Abuna: Natural Heritage and a Look at Pando

Estación Biológica Abuná combines a clear natural heritage status with a mission that brings together the protection and intended use of the Amazon rainforest. It is located in the province of Abuná, in the Department of Pando, in the municipality of Ingavi, and covers 3,520.0766 hectares. Departmental law specifies this area and declares the station a natural heritage site of the Department of Pando; it is also to be promoted and preserved. The legal recognition and the area figure answer different questions: the status describes the station’s significance, while the number of hectares indicates the extent of the designated area.

Biological Station and Its Intended Functions

For Estación Biológica Abuná, the law provides for model projects involving the use, management, and integrated management of the Amazon rainforest. Ecotourism and other activities are also included, provided they are compatible with the station’s natural heritage status. Those interested in the natural heritage will find here a concrete connection to the site, as well as insight into the functions envisaged for the station.

Nature Topics in the Wider Destination of Pando

Another nature-related feature of the wider destination of Pando is a camera-trap campaign in the Área Modelo de Manejo Integral del Bosque de Santa Rosa del Abuná. Between 2017 and 2019, 30 mammal species and 8 bird species were recorded there; the results were reported in 2023. The distinction is useful for understanding the topics: the station concerns a legal mandate, while the campaign concerns documented findings from time-limited research.

Cultural History in the Wider Destination of Pando

Cultural sites in the wider destination of Pando offer their own points of interest. El Parque Piñata, known as an urban tourism park, was inaugurated in December 2008 and established as a recreation and leisure area for the public. It is located on the site of the former runway of the old airport. The site’s former use and the recreational function envisaged when the park was created represent two different historical associations.

In Cobija, Monumento El Carretón is located in Parque Piñata on Avenida 9 de febrero. Also on Avenida 9 de febrero, there is the three-headed Monumento a los Héroes de la Batalla de Bahía. Sculptor David Paz created it to commemorate the Battle of Bahía. The two named monuments share a location in Parque Piñata; the three-headed monument’s explicit dedication also places a specific historical event at the center.

Other historical points of interest can be found in Cobija: Monumento El Cristo was created by sculptor David Paz Ramos on June 24, 1995, during the term of Mayor Aníbal Arab Fadul. Barrio Junín, the oldest neighborhood in the municipality of Cobija, was declared Bolivia’s Historic Cultural Heritage by a national law in 2014.

Discover more destinations: Ibáñez, Nicolás Suárez Province.

For the overview of the wider destination: Pando.