El Impenetrable National Park
🇦🇷 Argentina
🐆 Jaguar Trails in the Dry ChacoEl Impenetrable National Park is a tropical savanna in the Gran Chaco of Argentina, a mosaic of dense dry forest, palm‑groves and seasonally flooded lowlands. The landscape supports a mix of towering quebracho trees and open grass patches that give way to water‑filled depressions where the broad‑snouted caiman basks.
-24.998° S 61.119° W
Wildlife
⭐ Iconic Species
★ 
South American Tapir
Tapirus terrestris
★ 
Jaguar
Panthera onca
★ 
Giant Anteater
Myrmecophaga tridactyla
★ 
Broad-snouted Caiman
Caiman latirostris
📊 Most Spotted
Brazilian Cardinal
Paroaria coronata
Chaco Chachalaca
Ortalis canicollis
Monk Parakeet
Myiopsitta monachus
Blue-gray Saltator
Saltator coerulescens
Pearly-vented Tody-Tyrant
Hemitriccus margaritaceiventer
Narrow-billed Woodcreeper
Lepidocolaptes angustirostris
Picazuro Pigeon
Patagioenas picazuro
White-tipped Dove
Leptotila verreauxi
Golden-billed Saltator
Saltator aurantiirostris
Great Kiskadee
Pitangus sulphuratus
Great Antshrike
Taraba major
Blue-and-yellow Tanager
Rauenia bonariensis
⭐ Iconic Species
★ South American Tapir
Tapirus terrestris
★ Jaguar
Panthera onca
★ Giant Anteater
Myrmecophaga tridactyla
📊 Most Spotted
Chacoan Mara
Dolichotis salinicola
Southern Three-banded Armadillo
Tolypeutes matacus
White-lipped Peccary
Tayassu pecari
Black Howler
Alouatta caraya
Capybara
Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris
Collared Peccary
Pecari tajacu
Tapeti
Sylvilagus brasiliensis
Crab-eating Fox
Cerdocyon thous
Mountain Lion
Puma concolor
Common Yellow-toothed Cavy
Galea musteloides
Southern Tamandua
Tamandua tetradactyla
Six-banded Armadillo
Euphractus sexcinctus
📊 Most Spotted
Brazilian Cardinal
Paroaria coronata
Chaco Chachalaca
Ortalis canicollis
Monk Parakeet
Myiopsitta monachus
Blue-gray Saltator
Saltator coerulescens
Pearly-vented Tody-Tyrant
Hemitriccus margaritaceiventer
Narrow-billed Woodcreeper
Lepidocolaptes angustirostris
Picazuro Pigeon
Patagioenas picazuro
White-tipped Dove
Leptotila verreauxi
Golden-billed Saltator
Saltator aurantiirostris
Great Kiskadee
Pitangus sulphuratus
Great Antshrike
Taraba major
Blue-and-yellow Tanager
Rauenia bonariensis
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
Painted Lancehead
Bothrops diporus
Amazon Racerunner
Ameiva ameiva
Four-toed Tegu
Teius teyou
Cope's Mabuya
Notomabuya frenata
Spiny Lava Lizard
Tropidurus spinulosus
Scorpion Mud Turtle
Kinosternon scorpioides
Chilean Tortoise
Chelonoidis chilensis
Etheridge's Lava Lizard
Tropidurus etheridgei
Red Tegu
Salvator rufescens
Red-footed Tortoise
Chelonoidis carbonarius
Banded Hognose Snake
Xenodon pulcher
Argentinian Rainbow Boa
Epicrates alvarezi
📊 Most Spotted
Vizcacheras' White-lipped Frog
Leptodactylus bufonius
Mato Grosso Snouted Tree Frog
Scinax acuminatus
Cururu Toad
Rhinella diptycha
Miranda's White-lipped Frog
Leptodactylus macrosternum
Chaco Tree Frog
Boana raniceps
Sapito De Haro
Elachistocleis haroi
Lesser Snouted Tree Frog
Scinax nasicus
Muller's Termite Frog
Dermatonotus muelleri
Chaco Granulated Toad
Rhinella major
Cei's Escuerzo
Odontophrynus lavillai
Budgett's Frog
Lepidobatrachus laevis
Chacoan Horned Frog
Ceratophrys cranwelli
Recent sightings in El Impenetrable National Park
LIVEiNaturalistAnimal Events
2Caiman Lagoon Congregation
Broad-snouted caimans congregate and bask at shrinking dry-season lagoons along the Bermejo and Bermejito rivers, the phenomenon that names the Pozo del Yacaré trail.
1Dry-Season Waterhole Gatherings
In the Chaco dry season, tapirs and giant anteaters concentrate at the remaining lagoons and waterholes, watched from the park's viewing blinds on the Pozo del Yacaré trail.
3Waterbird Breeding
Austral spring breeding season for the Chaco wetlands' large birds — jabiru storks and turquoise-fronted amazons nest and are at their most active along the Bermejo floodplain.
Sighting Calendar
Average chance of spotting the park's most-spotted species, month by month
- 1Dry-Season Waterhole Gatherings
- 2Caiman Lagoon Congregation
- 3Waterbird Breeding
Sighting Zones
Warmer areas are where all species together are recorded most often.
Essentials
Climate
What visitors saw
The Impenetrable also allowed us to marvel at the Chaco fauna: We spotted peccaries, cottontail rabbits, and brown deer, and, at the most exciting moment of the trip, a tapir that calmly let itself be observed, reminding us that there are still places where these large mammals live free and safe.
It is possible there are or have been other jaguars we haven’t seen at this bookend of the species’ range.
Quick answers
What animals can you see in El Impenetrable National Park?
The most likely sightings are Brazilian Cardinal (seen by about 80% of wildlife watchers), Chaco Chachalaca (seen by about 80% of wildlife watchers), Monk Parakeet (seen by about 80% of wildlife watchers), Blue-gray Saltator (seen by about 80% of wildlife watchers), Broad-snouted Caiman (seen by about 70% of wildlife watchers) — among 614 recorded vertebrate species, based on citizen-science data from GBIF.
When is the best time to visit El Impenetrable National Park for wildlife?
October has the highest combined sighting rate for the park's top species in our month-by-month GBIF data. The full sighting calendar on this page shows each species' best months.
Can you see South American Tapir in El Impenetrable National Park?
Yes — about 60% of wildlife watchers report a South American Tapir sighting in El Impenetrable National Park, based on 32 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
Can you see Jaguar in El Impenetrable National Park?
Yes — about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Jaguar sighting in El Impenetrable National Park, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
Can you see Giant Anteater in El Impenetrable National Park?
Yes — about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Giant Anteater sighting in El Impenetrable National Park, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
Can you see Broad-snouted Caiman in El Impenetrable National Park?
Yes — about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Broad-snouted Caiman sighting in El Impenetrable National Park, based on 51 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
Where Wildlife Score
How good is this park for seeing wildlife?Biodiversity
GoodHow rich is the wildlife?
Sighting
ExcellentHow likely to see animals?
Experience
ExcellentHow easy and pleasant is the visit?
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