Thousand-year-old forests, flowering desert and giant cacti
At an altitude of over 3,000 m, in extreme living conditions, the Atacama desert is home to a hardy flora. Numerous cacti coexist here, including the famous cardón grande, the largest of all cacti. Its trunk can reach up to 10 m in height. And that's not all: on average, every 5 to 8 years, the desert is covered with millions of flowers, transforming the landscape. The phenomenon of the "desierto florido" (flowering desert) is explained by the influence of El Niño. This warm marine current produces an increase in precipitation, which is a lifesaver for the world's most arid desert: as a result, more than 200 plant species, whose seeds and other bulbs were buried beneath the soil, bloom to create a magnificent spectacle of color. This phenomenon is particularly noticeable around Copiapó, Vallenar and Llanos de Challe (in the Atacama region). In the south, Chile is dominated by green! Among the magnificent forests of conifers (fir, cypress, cedar) andalerces(Fitzroya cupressoides), you'll also see some beautiful arrayanes and the emblematic Araucaria pine. In Patagonia, some trees, like the larch, are said to be over 3,000 years old! Resistant to cold summers and violent winds, the forests extend as far south as the coast, where they are sometimes impenetrable, guardians of a flora that is still little known and studied: they are known as "primary", i.e. untouched and exploited by man. These include coigüe, Chiloé rock (Nothofagus nitida) and Magellanic beech(Nothofagus betuloides), as well as luma and canelo.
Emblematic camelids
Chile's fauna is best known for the emblematic llama, a mammal that, in addition to being exploited for its wool and meat, was the charge animal of pre-Hispanic cultures in the Andes. But the llama is not the only camelid found in Chile. There are three other species: the vicuña, thealpaca and the guanaco. The vicuña is smaller, finer and more elegant. Impossible to domesticate, they live in groups of a dozen individuals led by a single male. Vicuñas can be seen grazing on the bofedales (peat bogs) of Lauca National Park, or in the Andean highlands around San Pedro de Atacama. The wool trade considerably reduced their population (estimated at 2 million in Inca times), but today Chile can proudly boast the success of its conservation efforts: vicuñas are legion in the north of the country. The domesticated alpaca is slightly shorter-legged than the llama, and boasts a beautiful coat that can be white, black or grey. The guanaco, finally, is wild; barely larger than the vicuña, it sports a beautiful golden coat and can be found in the northern Andes or to the south, in the Magallanes region and in Tierra del Fuego.
A wild and endemic fauna
Chile is home to the world's smallest deer. There are two species: the northern pudú and the southern pudú. The northern pudú lives north of the Andes and has a dark orange-brown coat on its neck. The southern pudú lives in the dense forests of Patagonia and can climb to altitudes of over 3,000 meters. Its coat protects it more from the cold and is entirely reddish-brown. However, it remains discreet and is very difficult to come across. The species has been classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. You may also be lucky enough to spot a huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus), or southern Andean deer, a medium-sized cervid (1 m tall, weighing 70 kg at best) in danger of extinction. This species still survives in Chile's Torres del Paine and Aisén national parks, but specimens can also be found in the Lauca park to the north, near Arica.
These deer live alongside other protected species such as pumas (the largest of Chile's felines, with four subspecies; if you're lucky, they can be seen all over the country) and wild cats. There are also several species of fox, such as the Andean fox (or Magellanic fox) and the Darwin's fox. Finally, in the Lauca park, you can observe vizcachas, chinchilla-like rodents with rabbit heads and squirrel tails! The country also boasts two species of armadillo: the quirquincho, found on the Andean Altiplano, and the hairy Patagonian armadillo, or pichi, found in Argentine Patagonia.
Marine life
The most impressive specimens of Chile's marine fauna are the whales, which cruise the waters of the Strait of Magellan and along the coast of Tierra del Fuego. Dolphins, as well as penguins, sea lions and elephant seals, inhabit Chile's coastline from Patagonia to just north of Copiapó. In the Francisco Coloane National Park, notably around Carlos III Island, south-west of Punta Arenas, a colony of humpback whales can be observed. It has recently been discovered that there is a colony of around a hundred blue whales to the north-west of Chiloé: these are the largest marine mammals that have ever existed, reaching 33 m in length and weighing between 80 and 160 tonnes! Seven species of whale can be observed in Antarctica: Minke(Balaenoptera acutorostrata), blue(Balaenoptera musculus), pygmy(Caperea marginata), fin(ballena fin or Balaenoptera physalus), sei(ballena sei or Balaenoptera borealis), humpback(Megaptera novaeangliae) and southern right(Eubalaena australis). Black with a white belly, orcas can also be seen off the coast. They can be recognized by their black fins protruding from the water. These predators, distinguished from whales by their teeth, often travel in small groups of ten. Large males can measure over 9.50 m and weigh more than 8 tons. They are best seen between February and April, or in October-November.
