Iracambi and the Serra do Brigadeiro
Serra do Brigadeiro State Park
www.caratinga.mg.gov.br)
The Serra do Brigadeiro State Park shelters the most important remnant of seasonal semi-deciduous Atlantic Forest in the state of Minas Gerais, it's part of the UN Biosphere Reserve, and better still, it's right on our doorstep! The park's craggy mountains and deep ravines protect an extraordinary range of biodiversity, including the largest known population of Brachyteles hypoxanthus, (the Wooly Spider monkey,) the most endangered primate in the New World.
The forests shelter a great variety of endangered animal and plant species, some of which are still unknown to science. The Park's ecosystem is rich in plant species such as bromeliads, orchids, cedrelis, candeias, jequitibas, peroba, canjaranas and palms. It is also a refuge for endangered fauna such as the masked titi monkey, jaguar, ocelot, and various frog species. A paradise for birders, its extensive list includes the dusky legged guan, the maroon bellied parrakeet and the bare-throated bellbird. The highest point of the park is the 2000 m Soares Peak where the forest extends up to about 1400 m, gives way to transition forest, and then to alpine meadows above 1600 m.
The Serra do Brigadeiro Mountain Range
The Serra do Brigadeiro takes its present name from Brigadier Bacelar, the officer who led explorations into the region in the first decades of the 19th century. The old name, Serra dos Arrepiados, means, literally, the mountains of the people whose hair stands on end and refers to the head-dresses of the Puri Indians that stood up in the wind like eagles’ crests. The Serra is located in the north part of the Minas Gerais Zona de Mata (Atlantic Forest Zone), 290km from Belo Horizonte.
The landscape is dominated by mountains, valleys, hillsides and innumerable streams and rivers which feed into the rivers Paraíba do Sul and Doce, and the climate is typically montane. During much of the year mist covers the peaks, creating a magical landscape which of one of the most beautiful features of the region. 