Kawésqar National Park

Kawésqar National Park
Alacalufes National Reserve
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Seno Ballenas
Map of Chile
Location	from Canal Concepción to Chilean Sea through Strait of Magellan, Chile
Coordinates	51°51′S 74°19′W (barycenter)[1]
Area	7,023,542 acres[2]
Established	July 22, 1969 (1969-07-22)[3]
Visitors	1,742[4] (in 2016)
Governing body	Corporación Nacional Forestal

Kawésqar National Park (Spanish: Parque nacional Kawésqar), formerly Alacalufes National Reserve, is the second largest national park in Chile and one of the largest in the world with an area of 7,023,542 acres.^[5] It is located between Canal Concepción and the open Pacific Ocean, on both sides of Strait of Magellan in Chile. Its area covers parts of two out of the four provinces of Magallanes and Chilean Antártica Region: Magallanes Province and Última Esperanza Province.

Description

There are two types of weather within the national park: "high humidity, mild cold" and, "Isothermal tundra", with a mean temperature of 7.2 °C (45.0 °F) and 6.5 °C (43.7 °F), respectively. Rainfall can reach up to 2,450 mm (96 in) per year.

The park is composed of western archipelagos; its landscape is filled with low mountain-like islands and islets and many channels and fjords. Magellanic rainforest is the dominant ecosystem of the park.

There are around 24 different species of mammal in the park, and the nearby national reserve is home to numerous marine species.^[5]

Culture

The Kawésqar people arrived about seven thousand years ago.^[5] They were nomadic hunter-gatherers.^[6][7] The park is named in their honor.^[8]

Notes

1. "Alacalufes National Reserve". protectedplanet.net. Archived from the original on 2013-10-16. Retrieved 2012-09-08.
2. "National Parks of Chile". CONAF. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
3. "Alacalufes National Reserve". CONAF. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
4. "Visitor Statistics" (PDF). National Forest Corporation (Chile). 31 January 2017. p. 3. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
5. "La Ruta de los Parques » Kawésqar National Park" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-05-11.
6. Dhalleine, Timothy. "The Second Largest National Park in Chile - EcoCamp Patagonia". www.ecocamp.travel. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
7. Tolep, Jenny. "Experience Untouched Patagonia in Kawésqar National Park". www.cascada.travel. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
8. "Kawésqar National Park". Fundación Rewilding Chile. Retrieved 12 May 2022.

References

• "Capítulo IV: El Uso de los Recursos Naturales en el Desarrollo de la Region, El Magallanes de antaño" (PDF) (in Spanish). Comisión Nacional de Medio Ambiente (CONAMA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 August 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2017.

External links

• Official website