguna Colorada is one of the great wonders of Bolivia nature. It is a multi-colored lake, where reddish tones, caused by fine layers of sediment on the surface and the natural dyes of several types of plant life. It is also known as The Nest of The Andes, as it is home to over 3000 flamingos of three different species which nest there and make the area one of the world-s best for observing them. The best-known flamingo is the Tokoko, salmon colored but with reddish covering on its plumage and black wing feathers. It has a pinkish-white beak with a black tip, and is over 1 meter tall. The area is also home to South America’s biggest Parina Chica population as well as other species such as Soca Cornuda, which is currently in danger of extinction, and other threatened species, such as the Suri. Due to its intense volcanic activity, this landscape takes us back in time to when the earth was being formed. Lava boils in craters and vapor is emitted from cracks in the earth that reaches heights of 10 meter to 50 meters, owing to the pressure under which they are mixed. Laguna Verde, located in the extreme south of Lipez desert, it is a landscape suggestive of the end of the world. It is divided into two bodies of water, and owes its extraordinary color to its high magnesium content. The Green Lagoon-s incredible mirror/like water, similar to a giant emerald constantly changing in tone, dazzles the onlooker in different ways with the passing of the day. At 10:00 in the morning, when the Sun suddenly rises, the dark green of the lagoon becomes an intense emerald green, in the evening it shines brilliantly.  

In the Lipez desert there are other lakes of many and surprising colors, such as Cachilaguna, Laguna Hedionda, as well as some others that are associated with geothermal activity. Around these oases of life, surrounded by volcanoes that are testimony to a turbulent subsoil, the region-s true owners can be found, the Pink James Flamingos, soaking their legs in the freezing waters as they feed on the algae that grow in the lagoons and give their beds their distinctive colors. Highly distinctive wildlife is found in the region, which has adapted to the area’s extreme living conditions, including some species that are on the verge of extinction. A journey in the region leads to unforgettable experiences with the people who live there. The local population is of Quechua and Aymara extraction, and are always ready to offer their hospitality. Archaeological ruins, silver and copper mining centers like Pulacayo and the train cemetery at Uyuni are all worth to visit.  

The Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve, is part of the High Andean and Altiplano region within the Southern Puna Ecoregion and Desert Puna Sub ecoregion with Nival and Subnival Floors (including the High Andean Vegetation of the Western Cordillera). 102 species of flora have been recorded and the existence of approximately 200 species of higher plants is estimated. The fauna species are distributed around the natural values found within the protected area, such as the lagoons and wetlands, where a high biodiversity of species is concentrated; the Reserve's Monitoring Program indicates that more than 105 species of fauna have been registered.  

Apolobamba National Park  

Apolobamba is one of the regions with the greatest scenic and cultural beauty in the country. The climate is cold in the cordilleran region and the western plateaus, cold with a mild summer in the puna area, temperate to warm in the Yungas area. The important cultural potential, existing and expressed in the agrotechnological knowledge, the Kallawaya herbal medicine, the art of its weaving and the music of Qhantus, make this region rich and attractive for the tourism. In the Apolobamba area there are populations of the Kallawaya Culture, in addition to pre-Columbian roads.  

This eco region it is mainly found within the Yungas and Puna Norteña ecoregions, for the former it corresponds to per humid forests located in the central part and is distributed from the northwest to the southeast limit. 102 species of flora have been recorded and the existence of approximately 200 species of higher plants is estimated. Apolobamba is an area where Andean, Yunga and Amazon fauna are found, which lends itself to interpretation, study of major evolutionary and biogeographic processes, being an area of interest for conservation because it represents the distribution limit for many species of fauna such as the jayupa tall and the white-tailed deer. From different vegetation units and according to the altitudinal range the species vary, registering 613 species.  

Noel Kempff Mercado National Park  

With an area of 706.000 hectares, it shelters a large biological diversity in its different ecosystems.  

