The wildlife
The Iberá marshes, covering an area of 13’000 square kilometers, are the second largest wetlands of South America. They are made of many lakes, marshes and hundreds of natural canals and streams. This incredibly diverse system lies on former riverbeds of the Paraná river, which has moved further away. The water is provided exclusively by rainfalls and the Corriente river is the only visible water outlet of the entire system. The marshes owe the amazing transparency of the water to the abundant vegetation which acts as filter and regulator of the water regime.

A fascinating feature of Iberá are the “embalsados” – sort of small natural dams - created by a large quantity of floating plants such as “camalotes” – sort of aquatic weed. The “embalsados” retain soil brought to them by wind and water and eventually become real islands on which other plant species can grow.Animal life abounds and it is not unusual to see foxes, hares and even “guasunchos” - a local wild deer specie – on the dirt road to EL DORADO. Some animal species which are very difficult to spot elsewhere are common in the Esteros del Iberá, such as the broad-snouted caiman (Caiman latirostris), the spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodylus) and the marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus).

The caiman are often seeing sunbathing on the shores, while the marsh deer, which faces extinction in the rest of Argentina but not in the Esteros del Iberá, is more difficult to spot due to its shyness. Other very typical animals of the region are the capybara (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris) which is the world’s largest rodent given its size of up to 100 pounds, the South American otter (Lutra longicaudis) which are voracious fish eaters that find themselves under heavy hunting pressure. The long-legged aguará guazú (Chrysocyon brachyurus) - maned wolf - may also occasionally be spotted.

The Esteros del Iberá are a bird-watchers paradise given that they are home to almost 250 bird species. A passionate observer may, with the help of our expert guide, identify up to 100 different species on a good day.