In the south-eastern corner of Venezuela, enormous, towering cliffs soar up from the forest floor and into the clouds. These flat-topped mountains are known as tepuis, and there are dozens of them – each as otherworldly looking as the next.
Many of these extraordinary rock formations can be found within Canaima National Park, a 30,000km2 protected area in Venezuela, bordering Guyana and Brazil.
Canaima, named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, is the second largest national park in Venezuela – the largest is Parima Tapirapecó National Park, which spans more than 38,000 km2.
Great waterfalls spill from the tepuis’ plateau summits and down their precipitous walls. In fact, the national park is home to the world’s tallest waterfall, Angel Falls, which drops a whopping 979m from the top of Auyán-tepui into the trees below.
Canaima National Park wildlife
The combination of lowland and upland habitats, along with the isolation of the tepuis, makes Canaima a refuge for numerous weird and wonderful animals and plants – many of which are endemic to the region.
Endemic plants include various species of carnivorous sundews, bladderworts, bromeliads and South American pitcher plants. There are several animals found here and nowhere else in the world, such as the Roraima mouse, the Tepui brushfinch and the Tyler’s mouse opossum.
Because of the remoteness of much of the park, species are continually being discovered. But there are many amazing (non-endemic) creatures that we do know live here.
Giant anteaters, jaguars, pumas, giant armadillos, giant otters and Brazilian tapirs can be found in Canaima’s savanna grasslands and the surrounding habitats. While the highland moist forests offer shelter for pale-throated three-toed sloths, collared anteaters, capybaras, bush dogs and coatimundis (or coatis).
Hundreds of birds have been recorded in the park, including the savanna hawk, the jabiru (a large waterbird) and South America’s largest raptor, the harpy eagle, which has a wingspan of up to 2m. This powerful eagle hunts large prey, with sloths and monkeys making up much of their diet.
In pictures: Canaima National Park and its wildlife
Top image credit: GummyBone/Getty Images
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