- Flora of Buenos Aires
- Pampas grass (
- Copper reed (
- Common water hyacinth (
- Fauna of Buenos Aires
- Swamp deer (
- Pampas deer (
- Coypu (
- References
The flora and fauna of Buenos Aires is represented by species such as pampas grass, copper cane, swamp deer, and pampas deer, among others. The province of Buenos Aires is the most populated and the largest in Argentina. It is located in the north central region of the country, thus forming part of the Pampean geographical area.
The landscape is fundamentally flat, where a couple of low mountain ranges stand out: the Sierra de la Ventana and the Sierra de Tandil. The climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean. Summers in the province are very hot, however, temperatures tend to decrease towards the coast. In the winter, the weather is cool. The fauna and flora of the area is very varied, as a consequence of the diverse biomes that characterize the region.
Cypu. Source: Norbert Nagel Pampas grass. Source: Fernando de Gorocica
Flora of Buenos Aires
Pampas grass (
This herb is one of the symbols of the Argentine pampas. Although it is a species native to Chile, Argentina and Brazil, today it is found almost all over the world, where it is extremely popular.
Thus, this plant is considered one of the most valued ornamental species, in addition to being used as food for grazing animals.
Pampean grass, as it is also known, is usually up to 3 meters high. During its growth it can form dense tufts.
As for its leaves, they are arched and with sharp edges, and can measure between 1 and 2 meters long. Also, their color is bluish-green, but they could occasionally have a silver-gray hue.
The flowers are in a dense white panicle. These have silvery white feathers, however, in some species they may have a slight pink color. The floral structures, which are raised to a great height, are widely used as ornamental elements.
Copper reed (
This perennial plant is part of the genus Typha. It is native to South and North America, as well as Africa and Eurasia. In relation to its size, it can reach a height of 2 meters.
Typha latifolia or cat's tail, as it is known in some regions, is an unbranched herbaceous that is made up of six or more leaves and a flowering stem.
The leaves are smooth and have a color that could vary between green and bluish gray. On the other hand, they have a flattened shape and are arranged linearly. At the tip, they may be angled slightly downward.
The stem is green, stiff and glabrous. In addition to these characteristics, this structure ends in two types of spikes: one with pistillate flowers and the other with a staminate flowering.
The staminate spike, which is above the pistillate, is filled with light brown or yellow flowers. These have pistils, which produce pollen. In contrast, the pistillate spike contains abundant flowers with functional pistils. Also, they can be blackish or greenish-brown in color.
Common water hyacinth (
Eichhornia crassipes is an aquatic plant native to the Amazon basin, in South America. This hydrophytic species has thick, wide, waxy leaves. In addition, these structures are shiny, measuring between 10 and 20 centimeters wide. Thus, they can rise above the surface of the water
On the other hand, the stems are erect, reaching around 50 centimeters in length. They are fluffy and long, being able to float thanks to the floating bulbs. From this a single spike emerges, with flowers, 8 to 15, of purplish blue, lavender or pink tones.
Half of the biomass of the common water hyacinth can be formed by a root. This is dark purple, in addition to being fibrous and adventitious. It has a feathery appearance, as a result of the large number of existing lateral roots.
This species grows very quickly, thus forming dense floating plant mats. Their reproduction is through stolons, which will give rise to other daughter plants.
Fauna of Buenos Aires
Swamp deer (
This deer is the largest in South America. Thus, it can reach, including the tail, about 2.16 meters long, with a weight that ranges between 80 and 1125 kilograms. Geographically it is distributed in Peru, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia and Paraguay.
The Blastoceros dichotomus inhabits areas close to aquatic ecosystems. Because of this, most of their daily diet is made up of plants that live in this environment. However, you can also consume flowers, the species of which may vary according to the seasons.
The fur of this animal can be from golden red to a reddish brown, with the tail being a little lighter. In contrast to this, he has white hairs on his ears and markings of the same color around his eyes and on his hips. Also, its legs and snout are black
The swamp deer has webbing between the toes, with which it can walk and swim more efficiently in the swamps where it lives.
Pampas deer (
The Pampean deer is a deer that lives in the grasslands of South America. The fur that covers its body is tan in color, although it has a lighter shade on the ventral area and on the inside of the legs. On the throat and on the lips there are white spots.
Its tail is short and dense, with a length between 10 and 15 centimeters. Additionally, it has a white spot, which becomes visible when it lifts its tail while running.
A deer of this species, as an adult, could weigh between 24 and 34 kilograms. Contrary to this, the female weighs a maximum of 29 kilograms.
The male has small three-pointed antlers, which could be detached during the months of August or September, being born again in December. Instead of these structures, females have spiral-shaped hairs, which may look like tiny antler stubs.
In addition, males have glands on their hind legs that secrete a strong odor, detectable up to 1.5 kilometers away. The diet of this species is based on shrubs, shoots and herbs, which grow in the humid soils where it lives.
Coypu (
This semi-aquatic rodent is native to South America. However, this species is widespread in North America, Asia and Europe.
The body shape of the coypu is similar to that of a large rat or a beaver with a small tail. Its weight can be between 5 and 9 kilograms, reaching up to 60 centimeters long, with a 30-45 centimeter tail.
The coat is brown, and may have some yellowish tones. On that dark coloration, a white spot stands out on the muzzle. With respect to its teeth, the incisors are large and prominent, being these of a bright orange yellow color.
The hind legs, which could leave a footprint up to 15 centimeters long, are webbed. This facilitates the movement of the coypu when it is in the water.
References
- Bernal, N. (2016). Cavia aperea. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. Recovered from iucngisd.org.
- Global Invasive Species Database (2019). Myocastor coypus. Recovered from iucngisd.org.
- González, S., Jackson, III, JJ & Merino, ML 2016. Ozotoceros bezoarticus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. Recovered from iucnredlist.org
- Duarte, JMB, Varela, D., Piovezan, U., Beccaceci, MD & Garcia, JE 2016. Blastocerus dichotomus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. Recovered from iucnredlist.org.
- Global Invasive Species Database (2019). Eichhornia crassipes. Recovered from iucngisd.org.
- Wikipedia (2019). Buenos Aires Province. Recovered from en.wikipedia.org.
- Encyclopedia Britannica (2019), Buenos Aires, Province Argentina. Recovered from britannica.com
- Missouri botanical garden (2019). Cortaderia Selloana. Recovered from missouribotanicalgarden.org.
- Jhon Hilty (2018). Typha latifolia. Recovered from illinoiswildflowers.info
- Marcelo Gavensky (2010). BIRDING BUENOS AIRES, Flora. Recovered from blog.birdingbuenosaires.com.
- Marcelo Gavensky (2014). BIRDING BA. Fauna. Recovered from birdingbuenosaires.com