Sierra Nevada National Park

Home - Independent Countries - Venezuela - Sierra Nevada National Park
Sierra Nevada National Park

Sierra Nevada National Park

The Sierra Nevada National Park is located between the states of Mérida and Barinas, in the west of Venezuela. It was established on 2 May 1952 by decree of President Germán Suárez Flamerich to protect the Sierra Nevada de Mérida in the Andes. The Sierra Nevada is an area of high ecological importance for Venezuela, an ecosystem preserving the highest in the country, where mountain ranges are found in the Venezuelan Andes at higher altitudes, including Pico Bolívar at 4978 meters. The park includes parts of six municipalities of Mérida state and three of Barinas state. The park is located in two large mountain ranges: the Sierra Nevada de Mérida and the Sierra de Santo Domingo, characterized by towering peaks, glacial valleys and river valleys. The most important rivers are the Chama, Albarregas and Mucujún, which flow into Lake Maracaibo. The main rivers of the Orinoco Basin are the Caparo, the Santo Domingo and the Cajurí, which flows into the Uribante. The park also contains thirteen hydrographic basins and ten glacial lakes, which have been shrinking due to the effects of global warming. Because of the type of climate that the park offers, it has developed into one of the largest refuges for hundreds of wildlife species. Among the most emblematic mammals are: the White-Tailed Deer, the puma, the Andean Coati, the Andean Leopard, the jaguar, the paca, the Andean Tapeti and the Spectacled Bear. Among the park's birds are the Andean Curassow, the Andean Guan, the White-Tailed Quetzal, and its emblematic bird, the Andean Condor, which is almost extinct.