The
Iberá Wetlands (in Spanish,
Esteros del Iberá, from
GuaraníGuaraní, specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guaraní , is an indigenous language of South America that belongs to the Tupí-Guaraní subfamily of the Tupian languages. It is one of the official languages of Paraguay , where it is spoken by 88% of the population, with half of the...
ý berá "bright water") are a mix of
swampA swamp is a wetland featuring temporary or permanent inundation of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a substantial number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types...
s,
bogA bog or mire is a wetland type that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—usually mosses, but also lichens in Arctic climates....
s, stagnant
lakeA lake is a terrain feature , a body of liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the bottom of basin and moves slowly if it moves at all. Another definition is, a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size that is surrounded by land...
s,
lagoonA lagoon is a body of comparatively shallow salt or brackish water separated from the deeper sea by a shallow or exposed sandbank, coral reef, or similar feature. Thus, the enclosed body of water behind a barrier reef or barrier islands or enclosed by an atoll reef is called a lagoon. This...
s, natural
sloughThe word slough has several meanings related to wetland or aquatic features....
and courses of water in the center and center-north of the . The
Esteros are the second-largest
wetlandA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water. Wetlands include swamps, marshes, and bogs, among others. The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater,...
s in
worldWorld is a highly common name for the planet Earth, but it was originally used to mean the sum of human civilization living on it, specifically human experience, history, or the 'human condition' in general....
after
PantanalThe Pantanal is a tropical wetland and the world's largest wetland of any kind. It lies mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul but extends into Mato Grosso as well as into portions of Bolivia and Paraguay, sprawling over an area estimated at between and...
in
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
. They are of pluvial origin, with a total area 15,000 to 20,000 km².
Since 1982, the wetlands are part of a protected area (the Iberá Natural Reserve), which comprises 13,000 km² (14% of the surface area of Corrientes, the largest protected area in Argentina).
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The
Iberá Wetlands (in Spanish,
Esteros del Iberá, from
GuaraníGuaraní, specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guaraní , is an indigenous language of South America that belongs to the Tupí-Guaraní subfamily of the Tupian languages. It is one of the official languages of Paraguay , where it is spoken by 88% of the population, with half of the...
ý berá "bright water") are a mix of
swampA swamp is a wetland featuring temporary or permanent inundation of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a substantial number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types...
s,
bogA bog or mire is a wetland type that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—usually mosses, but also lichens in Arctic climates....
s, stagnant
lakeA lake is a terrain feature , a body of liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the bottom of basin and moves slowly if it moves at all. Another definition is, a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size that is surrounded by land...
s,
lagoonA lagoon is a body of comparatively shallow salt or brackish water separated from the deeper sea by a shallow or exposed sandbank, coral reef, or similar feature. Thus, the enclosed body of water behind a barrier reef or barrier islands or enclosed by an atoll reef is called a lagoon. This...
s, natural
sloughThe word slough has several meanings related to wetland or aquatic features....
and courses of water in the center and center-north of the . The
Esteros are the second-largest
wetlandA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water. Wetlands include swamps, marshes, and bogs, among others. The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater,...
s in
worldWorld is a highly common name for the planet Earth, but it was originally used to mean the sum of human civilization living on it, specifically human experience, history, or the 'human condition' in general....
after
PantanalThe Pantanal is a tropical wetland and the world's largest wetland of any kind. It lies mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul but extends into Mato Grosso as well as into portions of Bolivia and Paraguay, sprawling over an area estimated at between and...
in
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
. They are of pluvial origin, with a total area 15,000 to 20,000 km².
Since 1982, the wetlands are part of a protected area (the Iberá Natural Reserve), which comprises 13,000 km² (14% of the surface area of Corrientes, the largest protected area in Argentina). Iberá is also one of the most important fresh water reservoirs in the continent. In 2002 an area of 245 km² has been listed as a Wetland of International Importance under the
Ramsar conventionThe Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i.e., to stem the progressive encroachment on and loss of wetlands now and in the future, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural,...
.
The Natural Reserve is known for its
biodiversityBiodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or for the entire Earth. Biodiversity is often used as a measure of the health of biological systems...
, including four species that have been declared "provincial natural monuments": the
neotropical river otterThe Neotropical Otter , Lontra longicaudis, is an otter species found in Central America, South America and the island of Trinidad....
, the
maned wolfThe Maned Wolf is the largest canid of South America, resembling a large fox with reddish fur.This mammal is found in open and semi-open habitats, especially grasslands with scattered bushes and trees, in south-eastern Brazil , Paraguay, northern Argentina, Bolivia east...
, the
pampas deerPampas deer, Ozotoceros bezoarticus Linnaeus 1766, live in the grasslands of South America at low elevations. They are also known as Venado or Gama. Their habitat includes water and hills, often with winter drought, and grass that is high enough to cover a standing deer...
, and the
marsh deerThe Marsh Deer, Blastocerus dichotomus , is the largest deer species from South America reaching a length of 2 meters and a height of 1.2 meters at the rump. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay...
. It is also home to the two Argentine species of
alligatorAlligators and caimans are archosaurs, species of crocodilians and form the family Alligatoridae .- True alligators :...
, the
Yacare caimanThe Yacare Caiman is a species of caiman found in central South America, including northeastern Argentina, eastern Bolivia, south-west Brazil , and the rivers of Paraguay. They grow to about 2 to 3 meters and have a diet of fish, molluscs, mammals , and crustaceans.-External links:*...
(
yacaré negro) and the
broad-snouted caimanThe broad-snouted caiman is a crocodilian reptile found in eastern and central South America, including southeastern Brazil, northern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. It is found mostly in freshwater marshes, swamps, and mangroves. Its notable physical characteristic is its broad snout...
(
yacaré overo), as well as the
capybaraThe capybara The capybara The capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris In page 57, Darwin says "The largest gnawing animal in the world, the Hydrochærus Capybara (the water-hog), is here also common."
...
(the world's largest
rodentRodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
) and about 350
birdBirds are winged, bipedal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay eggs. There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Birds range in size from the Bee Hummingbird to the ...
species.