Guaraqueçaba Environmental Protection Area, Nature reserve in Paraná, Brazil

The Guaraqueçaba Environmental Protection Area is a sustainable-use conservation unit of 282,444 hectares spanning parts of Guaraqueçaba, Antonina, Paranaguá and Campina Grande do Sul in Paraná. It holds Atlantic Forest rainforest, montane forest, mangrove and salt marsh around the Iguape-Cananéia-Paranaguá estuary lagoon complex, and encloses the Superagui National Park and the Guaraqueçaba Ecological Station.

The area was created by federal Decree No. 90,883, issued on 31 January 1985, with an estimated 283,014 hectares. Law No. 9,513 of 20 November 1997 delimited Superagui National Park and removed from the area the portions included in the new park and the parts of Superagui and das Peças islands outside it, reducing its original extent.

The local caiçara communities have shaped this land through generations of traditional living practices. They coexist with researchers and conservation groups working together to protect the region's natural heritage.

Visitors are best served by exploring this area with a guide who knows the terrain and conservation rules. The best season to visit depends on which ecosystems you want to see, as water and forest areas behave differently throughout the year.

The Superagui lion tamarin (Leontopithecus caissara) is one of the protected species listed for the area, alongside the red-tailed amazon and the black-fronted piping guan. The area also holds archaeological sites, one of the reasons cited for its creation in 1985.