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Localization

The Caiman Ecological Refuge is located in the Southern Region of Pantanal, in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, more precisely in the "Pantanal of Miranda", near the city of Miranda, one of the 11 sub-regions of that vast plain sustaining 210 thousand square kilometers, shared by Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay.

	The Pantanal Pantanal is defined as a vast plain, surrounded by the Bodoquena Mountain Ridge to the South, the Brazilian Plateau to the east, the Mato-grossenses Plateau to the north and by the Serra do Amolar and Maçico do Urucum to the west. The low altitude relief, predominantly flat, makes Pantanal an immense basin inside the continent where the waters of the rivers that spring form its banks, cross through and flood the area. Fed by many rivers and ponds, the Paraguay River is the main path of waters in Pantanal. It crosses the biome from north to south, connecting Pantanal to the Paraná River Basin - Prata River. As it flows south, with increasing difficulty, huge quantities of water are forced throughout the Southern part of Pantanal. The slim declivity of the Paraguay River - approximately 20-30 centimeters per kilometer run - exerts great influence in the plain's flood basin. The slow water flowing off through the river favors the inundation of the region - constant during the summer - for, with the torrential rains of the season, the water spreads more easily taking over the Pantanal scenery. Meanwhile, large quantities of water, hundreds of cubic kilometers per year, are lost through direct evaporation to the atmosphere. Pantanal may be justly considered the largest "window" of fresh water evaporation of the world. In the Native Indian legends and in the first drawn maps, Pantanal is remembered as a great lake filled with islands, the "mar dos Xaraés" - "Xaraés Sea".

The Pantanal

Pantanal is defined as a vast plain, surrounded by the Bodoquena Mountain Ridge to the South, the Brazilian Plateau to the east, the Mato-grossenses Plateau to the north and by the Serra do Amolar and Maçico do Urucum to the west. The low altitude relief, predominantly flat, makes Pantanal an immense basin inside the continent where the waters of the rivers that spring form its banks, cross through and flood the area.

Fed by many rivers and ponds, the Paraguay River is the main path of waters in Pantanal. It crosses the biome from north to south, connecting Pantanal to the Paraná River Basin - Prata River. As it flows south, with increasing difficulty, huge quantities of water are forced throughout the Southern part of Pantanal.

The slim declivity of the Paraguay River - approximately 20-30 centimeters per kilometer run - exerts great influence in the plain's flood basin. The slow water flowing off through the river favors the inundation of the region - constant during the summer - for, with the torrential rains of the season, the water spreads more easily taking over the Pantanal scenery. Meanwhile, large quantities of water, hundreds of cubic kilometers per year, are lost through direct evaporation to the atmosphere. Pantanal may be justly considered the largest "window" of fresh water evaporation of the world.

In the Native Indian legends and in the first drawn maps, Pantanal is remembered as a great lake filled with islands, the "mar dos Xaraés" - "Xaraés Sea".

After the rainy season and, consequently, the flood, begins the intermediate season. The water accumulated in the Pantanal fields during the summer slowly starts to dry and evaporate. Day-after-day the vegetation becomes drier and filled with yellowish tones while the animals seek the surrounding lagoons and ponds where they may still find water and food.

In the winter months in the southern region of Pantanal, the lack of water in the plain is a determinant factor - the rains are rare, the air is dry, and there are very few places where water can be found. Most of the water is confined to large bays and rivers which are disputed by mammals, birds and reptiles. The fish population concentrates inside these waters, fighting inch-by-inch for food and struggling to flee from caimans, storks, egrets and tourist fishermen.

The rains will come in the end of September, when spring rolls around again. The landscape starts to become greener and the trees slowly flourish.