FLORA AND FAUNA OF CÓRDOBA (ARGENTINA): REPRESENTATIVE SPECIES - BIOLOGY - 2025

The flora and fauna of Córdoba (Argentina) is characterized by species such as the cuis, the collared peccary, the espinillo or the piquillín. The province of Córdoba is one of the 23 regions that make up the Republic of Argentina. The capital is the city of Córdoba, which is the second most populated town in the nation, after Buenos Aires.

This province is located west of the central area of ​​the country. Regarding its geography, Córdoba is differentiated into two areas. First, there is the Pampean Plain, which occupies the eastern part. The second region is constituted by the Sierras Pampeanas, extended towards the northwest of the province.

Chañar (Geoffroea decorticans). Source: Consultaplants Black-faced Spider (Geothlypis aequinoctialis) Source: Hector Bottai

Climatic conditions vary in each region, although temperate climates may predominate in all. However, in high areas like the Sierras Grandes, heavy snowfalls occur every year. Thus, these local microclimates lead to biodiversity, which has been adapted to the characteristics of each area.

Fauna of Córdoba

Cuis (

This animal is a rodent that belongs to the Caviidae family. It usually lives in semi-desert or desert plains in Chile and Argentina. In terms of size, males can weigh between 200 and 300 grams, reaching 170 to 245 millimeters.

It has a short coat in a yellowish gray shade, unlike the abdominal area which is paler. It has two rounded ears and the eyes are large, surrounded by a white circle. The tail is short and hairless.

Their diet is based on fruits, shoots, leaves and flowers, thus being able to climb trees to eat their shoots and fruits. During the dry season, it can eat the bark of the chañar and the female jarilla.

Collared peccary (

This species, also known as the rosillo pig, is an artiodactyl mammal of the Tayassuidae family. Its distribution ranges from the southern United States to Argentina, where it lives in forests, floodplains, and savannas.

It has a height of 150 centimeters and a total length, including the tail, of 72 to 115 centimeters. Its coat consists of bristles of dark brown tones, almost black, in which a white spot stands out at the base of the neck, similar to a collar.

The collared peccary feeds on grasses, fruits and tubers, as well as invertebrate animals and small vertebrates. Their habits are diurnal, being able to form groups, made up of up to 20 animals.

Overo lizard (

The overo lizard is part of the Teiidae family. Geographically it is distributed from south central Brazil to the south of the Amazon River. Thus, it is found in Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina.

This animal can measure around 140 centimeters. The body is blackish-brown, with bluish highlights. Transversely it has some bands, formed by yellow spots. On the neck, head and limbs there are also white and yellow moles.

It is omnivorous, including in its diet eggs, meat, worms, birds, small snails, snakes and even other lizards. Supplement your diet with vegetables and fruits.

Black-faced spider

The black-faced spider is a bird of the New World, which is part of the Parulidae family. It exists in both Central America and South America.

This bird measures 13 centimeters and weighs approximately 13 grams. Regarding its dorsal feathers, these are greenish yellow and those of the belly have a yellow tone. On these colorations, the beak stands out, which is black.

The male has a black mask, with a gray border. In contrast, the female has less luminous colors than the male, with shades of gray on both sides of the head.

In addition, it has a yellow coloration in two regions: around the eyes and in stripes that go from the beak to the eyes.

Geothlypis aequinoctialis feeds on insects and caterpillars, which hunt in the dense vegetation where they live.

Flora of Córdoba

Shin (

The espinillo or churqui is a tree belonging to the Fabaceae family. In the province of Córdoba it is one of the most common species in the Pampean spine and in the mountains.

It has an approximate height of 6 meters, presenting a rounded crown. In addition, the bark is dark brown in color, with obliquely arranged cracks. The leaves are deciduous and bipinnatic compound.

As for its branches, they are located in a paired way in each of the nodes. These are tortuous, with spines in a light gray tone. The blackhead is characterized by having highly perfumed flowers. In addition, they are small in size and yellow in color.

These appear in a spherical inflorescence, with a short peduncle. The fruit is thick and woody, brown in color. The seeds are hard and green in color.

Piquillín (

This thorny shrub is part of the Rhamnaceae family. It is a xerophytic species, endemic to Argentina, which can measure up to 3.2 meters high. In relation to its foliage, it is perennial and spinescent.

The leaves are dark green, small in size. Likewise, they are characterized by being sessile and elliptical. These appear in the smaller branches, in the form of bouquets. As for the flowers, they are pedunculated and yellowish in color.

The fruits are sweet and edible. They have a reddish hue and an oval shape, with a diameter of approximately 5 to 11 millimeters. The piquillín is located in the ecoregions of plains mountains. Thus, it could be found in the dry and humid Chaco and in the mountains, among others.

Jarilla female (

The female jarilla is a phanerogamic species, a member of the Zygophyllaceae family. Regarding its distribution, it is an endemic shrub to Bolivia, Peru, Argentina and Chile. The height of this plant could be up to 3 meters.

The stem is woody and the leaves have two leaflets, divergent and little welded. As for the flowering period of Larrea divaricata, it occurs from October to November. In those months you can see its yellow flowers. On the other hand, the fruit is capsule-shaped, with white hairs, similar to a cotton flake.

It can be found in grasslands, together with herbaceous vegetation, shrubs and low forests, thus sharing with plants of open strata.

Chañar (

This tree of the Fabaceae family can be between 3 and 10 meters high. As for the trunk, it could be more than 40 centimeters in diameter. The bark is thick and yellowish-green. In addition, it is furrowed by deep grooves, thus giving it a rough texture.

The reed foliage is green in color, which, in addition to the abundant branches, give the crown of this tree a rounded shape. Its fruits are very fleshy, sweet and edible Drupaceous legumes. In relation to the petals of the flower, they are intense yellow, flowering occurs during the months of September to October.

This tree is distributed in the arid forests of the south-central region of the South American continent.

Molle fork (

This species, also known as arrayán or anacahuita, belongs to the Myrtaceae family. It is endemic to Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and southern Brazil.

The molle fork measures between 3 and 6 meters. In relation to its trunk, it is thick and dark in color, presenting a bark with very thin cracks. Its foliage is persistent and luminous green, although from a distance it appears gray.

The leaves are lanceolate, simple and opposite. Its length can vary from 3.5 to 5.5 centimeters. On the other hand, the flowers are white, appearing in the form of bouquets.

The fruits are small round berries, with a diameter of 1 centimeter. They can vary in color, depending on their maturity. Thus, they could be from yellow to red-purple. These are edible, being used in Uruguay as a substitute for pepper.

References

1. Wikipedia (2019). Cordoba Argentina. Recovered from en.wikipedia.org.
2. Chartier, K. (2004). Microcavia australis. Animal Diversity Web. Recovered from animaldiversity.org.
3. Cabido, Marcelo, Zeballos, Sebastián, Zak, Marcelo, Carranza, Maria, Giorgis, Melisa, Cantero, Juan, Acosta, Alicia. (2018). Native woody vegetation in central Argentina: Classification of Chaco and Espinal forests. Applied Vegetation Science. ResearchGate. Recovered from researchgate.net.
4. Juan P. Argañaraz, Gregorio Gavier Pizarro, Marcelo Zak, Laura M. Bellis (2015). Fire regime, climate, and vegetation in the mountains of Córdoba, Argentina. Recovered from fireecologyjournal.org
5. Rainforest Allience (2006). Collared peccary. Recovered from rainforest-alliance.org.