Nahuel Huapi National Park

The Nahuel Huapi National Park is a large protected area in Argentina.

Is named the park after Nahuel Huapi, the source lake of the river Limay. The area lies on the border between the provinces of Neuquén and Río Negro in Northern Patagonia.

Etymology

The park's name is derived from the Nahuel Huapi Lake, the surrounding nature park. In the language of the Mapuche nahuel Jaguar means huapi means island.

History

As the first Argentine natural park Parque Nacional del Sur, 1922, was established by Perito Moreno, who donated a plot of land of 75 sq. km to the State for this purpose. 1934, the field by law was declared a National Park Nahuel Huapi, the same date as the Iguazú National Park. Since 1981, one of the Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Flora and Fauna

The vegetation zones extend over areas of the Patagonian steppe and rich in the higher mountainous regions in the Valdivian rainforest.

In the eastern part Patagonian xerophytes dominate while the western parts of the park are covered with rain forests. Widely used are lenga southern beech, coihue southern beech and Antarctic Beech bill. In addition, the Chilean cedar ( Austrocedrus chilensis ), Myrceugenella apiculata, lomatia species, Alstroemeria aurantica, Mitraria cocinea and Chilean fire bush thrive ( Embothrium coccineum ), fuchsias, bamboo species and various myrtle. Strictly protected is the Luma apiculata, an evergreen tree, which also belongs to the myrtle family.