The Los Cardones National Park ( Spanish : Parque Nacional Los Cardones ) is a national park of Argentina , located in the center-west of the province of Salta , within the San Carlos and Cachi Departments, in the Argentine Northwest .
17-566: The park protects an area of the High Monte ecoregion. The park has an area of 650 square kilometres, with hills and ravines at the height levels between 2,700 m and 5,000 m. It gets its name from the prevalence of bush formations of cardon grande cactus . It features fossil remains of extinct animals, as well as dinosaur tracks. The protected area was created in 1996, when the National Parks Administration acquired
34-425: A gestation period of two months, two to four kits are born in a den. Not much else is recorded about its lifestyle. The South American gray fox is a largely solitary animal that has long been hunted for its pelt. The foxes sometimes go near human habitations in search of food, such as chickens and sheep, but tend to avoid areas visited by dogs. They are useful in their role as scavengers of carrion and as dispersers of
51-612: A place in Salta Province , Argentina is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This protected areas-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . High Monte The High Monte is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion in Argentina . The High Monte is located on the eastern slopes of the Andes , extending from the vicinity of Salta (24º S) south to Mendoza (32º S). It
68-451: A small fox-like canid , weighing 2.5 to 5.45 kilograms (5.5 to 12.0 lb), and measuring 65 to 110 centimetres (26 to 43 in) in length including a tail of 20 to 43 cm (8 to 17 in). The head is reddish-brown flecked with white. The ears are large and there is a distinct black spot on the chin. The pelage is brindled, with agouti guard hairs and a short, dense, pale undercoat. The underparts are pale grey. The limbs are tawny and
85-825: Is a landscape of mountains and closed basins which lie between the Sierras Pampeanas on the east and the main spine of the Andes to the west. The southern portion of the High Monte is drained by the Desaguadero River . The lower limit of soil cryoturbation along the eastern slope of Andes marks the upper boundary of the High Monte, extending up to 3000 meters at the northern end of the ecoregion, and between 1500 and 1700 meters elevation in Mendoza Province further south. The eastern transitions to
102-457: Is native to the ecoregion, where it is an important disperser of algarrobo seeds. 12.88% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. These include Talampaya National Park , El Leoncito National Park , Los Cardones National Park , and San Guillermo National Park . South American gray fox The South American gray fox ( Lycalopex griseus ), also known as the Patagonian fox ,
119-613: Is part of the Arid Diagonal , a belt of arid and semi-arid regions that extend from northwest to southeast across southern South America, from the Pacific to the Atlantic oceans. The characteristic vegetation is shrubland. Evergreen shrub species of Larrea , known as jarillas , are predominant. There are areas of open algarrobo ( Prosopis ) woodland where groundwater is available. Prosopis alba and Prosopis nigra are
136-454: The chilla or zorro gris ( gray fox or gray zorro ), is a South American species of Lycalopex (the "false" or lesser foxes) in the Canidae family , which includes dogs , wolves , jackals , coyotes and foxes , among other canids. It is endemic to the southern parts of Argentina and Chile , primarily Patagonia and Tierra Del Fuego . The South American gray fox is
153-585: The Chaco and Low Monte are more gradual. The climate is temperate and arid to semi-arid. Mean annual rainfall varies with location and relief, from less than 100 mm to 450 mm. Much of the ecoregion is in the rain shadow of the Sierras Pampeanas. Most rain falls during the southern hemisphere summer, when the South American monsoon system brings moist air to the ecoregion. The High Monte
170-762: The Sierra del Aconquija transition zone, the highest concentration of endemic species in Argentina's northwest. Native mammals include the guanaco ( Lama guanicoe ), puma ( Puma concolor ), South American gray fox ( Lycalopex griseus ), Patagonian weasel ( Lyncodon patagonicus ), screaming hairy armadillo ( Chaetophractus vellerosus ), pink fairy armadillo ( Chlamyphorus truncatus ), white-eared opossum ( Didelphis albiventris ), and white-bellied fat-tailed mouse opossum ( Thylamys pallidior ). The Sierra del Tontal chinchilla rat ( Abrocoma shistacea ) and golden viscacha rat ( Pipanacoctomys aureus ) are endemic to
187-515: The ecoregion. The mountain viscacha rat ( Octomys mimax ) is a near-endemic, ranging into an adjacent area of the Low Monte. Other native rodents include Akodon albiventer , Akodon simulator , Akodon spegazzinii , Andalgalomys olrogi Ctenomys coludo , Ctenomys famosus , Ctenomys knighti , Eligmodontia bolsonensis , Octodontomys gliroides , and Salinoctomys loschalchalerosorum . The burrowing parrot ( Cyanoliseus patagonus andinus )
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#1732791463242204-471: The land from private owners. Most of the park has an arid climate that is characterized by a large thermal amplitude (large difference between day and night temperatures). The park receives an average rainfall of 150 mm (5.9 in); most of it falling between November and March. Snowfall is extremely rare in low-lying areas. Mean temperatures range from 11 °C (51.8 °F) in winter to 18 °C (64.4 °F) in summer. This article about
221-794: The late 1920s early 1930s and is still present in quite large numbers on Beaver and Weddell Islands plus several smaller islands. The South American gray fox occurs in a variety of habitats, from the warm, arid scrublands of the Argentine uplands and the cold, arid Patagonian steppe to the forests of southernmost Chile. The diet varies in different parts of its range and at different times of year. It consists mainly of mammals, birds, arthropods, bird eggs, reptiles, fruit and carrion. The main prey items seem to be small mammals, especially rodents. Fruits eaten include Cryptocarya alba , Lithraea caustica and Prosopanche spp . The South American gray fox breeds in early austral autumn, around March. After
238-530: The most common algarrobo species, growing 4 to 16 meters in height. Characteristic Chaco shrubs like Bulnesia schickendantzii , Prosopis nigra , and Tragia geraniifolia grow along the eastern boundary with the Chaco. The High Monte is home to many endemic plants, especially in the transition zone between the Monte and the humid Southern Andean Yungas forests. Of the 505 plant species endemic to northwestern Argentina, 57 to 73 endemic species are found in
255-445: The seeds of the fruit they eat. Where their ranges overlap, the South American gray fox is in competition with the larger culpeo fox . The former consumes a greater proportion of rodents , and arthropods make a significant portion of its diet, while the culpeo tends to consume larger prey, including the non-native European hare which has been introduced into Chile. These prey animals are partitioned between these two species, with
272-481: The thighs are crossed by a dark bar. The long, bushy tail has a dark dorsal stripe and dark tip with a paler, mottled underside. The South American gray fox is found in Argentina and Chile in the Southern Cone of South America. Its range comprises stripes on both sides of the Andes mountain range between parallels 17ºS (northernmost Chile) and 54ºS (Tierra del Fuego). In Argentina, this species inhabits
289-632: The western semiarid region of the country, from the Andean spurs (ca. 69ºW) to meridian 66ºW. South from the Río Grande, the distribution of the fox widens reaching the Atlantic coast. In Chile, it is present throughout the country. Its presence in Peru has been mentioned; to date, however, there has been no confirmation of it. The South American gray fox was introduced to the Falkland Islands in
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