The contemporary Tijuca National Park and its surrounding forests are largely the result of reforestation. In the 1700s, forests in the future park around Rio de Janeiro were cleared for fuel, coffee growing and livestock.[1] The small streams in the former forest were a significant source of the city's water supply, and with variable rainfall the city began to experience water shortages and flash floods.
Emperor Pedro II of Brazil established federal control over the area in 1861, and efforts began to restore the former forest on the bare slopes and abandoned fields.[2] The re-planting of trees was carried out by 6 enslaved persons.[3] Their names were Eleutério, Constantino, Manuel, Mateus, Leopoldo, and Maria.[4] These people were enslaved by the Portuguese government and under the supervision of the Tijuca Forest manager Major Manuel Gomes Archer.[5] They planted over 100,000 trees from 1861 to 1887.[1] Around this time, a cog railway was built to carry passengers to the top of Corcovado, and between 1922 and 1931 the famous statue Christ the Redeemer was built.[6]
Tijuca National Park is claimed to be the world's largest urban forest,[1] covering some 39.58 square kilometres (15.28sqmi),[9] although this title is disputed with Johannesburg, South Africa.[10]
The park shares its name with the bairros (neighborhoods) of Tijuca and Barra da Tijuca nearby. The word Tijuca comes from the Tupi language and means marsh, a reference to the Tijuca Lagoon in the contemporary Barra da Tijuca.
It is located in a mountainous region which encompasses the Tijuca Massif. Among its impressive peaks are the Pedra da Gávea, Corcovado and Pico da Tijuca. The forest and mountains form a natural boundary that separates the West Zone of Rio from the rest of the city, as well as dividing the North and South Zones.
One favela exists in the Tijuca Forest, called Mata Machado. Its inhabitants are mainly the descendants of those who migrated to the region in the 1930s to take part in the replanting effort. Though conditions have improved recently under the Favela-Bairro Project, it still contributes to environmental degradation in the forest.[11]
Ecology
The Forest is home to hundreds of species of plants and wildlife, many threatened by extinction, and found only in the Atlantic Forestbiome. The vegetation is so dense that scientists have estimated that ambient temperatures in surrounding areas have been lowered by up to 9°C. The forest also contains some 30 waterfalls.[2]
Due to the reforestation efforts of the late 19th century, about half of the area of a park is a mix of about 30 native tree species and ten introduced species.[1] It is currently threatened by frequent, accidental fires set by humans, a problem compounded by colonization by more flammable grasses displacing native vegetation.[1]
Tourism
A map of the Floresta da Tijuca portion of the park in azulejos
Given its proximity to the city, the park receives heavy use: in 2016, the park received 3,305,010 visitors.[12] The park contains a number of attractions, most famously the colossal sculpture of Christ the Redeemer. Other attractions include the Cascatinha Waterfall; the Mayrink Chapel, with murals painted by Cândido Portinari; the pagoda-style gazebo at Vista Chinesa; and a giant granite table called the Mesa do Imperador ("Emperor's Table").
There are numerous hiking trails. Common destinations are: Diamantina's waterfall, Parrot's Beak (Bico do Papagaio), Tijuca's Peak (Pico da Tijuca), Cave Circuit (Circuito das Grutas), Archer's Hill (Morro do Archer), Anhanguera's Hill (Morro da Anhanguera), the Excelsior Lookout (Mirante do Excelsior) and the Bat's Cave (Caverna dos Morcegos).
The Catimbau National Park is a national park in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. It protects a semi-arid area of caatinga with sandstone caverns and caves in which prehistoric art has been found.
Saint-Hilaire/Lange National Park is a national park in Paraná, Brazil.
Tinguá Biological Reserve is a biological reserve in the Serra do Tinguá mountains, Rio de Janeiro state, eastern Brazil.
Anavilhanas National Park is a national park that encompasses a huge river archipelago in the Rio Negro in the state of Amazonas, Brazil. It is part of a World Heritage Site.
Petrópolis Environmental Protection Area is a protected area of Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil.
Cairuçu Environmental Protection Area is a protected area in the south of Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. It contains an important remnant of the Atlantic Forest biome.
The Furna Feia National Park is a national park in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil that contains a large cave system.
The Marapendi Natural Municipal Park is a municipal nature park, a public recreation facility of approximately 155 hectares within the Marapendi Natural Reserve, located in the Barra da Tijuca and Recreio neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and part of a protected area for the preservation of native plants and animals.
National Parks are a legally-defined type of protected area of Brazil. The first parks were created in the 1930s with other parks being gradually added, typically protecting a natural monument such as a waterfall or gorge near to a coastal population centre. At least two early parks were later submerged by hydroelectric reservoirs. The first park in the Amazon rainforest was inaugurated in 1974. Today the national parks cover a huge area, particularly in the Amazon. However, many of them suffer from outstanding claims for compensation from former owners or users of the land, and many lack the management plans, physical infrastructure and personnel needed to support public visits. The responsible government agency does not have the capacity to provide services such as food and drink, souvenir sales and guided tours, and bureaucracy has delayed letting the private sector bid on providing such services.
Rio Novo National Park is a national park in the state of Pará, Brazil.
The Passa Quatro National Forest is a national forest in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. It contains an area of Atlantic Forest.
The Mananciais do Rio Paraíba do Sul Environmental Protection Area is an environmental protection area in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.
The Paraíso Ecological Station was an ecological station in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 2013, it was absorbed into the Três Picos State Park.
The Araponga Municipal Nature Park is a municipal nature park in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The Guanabara Ecological Station is an ecological station in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It protects an area of mangroves in Guanabara Bay, not far from the city of Rio de Janeiro.
The Suruí Environmental Protection Area is a municipal Environmental protection area in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The Carioca Mosaic is a protected area mosaic in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It includes various federal, state and municipal conservation units in and around the city of Rio de Janeiro.
The Mendanha State Park (Portuguese: Parque Estadual do Mendanha is a state park in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The National Forest of Três Barras is a Federal Conservation Unit of sustainable use, managed by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation - ICMBio, in the municipality of Três Barras, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Rio de Janeiro:
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
