Quarta Colônia UNESCO Global Geopark

Celebrating Earth Heritage

This territory is the source of a unique paleontological heritage at an international level, where the visitor can find testimonies of the rise of one of the most famous animal groups in Paleontology: the dinosaurs. The sedimentary rocks that support the landscape of this territory, deposited between 233 and 225 million years ago, in the Triassic Period, contain very well preserved records of a key moment in the history of life on planet Earth, such as the species Buriolestes schultzi, Bagualosaurus acuteensis and Macrocollum itaquii, which until now are exclusive to the Quarta Colônia. Paleontological discoveries are greatly favored by the location of the Quarta Colônia UNESCO Global Geopark, which gives this territory a unique landscape heritage, with a mountainous set delimited by sandstone-basaltic escarpments covered by large fragments of Atlantic Forest still very well preserved. In the midst of this exuberant landscape, there are a large number of deep valleys carved over thousands of years by the energy of a large hydrographic network that provides the Quarta Colônia UNESCO Global Geopark with waterfalls, river beaches and navigable rivers.

Characteristics

Designation date
2023
Country(ies)
Transnational
No
Area (ha)
292,300
Population
62,193
Density
21