Parque Nacional Machalilla

Machalilla National Park is located on the south coast of the province of Manabi, in the cantons of Jipijapa, Puerto Lopez and Montecristi.

Among its main attractions Isla de la Plata and Playa los Frailes known. The Machalilla National Park is part of the hydrographic runner fog forest mountains. For this can be seen in the region a variation of the height of 0-840 meters.

The climate is dry, however masses of moist air from the Pacific Ocean produce moisture. The average annual temperature ranges from 23 to 24.5 ° C. Different climates such as are observed: pre tropical arid to subtropical montane to 840 meters.

Machalilla National Park comprises two parts: a land of 56,184 hectares and 14,430 hectares of other marine. In turn, having an irregular territory, it is divided into three regions.

• Northern region between southern and northern Puerto Cayo Machalilla (12,290 hectares)
• Southern region between southern and northern Machalilla Puerto Lopez, including the island Salango (34,393 hectares)
• Isla de la Plata, which has been considered as an international bird area separate from the rest of the park by differences in composition of species and habitat.

Finally the flora and fauna of the National Park Machalilla has a great diversity of species. As for Flora bamboo cane you can be seen as matapalos and large trees.

Other regions are dominated by palms or tagua cade and surrounding park overruns are mired in a mold of disturbed areas dominated by corn, bananas, sugar cane and cattle pastures.

Park wildlife includes jaguars, ocelots, anteaters, deer, white-tailed deer, armadillo, cusumbo, cuchucho Coatl, agouti, agouti. Sea turtles nest on the beach park and humpback whales visit the coast in the month of June to September.

In short, the variety of fauna Machalilla National Park, marine and terrestrial areas, is represented by 81 species of mammals, 270 of birds and 143 of fish.

15 minutes north of Puerto Lopez