Alto Purús National Park, National park in Ucayali and Madre de Dios, Peru
Alto Purús National Park covers 2,510,694.41 ha across the provinces of Purús (Ucayali), Tahuamanu and Tambopata (Madre de Dios). The Purús, Curanja, Cujar and Curiuja rivers cross an alluvial plain of tropical forest, gallery forest and palm stands, with hilly terrain in the west and sandy banks along the main rivers.
The park was officially established in November 2004 to protect the largest continuous rainforest area within Peru's protected areas system. This designation reflected the government's commitment to preserving one of the country's most ecologically important regions.
About 3,600 people live in the park area, 75% of them indigenous: Culina, Cashinahua, Sharanahua, Mastanahua, Amahuaca, Ashaninca and Chaninahua, settled mainly along the Purús and Curanja rivers. Uncontacted Mashco people have also been reported. In villages on the Curanja, visitors can see local dances, fish farming and traditional farming.
Access is mainly by river: the Purús is navigable from Puerto Esperanza, and boats also serve the Curanja. Rain is heaviest from December to April, when rivers and streams rise; the rest of the year is drier. Temperatures range from about 17 °C to 35 °C, averaging 25 °C. There are no visitor facilities inside the park.
The reserve hosts around 520 bird species, including blue-headed macaws and harpy eagles, which gather at natural clay deposits called colpas. These mineral licks draw birds and other wildlife to specific locations where they feed on nutrient-rich earth.
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