Argentina Guide
The Litoral and the Gran Chaco
The Gran Chaco
One of Argentina's forgotten corners and poorest regions, the GRAN CHACO is a land of seemingly unending alluvial plains, with areas of arid thornscrub in the dry west, and subtropical vegetation and palm savannah in the humid east. It has little in the way of dramatic scenery, no impressive historical monuments and few services for the visitor, but if you have a special interest in wildlife you will find it rewarding, provided you avoid the blistering heat of summer. In the sizeable sectors not yet cleared for agriculture, it harbours an exceptional diversity of flora and fauna, making it worth your while to break your journey for a day or two as you cross the region. Bird-watchers fare best: more than three hundred bird species have been recorded in the dry Chaco; and anglers come from all over the world in search of fish such as the dorado.
Parque Nacional Copo
In the northeast corner of Santiago del Estero Province, the Parque Nacional Copo is the best remaining chunk of prime dry Chaco left in the country and the only area of protected land in the Argentine Chaco big enough to provide a sustainable habitat for some of the region's most threatened wildlife, including the elusive Wagner's peccary. Giant and honey anteaters also inhabit the park, as do the threatened Crowned Eagle, the Greater Rhea and the King Vulture. Frequently parched, it's a huge expanse of approximately 1140 square kilometres, with 550 square kilometres of provincial reserve attached to the west.