Demény István: Dél-Amerika és az Antarktisz-félsziget (2008) / 1060-2008

ARGENTINA TIERRA DEL FUEGO PROVINCE Sierra de 1 Inju-Goiyin t} Beau vote

; Lago Fagnano o Karr» J, Martinez /Cerro Toneüi ± t Á. Grande Rio Grande 240 Km r.Hito *XXIV Glacíar -Martial Cerro^fo iuanaco \ i^ushuaia B- Ushuaia Golondrina 'Isla Estorbo 5, Beagle Channel t Co. cwmiS^JTßUäla Cp^ >? I Cordon A 'p % y* CHILE Kelp goose female SYMBOLS ON THE MAP OF TIERRA DEL FUEGO NATIONAL PARK KiaM cormorant Fauna Tierra del Fuego National Park has a limited variety of fauna with but 20 species of mammals and ninety species of birds. There are no amphibians on the island. One of the mammals which is most easily encountered is the endemic Fuegan Red Fox, tame and abundant. The herbivorous Guanaco is mostly a denizen of the heights, only descending to the sheltered interior valleys during the Winter. Four species of small rodents are abundant but not frequently seen by the visitor. The little Southern Seaotter has its holts on the shores of Lapataia Bay. The most attractive and abundant birds are three species of Sheld-geese the Upland, the Ashyheaded and the Kelp, this last living on the sea-coast and feeding on sea-weed exposed at low tide. The difference between the sexes of this last is remarkable, the male being all white, his female markedly patterned. Noisy Buffnecked Ibis are also to be seen on the short grass. In the woods the activities and calls of the enormous Introduced The maritime animals coast Decades ago several species of exotic mammals were released on the main island of Tierra del Fuego for supposedly economic reasons. Rabbits, Beavers, Musk Rats and the mainland Patagonian Grey Fox all established themselves well in the fuegian ecosystem which is not prepared for such invaders, and all have caused very serious alterations to the landscape and woods, even to the native fauna. Such destruction can be seen in the areas where Beavers are active. 'egetation The vegetation type of this national park is Subantarctic Southern Beech Woods which correspond to the southern Andes, this being its southernmost extremity in the Magellanic biogeographical district. Included are: high Andean steppe, southern beech woods of the tall deciduous (Lenga) and evergreen (Guindo or Coihue de Magallanes) species, and peat bogs. Lenga is the more widely distributed tree with pure stands cloaking the mountainsides up to the tree-line at 600 meters above sea level. Guindo -jlSStSl iSiSÄil grows in the damper places and valley bottoms, usually mixed with Lenga such as in the Pipo river valley and on south-facing slopes. Abundant are the hemiparasitic local "mistletoe" (Misodehdrum) and a fungus known as 'Indian bread" (Cyttaria sp) both growing on tree branches. Down by the shores of the Beagle Channel where there is greater humidity grow pure stands of the evergreen Guindo. Here too are interspersed specimens of Winter's Bark (Drymis) and Pickwood Maytenus National Park J Fishing A. • allowed A" Jk Free ./•^mpground GN fl Viewing • Organized •ok Interpretive Trail Gendarmeriaf border guards overlool Restaurant Park HQ campground Ranger Station Magellanic woodpecker draw our attention to the redheaded male, or the female with her long, floppy, forwards-curling crest. Great and White-tufted Grebes, Crested Ducks, Southern Widgeon, Brown Pintails are all on the water or nearby, Black-crowned Night-herons in the trees. Black-chested Buzzard-eagles, Chimango, Crested and Austral Caracaras and the small American Kestrel are the birds of prey. Andean Condors are often to be seen gliding along the ridges on the wind. The coastal area of the park has a special flora and fauna. Some plants are Sea Pink (Armeria

) and Diddledee (Empetrum rubrum)

,

, Iichens and mosses, all growing over rocks by the sea. The kelp beds just off shore are a haven for denizens of the not-sodeep maritime habitats. At low tide barnacles and mussels are exposed along a belt with red and green algae. Shellfish such as limpets are to be found at Lapataia and the Cormoranes archipelago. Crustaceans such as the Fuegian King Crab and many fish like the Fuegian Sardine, a hake, and the Robalo are from this habitat. Concentrations of jellyfish can be seen through the transparent waters of summer. Over the water soar Blackbrowed Albatross, gulls of several species fly by or rest on the shore, Flightless Steamer Ducks paddlewheel at neighbouring intruders, oystercatchers pipe their calls and cormorants dive for their food. (Céraétfáceaé). The Winter's Bark is abundant and forms pure stands in certain places. Exposed specimens of Guindo are known as "flag trees" where the constant strong westerlies "comb" all branches downwind of the trunk. The understorey is composed of thorny bushes such as Berberis -two species- and Prickly Heath (Pernettya mucronata) with its fleshy red-violet fruits. In damper soils grows Pig Vine (Gunnera magellanica) and small Blechnum ferns. In summer the forest floor is adorned with flowering Peat Bogs These are characteristic features of the Fuegian landscape. They are accumulations of dead plant material, mostly of Sphagnum "mosses", reeds and grasses which have built up over centuries in damp valley bottoms. Low temperatures and acid waters prevent decomposition of the dead organic material. Under compression by the weight of the upper layers and lacking oxygen, peat is formed. fw—H orchids. On the forest's edge, in natural clearings or exposed and eroded areas, heaths of faschine grow together with a small Berberis species, Magellanic Currant (Ribes magellanica) and stunted specimens of the Chilean Fire-bush (Embothrium coccineum). These last are covered with tubular scarlet flowers in spring. It is very abundant by the shores of the Beagle Channel around Lapataia. Above tree-line the dwarf Lenga gives way to sparse grasses cushion plants, diminutive woody bushes and "alpine" plants. Here growth is conditioned by three factors: exposure to winds, availability of water and the peculiar soils. SKA •H