The Land of Giants
Giganotosaurus, argentinosaurus, patagotitan... Argentine Patagonia collects superlatives! It is in 1882, in the region of Neuquén, that were discovered the first bones of dinosaurs in Patagonia. Then, it was only in the 1990s that the region was revealed as a deposit of incredible fossils. At the end of the 20th century, in less than ten years, the Patagonian No Man's Land became the cradle of spectacular excavations revealing a multitude of dinosaur species that were previously unknown. In particular, in the small town of El Chocon, nicknamed "The Valley of the Dinosaurs", traces of iguanodons, carnivores four meters high, were imprinted in the mud about 500 million years ago. Thanks to erosion, the fossil-printed soil eventually resurfaced the bowels of its past. In July 1993, a mechanic stumbled on a huge femur of 1.43 meters that belonged to the largest carnivore on the planet: the giganotosaurus, a monster of 14.50 meters and 8 tons with teeth up to 21 centimeters. Later, the argentinosaurus was recognized as the largest herbivore in the world with its 40 meters long and its weight exceeding 100 tons. Then, a twist in the year 2012 in the province of Chubut when a ranch reported the presence of fossilized bones on its land. Once they arrived on site, the paleontologists made an astonishing discovery: 150 fossils were unearthed and no less than six animals identified. About 100 million years ago, these young titanosaurs were the largest species of terrestrial dinosaurs ever identified. Its name: patagotitan mayorum. After several years of study, the team of paleontologists officialized its name in 2017: the dinosaur weighed nearly 70 tons (the weight of 10 elephants), measured up to 37 meters and reached 8 meters at the withers. Its name is of course a tribute to the region of Patagonia where it was discovered, but also a nod to the Mayo family, owner of the ranch, which hosted the team of paleontologists during the excavations.
A varied fauna
Among all the biodiversity of the territory, we also meet some endemic animals, that is to say that exist nowhere else on the planet! If some animals can be found in different regions of the territory, like the puma and the condor, each region has its stars. The Pampa is populated by armadillos, foxes, martens, wild cats, maras (a type of Patagonian hare), deer, ostriches (rheas), falcons, herons and plovers. In Atlantic Patagonia, the stars are the penguins, which are not penguins, but Magellanic penguins or penguins, but also the sea wolves(lobos marinos) and elephant seals. It is possible to meet a wide variety of marine mammals including the emblematic whale: blue whale, humpback whale, right whale, fin whale, killer whale, sperm whale... Queens of the oceans, they are part of a protected fauna, and the right whale is the subject of a special conservation program: declared Natural Monument Ballena Franca Austral, it is protected since 1984 in Argentina. This marine mammal of 12 or 13 meters in length can weigh between 30 and 40 tons when adult. Its head occupies about a quarter of the total body. We will also discover the black-browed albatross, the royal albatross, the marbled godwit, the osprey, various species of sandpipers, the vigua cormorant, the brown whitetail, the American kestrel, the black-necked swan, herons, ibises, four species of kingfisher, the leucomel robin, the house sparrow, several species of flycatchers and gulls, the striped warbler, the slate-colored piercer, the little tern, Hall's petrel, plovers, shearwaters, teals, toucans (red-bellied, Baillon's and toco).. The list is far from being exhaustive: in all, some 1,027 species are recognized as present, or passing through, by specialists.
In Mesopotamia and in the Chaco, the fauna is varied and abundant. Among the mammals that live in this region are various species of monkeys, ocelots, anteaters, tapirs, peccaries and raccoons. The small mammals coati, with pointed noses will surely come to rummage in your picnic bags in the park of Iguazú. The flamingo, the hummingbird and the parrot are also present. The largest rodent in South America, the carpincho and crocodiles, the yacarés, can be found. But the jaguar, called "yaguareté" is surely the most emblematic animal of the northern provinces. It is the largest feline in America and is now protected and declared a National Natural Monument. In the Sierras de Córdoba, the strong human presence before the colonization of the region limited the development of the local fauna, and the jaguar present until the 19th century disappeared, as well as the cougar in the 1960s. In the wildest places, foxes, hares, armadillos and guanacos can be found. In Andean Patagonia, we find the smallest deer in the world. There are two species: the northern and the southern pudu. The first one lives in the north of the Andes and has a dark orange-brown coat on its neck. The southern pudú lives in the dense forests of Patagonia and can climb to high altitudes above 3,000 meters. Its coat protects it more from the cold and is entirely reddish-brown. However, it remains discreet and it is very difficult to come across it. The species has been classified as vulnerable by the IUCN, it has almost disappeared due to deforestation. The huemul, or southern Andean deer is also in this case. In Tierra del Fuego, sea lions and dolphins make up the main part of the marine fauna, which can be found along the canals of the South Fuegian. A very large number of trout have been introduced by man in the rivers. Cod, pollock, mullet, rock fish, squid or the centolla (spider crab or giant crab) have a great time out to sea. Among the 197 species of birds represented, the most impressive specimens are of course the howler albatross and the Andean condor. But there are also flamingos, parakeets, owls, eagles, falcons, hawks, barnacle geese, hummingbirds, sparrows, ibises, kingfishers... Giant shearwaters, also very emblematic birds of Patagonia, compete in gliding with the black-browed albatross. Today, a problem is posed by the large number of beavers that build dams to plant their lodges on the peaceful expanse of water thus obtained, flooding the surrounding forest and thus destroying precious native species.