It is situated in a biogeographic area, in which the influences of the Amazon from the north, the dry tropical forest of the south, those from the Brazilian cerrado region to the east and the Chiquitano forest to the west. Its plant life is rich in the variety of vegetation: in the rainforests, there are oaks, cedars and rubber trees. There are also up to 559 species of bird, according to the inventories carried out at the four corners of the park, and this figure may rise to 700 when the study is completed. This figure is a quarter of the species present in the South America. Jaguars, lynxes, monkeys, the paraba Jacinta, caimans and many other animal species also live in the park. This enormous wealth of animal and plant species, its navigable rivers and its high, crystal clear waterfalls provide many opportunities for ecotourism and photographic safaris. It is not surprising that the stories and photographs that British explorer Colonel Percy Harrison Fawcet shared with his friend Artur Conan Doyle, helped to inspire the latter’s work titled “The Lost World”. The novel describes an isolated prairie on top of an inaccessible plateau, with crystal clear waterfalls cascading down its sides, and inhabited by dinosaurs. It is quite possible to experience such sensations while admiring this natural wonder.  

The protected area is located biogeographically in a transition between the Madeira-Rondonia Amazon and the Chiquitania located further south and characterized by the presence of vegetation formations and species from the Cerrado. The protected area is inserted into five ecoregions: Southwest of the Amazon, Floodplains, Chiquitano Dry Forests and Cerrado. The flora of the park is rich in diversity of vegetation formations, extremely interesting due to the endemism, the adaptations and the uniqueness of some communities. Some 2,700 species of higher plants were recorded; however, it is estimated that there could be about 4,000 species of higher plants. Approximately 1,142 species of vertebrates were recorded. The area has 139 mammal species, of which bats and rodents stand out. It houses 617 species of birds that represent 21% of the species in South America, most of them of Amazonian origin. It registers 250 species of fish, 74 of reptiles and 62 of amphibians, there are 24 species in danger of extinction that include turtles and alligators.  

Sajama National Park  

This park hosts several snowy peaks, which belong to a chain of inactive volcanoes that crown an extensive highland plateau which was inhabited by powerful Aymara “señorios” before the Incas and Spanish arrived. Sajama Volcano is the highest summit in Bolivia. The extensive pastures are home to llamas, alpacas, guanacos and vicuñas and many species of Altiplano and Andean birds like the threatened Andean Rhea, three species of flamingos, eagles and hawks, Andean flickers, and many others which are easy to see while driving around the Sajama Volcano. The historical attractions are pre-Incan sites and several small churches built during the 17th century by the Spanish as evidence of the intense cultural exchange and colonial trading activity that lasted 120 years.  

The Sajama National Park is part of the Cordilleras Altas y Altiplano region within the Puna Sureña Ecoregion and Puna Desert Subecoregion with Nival and Subnival Floors (including the High Andean Vegetation of the Western Cordillera). Due to the climatic characteristics, the diversity of fauna is very low and adapted to extreme conditions of temperatures and low rainfall, which is why they are important for conservation. Due to the climatic characteristics, the diversity of fauna is very low and adapted to extreme conditions of temperatures and low rainfall, which is why they are important for conservation.  

Amboro National Park  

The Amboro National Park is 630.00 hectares in area, is located in the Sub-Andean area, and is an area of great scenic beauty. Its name comes from the Amboro Mountain, which is located in the area. Its climatological diversity has caused different ecosystems, which play host to 540 species of bird and 120 species of mammal. Among these are jaguars, pumas, tapirs, deer, monkeys and wild cats. There are also many reptile species. The park also has some species that are unique to the area, and are in danger of extinction, such as the Copete de Oro duck and the Jucumari bear. The beauty of its countryside is due to its tiny misty forest, giant ferns, bonsai trees and other species, as well as its totally virgin areas with trees over a thousand years old. The Pirai, Guendá, Ichilo and Surutú rivers flow through the park, carrying an exquisite variety of fish. In its highest regions, there are incredible waterfalls of crystal-clear waters forming deep natural swimming pools. In the south are the ruins of the Samaipata Fort and the Tunal hieroglyphics.  

