Iberá Wetlands

Corrientes Province, Argentina

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The Iberá Wetlands (Esteros del Iberá), located in the center and north of Corrientes Province in northeastern Argentina, are the second-largest wetland in South America after Brazil’s Pantanal and one of the continent’s most important freshwater reservoirs, covering roughly 13,000–20,000 km² of swamps, bogs, lagoons, grasslands and floating islands.

Their name comes from Guaraní ý berá, meaning “bright water,” and the ecosystem serves as the ancient bed of the Paraná River, forming a rich transitional landscape between the Chaco forest, Paraná jungle and Espinal. The wetlands host an extraordinary diversity of wildlife, including over 350 bird species (such as the rare Strange-tailed Tyrant and endemic Iberá Seedeater), 85 mammals (capybaras, marsh deer, pampas deer, jaguars, giant otters, and coypus), 60 reptiles (black caimans, yellow anacondas), 45 amphibians and 80 fish species, making it a premier destination for wildlife watching and birding.

Protected since 1982 as Argentina’s largest nature reserve—the 1.3-million-hectare Iberá Provincial Reserve—and steadily expanded into the 758,000-hectare Gran Parque Iberá (combining provincial and national parks plus private buffer zones), the wetlands are the focus of one of Latin America’s most successful rewilding projects that has reintroduced extinct-in-the-wild species like the jaguar, giant anteater and mano pira.