Seals and sea lions aresimilar marine mammals, but belong to two different families: seals have no auricles and crawl with their flippers flat against the ground, while sea lions have visible ears and larger flippers. Elephant seals belong to the seal family. With their trunk-like noses, males can measure up to 5 m and weigh 4 tons. Polygamy is happily practiced: a male's harem can include up to 38 females. During the birthing season, the females are constantly threatened by single males, who engage in violent battles against the "harem lords" and attempt to kidnap the newborns. A member of the sea lion family, the sea lion, also known as the maned sea lion, inhabits much of the coastline. They feed and live in the sea, but rest and breed on land. A peaceful animal, they have always been hunted and massacred: described as "enemies" by Chilean fishermen, they have been protected by a hunting ban since the 1990s, which forces human activity to cohabit with sea lions.
The birds
The Magellanic penguin is one of the country's most emblematic animals. This seabird measures an average of 45 cm and weighs between 4 and 5 kg. Every year, it returns to the same nest, which is nothing more than a burrow. Monogamous pairs form in September, and the eggs are laid a month later... Towards the end of January, the young penguins, weighing around 1 kg, begin their hard nomadic life. They are the prey of many animals, such as foxes and gulls. Only 10% of baby penguins survive their first year. In April, it's time for the great migrations to the open sea: underwater, the penguin is a virtuoso and can reach 25 km/h in full run. Penguins also include the gorfu, distinguished by its yellow feathers on the head, and the Humboldt penguin.
The most remarkable bird species is the condor, whose wingspan can reach over 3 m in full flight. The males are larger and have a crest; unlike their parents, who have a white collar around their neck, the young have a gray collar. Luckily, they can be seen all over the country, all along the Cordillera. As well as the charismatic Andean condor, you'll also find howling albatrosses, flamingos, parakeets, owls, eagles, falcons, hawks, barnacle geese, parakeets, sparrows, ibises, kingfishers... and even hummingbirds!
Flamingos can be admired on the lagoons of the Atacama salar or on the lagoons of the Andes cordillera, east of San Pedro. Flamingo feathers are dark pink, and the species can be distinguished by the color of their legs: Chilean flamingos are gray and red, James flamingos are pink and Andean flamingos are golden.
In Patagonia or the far north, you'll meet the largest of Chile's birds: the ñandu. This species of ostrich can weigh between 15 and 25 kg.
Nature reclaims its rights
Threatened ecosystems, deforestation, endangered species... conservation has become an essential concern. In Chile, it is managed by governmental organizations (CONAF) and private initiatives. Numerous protected areas ensure the preservation of the country's rich biodiversity. In 2017, for example, Chile announced the creation of the largest marine protected area in Latin America to preserve the waters of Easter Island. But the defense of the environment took a historic turn in 2021 with the announcement of a new Constitution for the country: the Constituent Assembly intends to introduce ecosystem protection into the Constitution. While awaiting future environmental advances (the new Constitution was rejected in 2023), the country has achieved a number of successes: the puma, which has been extinct in several areas of Patagonia since the 1990s, has made a comeback and is now a National Monument alongside many other species. Two species of huemul, a typical Andean deer, have been declared national monuments to prevent their extinction. Today, several national parks are trying to ensure its survival, in particular Patagonia National Park and Pumalin National Park, created on the initiative of entrepreneur Douglas Tompkins. Thanks to partnerships between Tompkins Conservation and the Chilean government, millions of hectares have been protected over the past three decades. In 2019, La Ruta de los Parques, a 2,800 km hiking trail, was also inaugurated by Tompkins Conservation: it represents over 90% of the territory protected under the National Parks category in Chile, preserving 11.5 million hectares of pristine space (3 times the size of Switzerland).