The protected area has five ecoregions: Forests of the Southwest of the Amazon, Yungas, Bolivian Tucuman Forest, Chaco Serrano and lnterandino Dry Forests. The Amboró National Park is a protected area that houses a high diversity of species and ecosystems important for conservation: therefore, it is part of the Vilcabamba-Amboró Corridor. The Amboró National Park is a protected area that houses a high diversity of species and ecosystems important for conservation: therefore, it is part of the Vilcabamba-Amboró Corridor. 1,236 species have been recorded in fauna, of which the jucumari or spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), the jaguar (Panthera onca), the flag bear (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), the copete guan (Pauxi unicornis), the paraba military (Ara militaris) and red-fronted paraffin (Ara rubrogenys).  

Cotapata National Park  

Located at less than an hour from the city of La Paz, this park has great scenic beauty in several ecological levels. These descend from the snowy peaks of the Cordillera Real through the high Andean, to the Yungas, the entrance door to the Amazonian region. The park covers 60.000 hectares of enormous biological diversity.  

Cotapata is located in the La Paz, Yungas region. Today the road to Yungas is a widely promoted tourist destination for mountain biking, especially for young people and those who are looking for adventure tourism  

The traditional way of reaching these warm lands in pre-inca times was, obviously, on foot, by stone paved roads. At present, they are so-called “Inca Roads”. One of these paths, the El Choro Trek, passes through the Cotapata National Park.  

There are two ecoregions in the Protected Area: Yungas and Puna Norteña, the first one has several altitudinal floors. 102 species of flora have been recorded and the existence of approximately 200 species of higher plants is estimated. A great diversity of animals has been recorded, confirming to date the presence of 607 species of vertebrates, of which 85 are mammals, 455 birds, 29 reptiles, 27 amphibians and 11 fish.  

Madidi National Park and Pampas del Yacuma  

The Pampas are swampy lowlands with riverside and island forest in the higher parts, which play an important ecological role as they offer nesting conditions for birds and dry land for animals during flooding. The Pampas is characterized by its exceptional diversity of its wild fauna. The most outstanding animals are: pink dolphins, caimans, anacondas, monkeys, turtles and capybaras, as well as an amazing diversity of birds.  Madidi National Park was created in 1995 in northwestern Bolivia. It protects a full array of ecosystems, from the high Andes to the Amazon basin, a vast wilderness spreading over 4.500.000 acres/1.821.085 hectares, encompassing unparalleled biological diversity tanging from cloud forest, humid lowland rainforest to savannah, wild rivers to lakes. This park is home to more than 1000 species of birds, 44% of all New World species of mammals and an estimated 38% of neo-tropical amphibians. Here you will enjoy incredible views of the Andes, the jungles of the Yungas region and may cascading waterfalls.  It has five ecoregions: Southwest of the Amazon, Cerrado, Yungas, Inter-Andean Dry Forests and Northern Puna; ranging from those Andean regions dominated by snow and subnival floors (with altitudes above 5000 meters above sea level) to the Amazon forests with altitudes below 300 meters above sea level, passing through a set of clearly distinguishable ecoregions. In terms of flora, 193 families and 8,244 species of vascular plants have been registered to date (of the 12,000 estimated), of which 110 are new species for Bolivia and 93 are endemic, 31 are exclusive plant species of Madidi, among which are You can mention Clusia pachamamae (frankincense), Weinmannia daviddsonii (wichillo) and Cereus yungasensis, an arborescent cactus. A great diversity of animals has been recorded, confirming, to date, the presence of 1,465 species of vertebrates, of which 65 are large and medium-sized mammals, 117 micro-mammals, 917 birds, 82 amphibians, 92 reptiles and 192 fish.