Mburucuyá National Park

Mburucuyá protects a stretch of central Corrientes where several landscapes meet: caranday palm savanna, chaco woodland, marsh and lagoon, and the wet grasslands that link the region to the Iberá wetlands further south. The park exists because of Troels Pedersen, a Danish-Argentine botanist who lived on the estancia here for decades, collected thousands of plant specimens and left the land to the state in the 1990s on condition it became a national park. His house and the estancia buildings survive within it. Wildlife is abundant and easy to see: capybaras, marsh deer, howler monkeys, caimans and more than three hundred bird species, with trails, boardwalks over the marsh and a campsite.

History

People lived in the area around 5,000 years ago, and later the Guaraní farmed it, growing maize, squash, beans, cassava, cotton and yerba mate; under Spanish colonisation many of their settlements were taken over and changed, and large-scale farming cleared much of the native forest. The national park came about in the 20th century, when the botanist Troels Pedersen gave the land for it (Wikipedia, Mburucuyá National Park).

What's there

• The palm savanna - caranday palms standing across open wet grassland.
• The marsh boardwalks - raised walkways over lagoon and reed beds.
• The estancia buildings - the botanist's house preserved inside the park.
• The wildlife - capybaras, marsh deer, howler monkeys and abundant birds.

When to go

April to October, the drier and cooler months, when tracks are passable and insects fewer; summer brings heavy rain, heat and mosquitoes. Early morning is best for wildlife and howler monkey calls. Rain can close the unpaved access road.

Things to know

This is a little-visited park with basic facilities, no shop and no fuel nearby. The final road is unpaved and difficult after rain. Ticks and mosquitoes are a genuine nuisance, and trails can be muddy for long stretches.

Nearby

Mburucuyá town is the gateway; the Iberá wetlands lie south.

Key facts