Ischigualasto Provincial Park
The nature reserve Ischigualasto is in the northwest of Argentina, in the northeastern province of San Juan. Because of its perfect dryness it is also called Valle de la Luna ( Moon Valley ). It is located in the immediate vicinity of the National Park Talampaya and has been declared with this in 2000 by the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Geologically belong to the nature reserve and the National Park Talampaya the Ischigualasto Formation, which is characterized by well-preserved, about 230 million year old fossils. Among other things, this formation come from some of the oldest known dinosaur finds.
The nature reserve Ischigualasto
The reserve occupies 8,000 square miles and protects a desert-like landscape with created by the erosion sculpture -like, strange rock formations that are often reminiscent of familiar objects, such as the submarine, the bowling green, the fungus and the 1989 collapsed Magic Lamp Aladdin, until then the symbol the park was. The area is located about 1300 meters above sea level and is a typical desert vegetation consists of cactus and shrubs and 10 to 20% of the area covered. The climate is very dry, and it mainly rains during the summer; In addition, there are strong temperature fluctuations from -10 ° C to 45 ° C.
A constant wind from the south was blowing at a speed of 20-40 km / h from noon to night and is sometimes accompanied by a very strong Zonda ( a foehn wind ).
Unlike the National Park Talampaya you can reserve the Ischigualasto explore by car, but not alone, only with guide. Access to the reserve is via the small village of Los Baldecitos, a complete infrastructure is, however, applies only in Villa San Agustín (67 km south) at. In addition to the fossil record, the reserve also has an archaeological importance, as there are sites pre-Columbian cultures.
Ischigualasto Formation
The Ischigualasto Formation consists of the 230 million years old deposits of Karniums (late Triassic) and shows a unique fossil fauna, which consists of primitive reptiles, the ancestors of today's mammals and dinosaurs. The vertebrates are most commonly found Rhynchosaurier and Cynodonten, where dinosaurs represent only 6% of the fossil fauna. Nevertheless, both major lineages of dinosaurs are represented, the Ornithischia ( bird Beck dinosaurs) and Saurischia (lizard Beck dinosaurs). The dinosaur most commonly found is the predatory Herrerasaurus; another Fund, which is important for understanding the early evolution of dinosaurs of great importance, was discovered in the early 1990s and named Eoraptor.
At the time of the deposits, the area was a volcanically active, dominated by rivers flooded area with strong periodic rains. Petrified tree trunks of the type Protojuniperoxylon ischigualastianus suggest a lush vegetation with over 40 meters tall trees close. In addition, fossil ferns and horsetails were found.