The Manu National Park is an Amazonian tropical rainforest region with the title of Biosphere Reserve, which is considered the most bio-diverse region in the world.
This magical place is home of over 1000 species of birds (15% of all the bird species), 300 species of great trees, 15000 species of flowers, 200 species of mammals and an endless number of other animals and plants.
The Park is located along the entire watershed of the Manu River in Peru, amongst the region of Madre de Dios and the Paucartambo province in the Cusco region. The Biosphere Reserve was established in 1973 upon request of UNESCO.
The Park covers an area of 15 328 square Kilometers (5916 square miles), this zone is known as the Core Zone which is strictly preserved in its natural state; therefore nobody is allowed to enter into this region of the park, besides, there are two additional zones.
One of them is 2570 square kilometers (992 square miles), it is known as Experimental Zone, the other zone, called “Cultural Zone” is 914 square kilometers (352 square miles); these two zones can receive visitors and the Cultural Zone has also some human settlements of the Machiguenga tribe.
Despite, the Amazon area of the Park, is the largest and most famous; the Reserve includes also ecosystems of the Andean zone; since, Manu includes landscapes between 150 and 4200 meters (500 and 13 600 feet) above sea level.
But, the average temperature in most part of the Reserve is 28ºC (82ºF), although, temperatures can reach until 34ºC (93ºF) and the rate of rainfall varies between 2500 and 3500 mm (98-138 inches) per year.
Some of the most representative inhabitants of this Natural Paradise are the giant otter (an animal in extinction danger), the mustached Emperor Tamarin (a charismatic monkey specie), the amazing jaguar, the Tapir, the Black Caiman, the Harpy eagle, Toucans, Flycatchers, wrens, colorful parrots and of course the famous Andean Cock of the Rock (Rupicola peruviana), the national bird of Peru.
There are also an impressive variety of orchids and other flowers as well as beautiful and unique species of insects that live in the marvelous and endless trees that exists in the wonderful Biosphere Reserve of Manu.
The Park receives relatively few tourists every year and it can be reached by plane from Cusco or by travelling along the river. There are several travel agencies that operate tours towards Manu. It is a place that really worth visiting.
The Peruvian rainforest and Manu have been inhabited by Indigenous tribes such as Machiguenga, Mascho Piro , Yaminahua and Amahuaca since long time ago. The first great civilization that contacted to the Manu tribes was the great Inca Empire.
After the Spanish invasion of South America, several Spaniards started to explore the Amazon Jungle; one of them was Alvarez Maldonado, who claimed the Manu River and surrounding regions for Spain.
But, the Amazon jungle is an inhospitable zone, so the Amazon and its resources were abandoned until the XIX century. The interest by the Amazon jungle including the Manu Region returned after the rubber boom. The Peruvian jungle was full of rubber trees and Manu was not the exception.
The most important trader of rubber in Manu and the Puerto Maldonado region was the baron Carlos Fitzcarrald who managed almost all rubber of this region.
The rubber boom in Peru lasted between 1880 and 1920, reaching its peak around 1900, when the country exported 27 000 tons of rubber per year. Nevertheless, the rubber trade declined since 1914, because of the Southeast Asian competition and the massive deforestation.
Unfortunately, great part of the Amazon jungle of Madre de Dios and its natural resources was devastated during the rubber boom; only some regions like the current reserve were saved from the destruction.
During the 1960s Peru and several countries of Latin America began to create national reserves to protect the local flora and fauna. One of these reserves was Manu which was declared a National Reserve in 1968 and was recognized as a National Park in 1973.
Manu reserve is one of the 15 most important and fragile ecosystems of the planet and receives financial aid from UNESCO, this organism of the ONU declared Manu as a World Heritage in 1987. Today Manu is the main Natural Reserve of Peru and one of the most important Biosphere Reserve of the World.
It is managed by the INRENA (the Natural Resources Institute) and is patrolled by park guards Nevertheless, many problems exist still in the Reserve; there are colonists from the highlands that are constantly encroaching on park’s boundaries; besides, there are many reserves of oil and minerals in the region which are object of desire of several transnational companies.
Manu is probably the greatest natural wonder of Peru and one of the places that more must be protected in the world.