Millennium forests and petrified woods
From the tropical vegetation in the northern forests to the Patagonian scrubland, Argentina's vegetation varies greatly depending on the region. In the forests of the Northeast and Chaco, the tropical flora is composed of palm trees, rosewood, guaiac, jacaranda and red quebracho (from which tannin is extracted). In the northwestern altiplano, the climate is desert-like, with mineral mountains covered by the famous cardones and acacias. In the Sierras de Córdoba, we find mainly deciduous forests of rather small size, because the region is at high altitude, including typical species such as the tabaquillo(olylepis australis) which lives from 1,200 to 3,500 years, and the quebracho blanco(Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco), a very rare variety used in the construction of furniture in particular and in traditional medicine. In the Pampa, trees are rare, although Argentines have tried to import drought-resistant species such as eucalyptus, sycamore and acacia. Although the steppe has a miserable flora, it is nevertheless a witness to the past of life on Earth and the geological richness of the region. In the steppes of Atlantic Patagonia, only grassy bushes(coirón) and a few grasses resist the harshness of the climate. The most characteristic of the bushes is the calafate, which gave its name to the city. Then, the higher you go, the more the relief changes. The coigüe(Nothofagus dombeyi) begins to appear as well as the lenga(Nothofagus pumilio), the roble(Nothofagus obliqua), a variety of oak, and the ñirre(Nothofagus antartica). The dominant species, Nothofagus is a type of beech, whose other regions of settlement are New Zealand, Tasmania, Australia and New Guinea. There are also magnificent forests of conifers (fir, cypress, cedar) and alerce, but above all the beautiful arrayanes, of which the only concentration in the world is in the vicinity of Nahuel Huapi. They are said to have inspired the sets of Walt Disney's film Bambi. Some trees, like the larch, would be more than 3,000 years old here! Resistant to cold summers and violent winds, the forests extend to the south where they are sometimes impenetrable, guardians of a flora still little known and studied. These Magellanic forests are qualified as "primary", that is to say untouched and not exploited by man. We can find the coigüe, the roble de Magallanes(Nothofagus betuloides), as well as luma and canelo. The petrified forests are particularly worth seeing because they are rare and precious. Very interesting geological phenomenon, they report the least explosive past of the region: millions of years ago, at the time of the Jurassic and therefore of the dinosaurs, giant trees of 90 meters high populated the region. The Andes mountain range had not yet formed and the winds from the Pacific Ocean brought abundant rainfall. At the time of the cetacean, the Andes Mountains emerged from the bowels of the Earth accompanied by winds of more than 300 km/h. The trees are then uprooted by the violence of the storms and the earthquakes, the volcanic eruptions spread their lava and their ashes. Buried alive, the trees sank into a muddy soil where the ash mixed with minerals from the rain and soil. Trapped in the earth, the tree trunks were crystallized by the silica that penetrated each of its cells. The organic matter decomposed to leave a wood fossilized by the stone. Although sunken, they eventually rose to the surface thanks to wind and erosion. These petrified forests are found in the provinces of Santa Cruz, San Juan and La Rioja. In the Parque Nacional Monumento Natural Bosques Petrificados are the largest petrified trees in the world.
Biodiversity under threat
In Argentina, more than 300,000 hectares of forest disappear every year. At the origin of this ecological disaster is Argentina's desire for economic recovery: 50% of the country's arable land is dedicated to transgenic soybeans, whose price has been boosted by Chinese demand. This economic success is due to the many ways in which this legume can be used. Soybean oil is the second most consumed food oil in the world. The plant is also widely used by meat producers (mainly pork, chicken and duck) for its high protein content. In fact, European livestock are raised in our country but fed with soy-based proteins, and are fattened thanks to the immense production of soy in South America. Moreover, genetically modified soybeans are sprayed with glyphosate, the famous herbicide to which they are perfectly resistant and which, in addition to eliminating weeds, has serious consequences on our health. Finally, soy is an agrofuel that has not yet kept its promises. But the sanitary and social consequences of this culture are still unknown. On the environmental level, this intensive monoculture causes deforestation, massive pesticide spraying and soil impoverishment. The forest of El Impenetrable is particularly threatened by this massive deforestation. This forest of 40 000 km², in the northwest of the Gran Chaco, is one of the most deforested areas of the planet. It has characteristic deciduous species such as quebracho colorado and blanco, large thorny trees, as well as high cacti, all kinds of lianas and orchids. It is full of wild animals: pumas, jaguars, armadillos, tamandua, anteaters, anteaters, tropical birds, some of which are in danger of extinction... A diversity due to the inequalities of precipitations, very important in the east thanks to humid winds coming from the Atlantic, rare in the west, a zone which undergoes a very arid dry season and a very strong rainy season. The clear-cutting of this forest for decades has led to desertification and increased flooding. Intensive agriculture and timber exploitation are gradually disfiguring this region, but the forest was declared a National Park in 2014, putting it under the protection of the state, which wishes to protect the fauna and flora, but also to develop a tourism economy in the region.
