Espinhaço Mosaic

The Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha – Serra do Cabral Mosaic (Portuguese: Mosaico do Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha - Serra do Cabral), or simply Espinhaço Mosaic, is a protected area mosaic in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha – Serra do Cabral Mosaic
Mosaico do Espinhaço
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
Field of flowers below Serra do Galho
Nearest cityDiamantina, Minas Gerais
Coordinates18°10′30″S 43°20′08″W
Area910,000 ha (3,500 sq mi)
DesignationProtected area mosaic
Created26 November 2010
AdministratorInstituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade

Background

The Espinhaço Mountains extend for about 1,200 kilometres (750 mi) from the iron quadrilateral in the south-central region of Minas Gerais north to the Chapada Diamantina in Bahia. The mountains lie between the cerrado biome to the west, Atlantic Forest to the east and caatinga to the north. In the higher regions there are rocky fields, an ecosystem with considerable biodiversity. In 2005 UNESCO recognized a large portion of the Espinhaço Chain in Minas Gerais as a Biosphere Reserve.[1]

Discussions followed on how to better conserve the ecosystems, and the first proposals for a Mosaic of Units of Conservation of the Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha - Serra do Cabral were made at the end of 2007. Official activities began in April 2008, coordinated by the Biotropics Institute, a scientific and conservationist NGO, in partnership with the Minas Gerais State Forest Institute (IEF) and with the support of Conservation International Brasil and the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio).[2]

The relevant area was defined as 910,000 hectares (2,200,000 acres) of the upper portion of the Jequitinhonha and Serra do Cabral valley, including conservation units and their buffer zones. It included seven fully protected units and five environmental protection areas in 14 municipalities: Itamarandiba, Senador Modestino Gonçalves, São Gonçalo do Rio Preto, Felício dos Santos, Rio Vermelho, Couto de Magalhães de Minas, Santo Antônio do Itambé, Serra Azul de Minas, Serro, Diamantina, Buenópolis, Joaquim Felício, Bocaiúva and Olhos-d'Água.[3]

Organization

The Espinhaço Mosaic in the state of Minas Gerais was recognized by ordinance 444 of 26 November 2010, which also created the managing council.[4] The council includes representatives of public bodies and civil society organizations.[5] It is administered by the ICMBio.[6] As an integrated management tool for a set of conservation units that overlap or are near each other, the mosaic expands conservation actions beyond the scope of the individual units.[7]

Component units

The mosaic was created with the following conservation units:[5]

Rio Preto State Park
UnitLevelCreatedArea (ha)
Água das Vertentes Environmental Protection AreaState199876,310
Biribiri State ParkState199816,999
Felício Environmental Protection AreaMunicipal11,476
Mata dos Ausentes Ecological StationState1974498
Pico do Itambé State ParkState19984,696
Rio Manso Environmental Protection AreaMunicipal19987,331
Rio Preto State ParkState199410,750
Sempre Vivas National ParkFederal2002124,154
Serra Negra State ParkState199813,654
Serra do Cabral State ParkState200522,494

Notes

    Sources

    • Azevedo, Alexsander Araújo; Goulart, Maíra Figueiredo; Silva, Joaquim de Araújo; Vilhena, Cecília Fernandes de (2009), Mosaico de Unidades de Conservação do Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha – Serra do Cabral. Processo de criação e implantação (PDF) (in Portuguese), Instituto Biotrópicos, retrieved 2017-01-19
    • MOS do Espinhaço: Alto Jequitinhonha - Serra do Cabral (in Portuguese), ISA: Instituto Socioambiental, retrieved 2017-01-19
    • Teixeira, Izabella (26 November 2010), Portaria no- 444, de 26 de Novembro de 2010 (PDF) (in Portuguese), retrieved 2017-01-19

    Further reading

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