Fauna
A great diversity of animal species are found within the várzeas. Below is information about each várzea. At the bottom is information about several várzea species, which correspond with pictures .
Marajó:
This várzea has 99 reported mammal species. The short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis maraxina) is endangered. This opposum, and several other mammals, are found in few other places: the armadillo (Dasypus septemcinctus), several bats, primates including marmosets, tamarins, night monkeys, and savanna foxes. Jaguars and pumas are found in this várzea. Marajó has 540 species of birds. Several of these birds are found in few other places. Several large species of fish live in this várzea, which eat fruits from floodplain trees and disperse the seeds.
Gurupa:
Remember, Gurupa is only 3,800 square miles large, yet the várzea has 148 mammal species, 558 bird species, fish and turtles. Many of the mammals at Gurupa are found in few other Amazonian areas. These include tamarins, squirrel monkeys, endangered titi monkeys, marmosets, several rodents, savanna foxes, and many bats.
Monte Alegre:
This várzea is important habitat for fish and invertebrates, for use as reproductive and nursery grounds. This area has 200 mammal species, and 681 birds. Monte Alegre also has black and spectacled caimans, as well as anacondas.
Purus:
199 species of mammals have been reported, and 633 species of birds. White uakari monkeys (Cacajao calvus calvus) and blackish squirrel monkeys (Saimiri vanzolinii) are endemic to the reserve. Many aquarium fish comes from this region.
Iquitos:
Iquitos has 227 species of mammals and 624 species of birds. The endangered yellow-headed sideneck turtle (Podocnemis unifilis), and the endangered giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) are found here. Iquitos has 88 snake species and 30 species of lizards.
There are two species of river dolphin that are found within várzeas in the Amazon. They are pink dolphins (Inia geoffrensis, pictured) and grey dolphins (Sotalia fluviatilis). The Amazon River Dolphin is the only species within the Várzea that isn't depleted due to overexploitation. It is still a very common species.
The Amazonian Manatee (Trichechus inunguis) are strictly herbivorous and feed mainly on aquatic grasses. Large scale hunting of this species started in 1580. From 1935-1954 an estimated 80,000 to 140,000 manatees were killed. This species is now very rare and endangered.
The Anaconda (Eunectes murinus) is a commonly found snake in this ecosystem. There are many myths about the anaconda. One myth is that they reach a length of 20 meters! This is not true. A verified record puts the maximum length of this snake at 12 meters. This is a viviparous snake, meaning it bears live young.
The Spectacled Caiman (Caiman crocodilus) is yet another endangered species within the Amazon. Hunting and habitat destruction has led to their decline.
The Piranha (Serrasalmus spp.)
The tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum) is an important commercial fish species obtained from várzeas.
The Capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is the largest rodent in the world. This species used to occur in large numbers in the Amazonian floodplains, but due to hunting its population size has been greatly reduced.
The Ringed King Fisher (Ceryle torquata)
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