Canaima National Park

Natalie Beaver

August 23, 2010

Period 2

Location

About three hundred and seventy-three mile (six hundred kilometers) south if the Ciudad Bolivarn on the border of Guyana

and Brazil, Canaima National Park is located in the Guiana Highlands in Venezuela.

History

1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995

Canaima National Park was

Established in 1962

Illegal Mining ‘Booms’ in Kamarata Valley in

Canajma in 1994

The national park was conceded World heritage Status in 1994

for recognition of extraordinary scenery and geological and

biological values

EDELCA began a

fire-fighting

program in 1981

Park was expanded to 30,000 km^2

in 1975

Creation of Canaima

• Canaima was created to protect the north-western section of the Guayana Shield. This is the geological formation shared with Brazil, the Guianas, and Columbia

• The Park is a safeguard for cultural, biological, and geological values

• The he production of water in the Guri Dam has been the major economic importance as it provides 77% of Venezuela’s electricity

Landscape • Canaima National Park has many different land

attractions including mountains, plateaus, savannas, forests, and waterfalls

• The mountains are mostly apart of the Roraima Range that covers about 65% of the park. The range is mostly flat-topped formations known as tepui ranging as high as 8,850 feet

• The tepuis are form by the process of erosion as the sandstone rock disappears with the other land over the time span of millions of years

Landscape 2

• Erosion left many different soil types that help support the growth of forests and plants

• The soil allows on third of the Earth’s plants to grow in the park

• Waterfalls are formed as water flows from the tops of the tepuis. The world’s most famous water fall, Angel Falls forms form this and is about 3,285 feet tall

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Tourism

• Over the years, Canaima National Park had grown in popularity

• In 1993, 90% of the Park’s 100,000 tourists visited the Plateau

• With restricted tour sites, the only tepuis accessible are the Roraima and Auyantepury tepuis

• Tourism had also been effecting the Park in a negative way as the savannas have been torn up by tire tracks causing soil to erode and the landscape to disintegrate

8

Inhabitants

• Other than the thousands of plants and animals living in the park, there are also the Pemón indigenous people.

• The Pemón are part of the Carid linguistic group in which the quarters of the entire population lives in Canaima

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Pemón People

• It is believed that the Pemón had immigrated to Venezuela about two hundred years ago.

• They have a familiar bondage with the landscape and environment

• In their culture, rock formations, lakes, waterfalls, and streams have been described in myth

• With the Park’s tourist attraction increasing, some Pemón have begun to grow away from their lifestyle and beliefs

• The Pemón people used to hunt and fish but have become more attracted to mining and tourism due to work traditional

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Interesting Facts

• The most popular attraction is Angel Falls and the table top mountains

• When you enter Canaima, you need to have proof of having the yellow fever vaccination

• Rainfalls mostly occur through May and November and the rest of the month are dry seasons

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Bibliography

" Canaima National Park Tourist Attractions, Facts & Location – Venezuela." Famous Wonders of the World: Best Places to Visit, See Travel Pictures. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://famouswonders.com/canaima-national-park/>.

"Canaima National Park (Eastern Section) - Park Profile - Threats." ParksWatch - Strengthening Parks To Safeguard Biodiversity. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://www.parkswatch.org/parkprofile.php?l=eng&country=ven&park=cenp&page=thr>.

"Canaima National Park, Venezuela - Encyclopedia of Earth." Encyclopedia of Earth. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Canaima_National_Park,_Venezuela>.

Sharpe, Christopher J.. ":: The Lost World:: Travel and information on the Gran Sabana, Canaima National Park, Venezuela." :: The Lost World :: The Gran Sabana, Canaima National Park and Angel Falls - Venezuela. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://www.thelostworld.org/canaimanp/canaima.htm>.

"canaima national park - Google Search." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENUS325&=&q=canaima+national+park&aq=0l&aqi=g-l8g-lm1&aql=&oq=canaina+nati&gs_rfai=C4HYkB3NwTKDtF4jwzASAlbHoDwAAAKoEBU_QhWWu>.

"Venezuela's Angel Falls - surreal adventure travel." Adventure travel packages with Angel Eco Tours. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2010. <http://www.angel-ecotours.com/adventure-travel-package-can1.html>.

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Bibliography 2(Pictures)• "Waterfall." Online Image. Canaima National Park. No date. August 23, 2010 <

http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/nytmaps.pl?venezuela>.

"Landscape." Online Image. Blog Spot. No date. August 23, 2010 <http://feelrevieled.blogspot.com/ >.

"Table Top Mountain ." Online Image. Trveler's Guide. No date. August 23, 2010 <http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/americas/travellers-guide-venezuela-1796728.html >.

"Map of Venezuela ." Online Image. Merriam Webster. No date. August 22, 2010 <http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/nytmaps.pl?venezuela>.

"Tourist Cartoon." Online Image. The MIndhul Tourist. No date. August 23, 2010 <http://mindfultourist.com/2009/05/18/being-a-good-host/ >.