Ecotourism in Brazil / Mata Atlântica – Travel to the Mata Atlântica
(
Atlantic Rainforest)
when you are interested in the most diverse of the
Brazilian biomes,
the place where Brazil's
history began and a great ecotourism and adventure tour destination.
Area / Location
Brazil's third largest biome has a size of more than 1 million square kilometers, stretching about 4.000 km along the Atlantic coast between Rio Grande do Norte
and Rio Grande do Sul.
(Northeast,
Southeast and
South region).
Geology / Geomorphology
The Mata Atlântica occurs on
Precambrian
rocks of the oriental part of the
Atlantic Shield, including the
São Francisco Craton and the geotectonic provinces
Mantiqueira and Borborema.
It is the only Brazilian biome with significant mountains, standing out the
the
Cenozoic
geomorphological features
Serra do Mar /
Mantiqueira and the
Continental Southeast Rift.
Peaks close to 3.000 height meters represent the highest elevations in East
South America.
Climate / Soils
The
climate of the Mata Atlântica is influenced by the solar radiation of the
tropical and
subtropical
climate zone and by the humid air masses coming from the Atlantic Ocean.
It is characterized by two
seasons; one warm and humid
from November to March (summer) and the other one cool and dry from May to August (winter).
Its
soils eihter derive from terrestrial sedimentation
on the top of mountains and hills, mountain escarpments or feet of the mountains or from marine / fluvial - marine sedimentation at the coastal plains.
Ecosystems / Vegetation / Altitudinal Zones
The biome Mata Atlântica is composed of 9
ecosystems with up to 5
altitudinal zones:
Pioneer Formations
(
mangrove,
restinga and
caixetal),
Tropical Rainforest (dense, open and mixed),
Seasonal Rainforest (semidecidual and decidual) and
Altitude Fields.
Flora / Fauna / Biodiversity
The extraordinary
biodiversity
of the
flora and
fauna of this biome is the result of its geological history,
its tropical / subtropical position, strong climate changes of the past and significant height differences.
Additionally coastal rainforests are richer in terms of biodiversity as inland ones
(for instance the
Amazon Rainforest).
Speleology
The
Speleological Province
Upper
Ribeira Valley /
Paranapiacaba
with the
PETAR,
Intervales and Jacupiranga
state parks
protect the largest number (about 300) of
karstcaves in Brazil.
History / Culture
In addition to its natural beauty, the Mata Atlântica exposes some significant cultural sites, such as
historical trails at
Serra do Mar and
Serra da Bocaina,
prehistorical
sambaquis
in
Superagüi
or
caiçara /
quilombo traditions
in
Juréia-Itatins,
Ilhabela or
Juatinga.
Protected Areas
According to
Conservation International, the Mata Atlântica belongs to the top 5
biodiversity hotspots on Earth.
It comprises the second largest
Biosphere Reserve in the world and about 600 of Brazil's 900
conservation units.
The Atlantic Rainforest
South - East
and
Discovery Coast became part of the
UNESCO -
World Heritage List in 1992.
