The Culuene Biological Reserve () is a biological reserve in the state of

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...

, Brazil. It protects an area of

cerrado The Cerrado () is a vast ecoregion of Tropics, tropical savanna in central Brazil, being present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Maranhão, Piauí, Bahia, Minas Gerais, São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Paraná ...

forest in contact with seasonal deciduous forest on the left (west) bank of the Culuene River.

Location

The Culuene Biological Reserve is in the municipality of Paranatinga, Mato Grosso. It has an area of . The reserve is bounded by the Culuene River to the east and the Rio Grande stream to the west. It is in the

Xingu River The Xingu River ( ; ; ) is a river in north Brazil. It is a southeast tributary of the Amazon River and one of the largest clearwater rivers in the Amazon basin, accounting for about 5% of its water. __TOC__ Description and history The fir ...

basin.

History

The reserve covers part of the former Gleba Pantanalzinho. The Culuene State Ecological Reserve was created by state decree 1.387 of 10 January 1989, with an area of . The purpose was to preserve the fauna and flora due to high levels of deforestation, particularly in the headwaters and river banks, and to stop uncontrolled mining that caused silting of the rivers. By ordinance 723 of 26 September 2011 the category was changed and the conservation unit became the Culuene State Biological Reserve. In September 2013 there was a manager for the Culuene Biological Reserve and the

Rio Ronuro Ecological Station Rio Ronuro Ecological Station () is an ecological station in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. It protects an area of contact between Amazon rainforest in the north and Cerrado semi-deciduous forest in the south. Since being created in 1998 it ha ...

, and two agents for the two conservation units. SEMA/MT stated that the protection plans for the two units was under review. Ordinance 622 of 15 December 2014 created the consultative council. As of June 2015 regularization of land ownership was complete but the reserve still did not have a management plan.

Environment

The Culuene Biological Reserve is in the center of the Brazilian

. Vegetation is open wooded cerrado, with and without gallery forest, in an area of contact between cerrado, seasonal forest and seasonal semi-deciduous forest. Fauna include

marsh deer The marsh deer (''Blastocerus dichotomus'') is a species of deer native to South America. It is the largest living species of South American deer. This is the only species in the genus ''Blastocerus''. Distribution It is found in Argentin ...

(''Blastocerus dichotomus''),

collared peccary The collared peccary (''Dicotyles tajacu'') is a peccary, a species of artiodactyl (even-toed) mammal in the family Peccary, Tayassuidae found in North America, North, Central America, Central, and South America. It is the only member of the gen ...

(''Pecari tajacu''),

lowland paca The lowland paca (''Cuniculus paca''), also known as the spotted paca, is a large rodent found in tropical and sub-tropical America, from east-central Mexico to northern Argentina, and has been introduced to Cuba and Algeria. The animal is call ...

(''Cuniculus paca''),

capybara The capybara or greater capybara (''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris'') is the largest living rodent, native to South America. It is a member of the genus '' Hydrochoerus''. The only other extant member is the lesser capybara (''Hydrochoerus isthmi ...

(''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris''),

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

(''Panthera onca'') and birds such as

Muscovy duck The Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') is a duck native to the Americas, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. The species has been Domestic Muscovy duck, domesticated, and feral Muscovy ducks can b ...

(''Cairina moschata''),

great egret The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, great white egret, or great white heron, is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and southern Europe. R ...

(''Ardea alba''),

green-winged macaw The red-and-green macaw (''Ara chloropterus''), also known as the green-winged macaw, is a large, mostly-red macaw of the genus ''Ara''. It is popular in aviculture, and is the second most commonly kept macaw species after the Blue and Yellow. ...

(''Ara chloropterus'') and

toco toucan The toco toucan (''Ramphastos toco'') is a species of bird in the toucan Family (biology), family Ramphastidae. It is the largest species of toucan and has a distinctive appearance, with a black body, a white throat, chest and uppertail-Covert ( ...

(''Ramphastos toco''). The main threats are from fires, pressures caused by the expansion of the agricultural frontier, contamination of the river by agricultural chemicals and intrusion from the private properties that surround the reserve. It is influenced by the small Paranatinga II hydroelectric plant on the Culuene River. A 2009 analysis of conservation units in Mato Grosso rated the Culuene Ecological Reserve as having relatively low biological importance. The reserve and the Rio Ronuro Ecological Station were subject to high levels of threats and pressures compared to others. The reserve was ranked as the least effectively managed among the fully protected areas other than parks in the state.

Notes

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Culuene Biological Reserve Biological reserves of Brazil Protected areas established in 1989 1989 establishments in Brazil Protected areas of Mato Grosso