Ansenuza National Park and National Reserve created at the Laguna Mar Chiquita WHSRN Site of Hemispheric Importance

After several years of work and great efforts, the declaration of the Ansenuza National Park and Reserve is official.

In 1989 Laguna Mar Chiquita was designated as a Site of Hemispheric Importance within the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN), due to it providing habitat for exceptional numbers of shorebirds annually. For just one species, Wilson´s Phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor), numbers are estimated to be around half a million birds (almost half the global population). Following the signing of an agreement between the Province of Córdoba, the federal National Parks Administration and Aves Argentinas, during the past five years a close collaboration between different national and international NGOs, civil society organizations, municipalities, communes, and key stakeholders in the region has taken place to secure the future of the natural resources of the area.

Today we can see the fruits of this tireless work. On June 30, 2022, the Argentine government approved the declaration of Laguna Mar Chiquita as Ansenuza National Park and National Reserve. Ansenuza is a historical name for the region.

Among its main conservation targets are the enigmatic Maned Wolf or Aguará Guazú (Chrysocyon brachyurus), three species of flamingos (Chilean Flamingo – Phoenicopterus chilensis, Andean Flamingo- Phoenicoparrus andinus and Puna Flamingo – P. jamesi) and 30 species of shorebirds, including Wilson’s Phalarope, Buff-breasted Sandpiper (Calidris subruficollis) and Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes).

Learn about Ansenuza’s beautiful landscapes, why it is a National Park and Reserve and its importance for shorebirds in this photo essay.

The Mar Chiquita wetland is located in the northeast of the province of Córdoba, and it is one of the largest saline wetlands in the world. It includes a great diversity of habitats: the vast saline water lagoon, permanent and seasonal freshwater rivers and lagoons, muddy beaches, shrub and cactus thickets, dry Chaco-type forests and extensive flooded grasslands and savannas. – Photo: Pablo Rodríguez Merkel.

North of the lagoon, the Dulce River opens into an extensive river delta covering thousands of hectares. These marshes are characterized by two natural cycles of floods and fires. - Photo: Yanina Druetta.

The natural cycles of flooding and drought in the marshes flush salts from the soil and ensure the supply of sediments and nutrients. Natural fires are a phenomenon that limits the spread of shrubs and trees, maintaining the integrity of natural grasslands. - Photo: Marcela Castellino

Mar Chiquita lagoon, the end point for waters from the Dulce River and two smaller rivers (Primero or Suquía, and Segundo or Xanaes), is a shallow lagoon with high salinity. Both characteristics vary with the water level, which depends mainly on inflow from the tributary rivers. It is the largest saline wetland in South America and one of the five largest on the planet. - Photo: María Laura Josens

This heterogeneous ecosystem is considered a key site for the conservation of biodiversity at a global level. More than 16 species of amphibians, 35 species of reptiles and 50 species of mammals have been recorded to date in the region. Undoubtedly, the most diverse group are the birds. Mar Chiquita and its area of influence support almost 36% (380 species) of the total avifauna of Argentina.

Shorebirds form an important part of the local avifauna. Nearly two thirds of the shorebird species recorded in Argentina have been found at Mar Chiquita. Not only is the diversity of species high, but also the abundance of several species, reaching hundreds of thousands of individuals, of both migratory and resident species. Numerically, Mar Chiquita is the most important inland wetland for shorebirds in South America.

Many of the shorebirds that visit Mar Chiquita Lagoon make round trips each year between their breeding sites in North America and non-breeding areas in South America. These travelers arrive during the austral spring and remain throughout the austral summer. Mar Chiquita Lagoon is a place of refuge, feeding and rest after such a strenuous journey. -Photo: Yanina Druetta

Other species also visit regularly, but they do so during the austral winter. They are known as Patagonian migrants, arriving from southern Argentina. They nest mainly in the provinces of Santa Cruz and Tierra del Fuego, and arrive at Mar Chiquita during the austral autumn. - Photo: Monica Iglecia

Migratory shorebirds share the site with resident species, i.e., those that can be found year-round at the site and nest there. - Photo: Yanina Druetta

This incredible wetland faces environmental problems and threats typical of salt lakes: the alteration of the hydrological regime of the tributary rivers, water diversions and increased water demand, pollution, and overexploitation and loss of biodiversity. To address these threats, since 2017 Aves Argentinas and Natura Argentina, with the support of other conservation organizations, has been working on a project to declare this wetland as a National Park. - Photo: Yanina Druetta.

During these years, the process has included work both “on the ground” and at a political scale. Interdisciplinary working groups, good governance meetings, engagement with local communities, technical studies, biodiversity surveys, cadastral surveys, training in different topics (one of the main ones being ecotourism), and meetings with local, provincial and national authorities were all carried out. - Photo: María Laura Josens

These years of hard work have finally paid off: today (June 30 2022) we celebrate together the declaration of the new Ansenuza National Park and National Reserve, which protects a total of 1,634,394.53 acres (661,416 hectares) of territory of the Bañados del Río Dulce and Laguna Mar Chiquita. This declaration is a great step to ensure the protection of this wonderful wetland of importance for humanity, and to guarantee the benefits that both animal and plant species, as well as human beings, obtain from it.

The declaration of the National Park and National Reserve is a huge step, but it is not the end of the work needed to protect Mar Chiquita for future generations. The effective implementation of the National Park and National Reserve categories, and their articulation with the Multiple Use Reserve under provincial jurisdiction, will be processes that local partners will have to work on in the coming years. The challenge is great, but fortunately the commitment of the organizations and partners involved in the process is even greater. - Photo: María Laura Josens

Congratulations on this great achievement to all the partners and organizations that worked hard to make this a reality today. - Photo: Pablo Rodríguez Merkel.

Shorebirds form an important part of the local avifauna. More than 60% of the shorebird species recorded for Argentina have been recorded at Mar Chiquita. Not only is the diversity of species high but the abundance of some species, reaching hundreds of thousands of individuals, makes this wetland the main continental site for shorebirds in South America. The lagoon gathers migratory and resident species. -Photo: María Laura Josens

Migratory shorebirds share the site with resident species, i.e., those that can be found year-round at the site and nest there. - Photo: Yanina Druetta

Congratulations on this great achievement to all the partners and organizations that worked hard to make this a reality today. - Photo: Pablo Rodríguez Merkel.

Congratulations on this great achievement to all the partners and organizations that worked hard to make this a reality.

For more information about the WHSRN Executive Office work in Mar Chiquita lagoon (Ansenuza National Park) please contact Marcela Castellino

Cover Photo: Shorebirds at Mar Chiquita lagoon in Argentina. Photo: Marcela Castellino.

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Marcela Castellino