Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument

Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument (Portuguese: Monumento Natural dos Pontões Capixabas) is a natural monument in the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil.

Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument
Monumento Natural dos Pontões Capixabas
View from the Pedra do Camelo
Map showing the location of Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument
Map showing the location of Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument
Nearest cityColatina, Espírito Santo
Coordinates19°13′37″S 40°47′53″W / 19.227°S 40.798°W / -19.227; -40.798
DesignationNatural monument
AdministratorICMBio

Location edit

The Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument lies in the Atlantic Forest biome. It covers 17,443 hectares (43,100 acres).[1] It is in the municipalities of Águia Branca and Pancas in the state of Espírito Santo.[2]

The terrain includes the escarpment of the Serra da Mantiqueira and part of the Jequitinhonha-Pardo plateau. The streams are in the watershed of the Pancas River, a tributary of the Doce River. Average annual rainfall is 1,250 millimetres (49 in). Average temperature is 24 °C (75 °F). Altitudes range from 120 to 1,000 metres (390 to 3,280 ft). The conservation unit holds a remnant of dense rainforest.[2]

History edit

It was created as a national park by decree on 19 December 2002.[1] It became part of the Central Atlantic Forest Ecological Corridor, created in 2002.[3] Law 11.686 of 2 June 2008 changed the designation of the Pontões Capixabas National Park to the Pontões Capixabas Natural Monument.[2] The unit is administered by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation.[1] The conservation unit is classed as IUCN protected area category III (natural monument or feature). The primary objective is to preserve the rocky features, the associated flora and fauna, and the landscape.[2] The cougar (Puma concolor) is a protected species in the unit.[1]

Notes edit

Sources edit

  • Lamas, Ivana Reis; Crepaldi, Maria Otávia; Mesquita, Carlos Alberto Bernardo (2015), Uma Rede no Corredor (PDF) (in Portuguese), Conservação Internacional (CI-Brasil), ISBN 978-85-98830-28-5, retrieved 2016-10-22
  • Monumento Natural dos Pontões Capixabas (in Portuguese), Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation, retrieved 2016-05-02
  • Unidade de Conservação: Monumento Natural dos Pontões Capixabas (in Portuguese), MMA: Ministério do Meio Ambiente, retrieved 2016-05-02