Cerrado Protected Areas

The Cerrado Protected Areas: Chapada dos Veadeiros and Emas National Parks was inscribed in 2001 as a World Heritage Site. The protected areas are located in the state of Goiás in the Central-West region of Brazil.

Situated on the central plateau of the Brazilian Highlands, both national parks help protect the Cerrado biome, one of the world's oldest and most diverse ecosystems. For millennia, these sites have served as a refuge for many rare and endemic species of fauna and flora, including during climatic fluctuations.

The flora of the Cerrado is rich. It includes 350 and 400 species of vascular plants per hectare, including many endemic plants.

The Cerrado Protected Areas contain populations of large mammals, including the giant anteater, giant armadillo, maned wolf, jaguar and pampas deer, and the rhea, the largest bird in South America.

The Cerrado Protected Areas site is also significant in maintaining the hydrological regime as, due to its geological features and soils, it is proving to be a key area for aquifer recharge and the alimentation of several watercourses that supply power to the Amazon Basin and the Pantanal, in the La Plata Basin.

The Cerrado Protected Areas also contain populations of large mammals, including the giant anteater, giant armadillo, maned wolf, jaguar and pampas deer, and the rhea, the largest bird of South America.

Both sites remain essential for maintaining the biodiversity in the Cerrado, especially in any future climate change scenario.

Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park

Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park is located in the Chapada dos Veadeiros, an ancient plateau with an estimated age of 1.8 billion years.

The National Park is noted for its waterfalls, dramatic canyons and quartz crystal rock formations. It occupies an area of 655 sq km (253 sq mi) in the municipalities of Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Cavalcante, and Colinas do Sul.

The Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation maintains the park.

Emas National Park

Emas National Park is located between the states of Goiás, and Mato Grosso do Sul in the Central-West Region of Brazil.

The National Park covers 1,320 sq km (510 sq mi) and shows a typical cerrado ecosystem; a treeless savanna with tall termite houses and impressive wildlife: the giant anteater, the maned wolf, giant armadillo, pampas deer and the namesake greater rhea, among others.

Large soybean plantations dominate the surrounding area.