Sunrise over the River Cristalino
João Paulo Krajewski
View of the Cristalino Private Natural Heritage Reserve.
The lodge is located within the first private natural heritage reserve (RPPN) in this region, beside the calm clean water of the majestic River Cristalino. This protected area has a number of nature trails, along which many of the Amazon’s special creatures can be spotted. It is a region that is recognized as one of the world’s most important, in terms of biodiversity. A large number of endemic species, such as the White-whiskered Spider Monkey (Atelis marginatus), White-nosed Saki (Chiropotes albinasus), Cryptic Forest Falcon (Micrastur mintoni), Crimson-bellied Parakeet (Pyrrhura perlata) and the Black-girdled Barbet (Capito dayi), can be found only in this area.
Scarlet macaw (Ara macao).
Because this region lies in altitudes between 300 and 450 meters above sea level, the rivers do not generally flood the forests. For this reason, the predominant vegetation is the evergreen forest (Terra firma) with tall and well formed trees. This undulating terrain produces a variety of micro-ecosystems, each containing species that are adapted to those conditions, which further enhances biodiversity. Within the Cristalino reserves alone, there are six different types of vegetation. Moreover, the proximity to the Pantanal and the Cerrado biomes means that a number of species that frequent those biomes can also be found in this southern part of the Amazon, creating a mosaic of ecological transition zones that merge with extraordinary beauty.
