Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz is one of the twenty-three provinces of Argentina; it is located in the southern part of the country, in Patagonia. It borders Chubut province to the north, and Chile to the west and south. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean. It is the second largest province of the country (after Buenos Aires province), covering 243,943 km² (94,187 square miles) and the least densely populated in mainland Argentina with around 350,000 people living there. The largest city and capital is the port of Río Gallegos, home to about one third of the populace.

To the west, the Andes at these latitudes are lower than in the centre and north of Argentina, but still have year-round snow. An immense ice sheet feeds the numerous glaciers. From the centre to the Atlantic coast in the east, plateaux of descending height dominate the landscape. The Atlantic coastline is a mixture of beaches and cliffs. In Gran Bajo de San Julián, the Laguna del Carbón is 105 meters below sea level, and is the lowest point in the Western and Southern Hemispheres.

The cold, arid steppe is crossed by rivers that produce fertile valleys. They include the Rivers Deseado, Santa Cruz, Gallegos, Coyle, Chico and Pinturas, all of which originate in the Andes and drain into lakes and from there to the Atlantic Ocean. The large lakes, include lakes Buenos Aires Lake (2881 km² of which is in Argentina), Cardiel (460 km²), Viedma (1082 km²), Argentino (1560 km²), Pueyrredón, Belgrano and San Martín (1.013 km²) all in the west of the province. They are fed by glacial melt-water, but due to the cold climate their shores are not useable for agriculture.

Perito Moreno Glacier – ©Fernando CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The province’s average temperatures are 13°C in summer, and 3° in winter, when temperatures can fall as low as -25°. Even though precipitation on the ice-sheet area in the west is common, rain is scarce in other areas, with an average of 200 mm per year. Strong winds blow all year round.

Santa Cruz, with its small population and rich natural resources, has long had one of Argentina’s most prosperous economies, which, however, with the possible exception of Neuquen’s, is the country’s least diversified. Fully half its output is accounted for by the extractive sector (petroleum, gas and mining), with an annual production of 4.5 million m3 of petroleum and 3 million m3 of gas, mainly in the Pico Truncado, Cañadón seco and Cerro Redondo extracting facilities. The coal production at Río Turbio, Argentina’s only active coal mine, is of around one million m3 per year. Mining includes gold (Cerro Vanguardia), clay, gypsum, salt and others. The second most important productive activity is that associated with sheep. With 7 million head, Santa Cruz is the second main producer of wool and meat after the Province of Chubut, most of which is designated for export.

The Glaciers National Park – ©Martin St-Amant (S23678) CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Sea fishing, and its later industrialization at the fishing ports of Puerto Deseado, Puerto San Julián, Puerto Santa Cruz and Río Gallegos produces prawn, squid, hake and dozens of others. Most of the production is frozen and exported. There is little agriculture due to the arid nature of the soil. There is a small timber industry fed by both forests and plantations, of which the wood of the lenga is the most exploited.

Birding Santa Cruz

While a great deal of Santa Cruz Province is cold and arid, there are woodlands and rich riverine habitats and wetlands as well as foothills and mountains that offers diverse bio-geographic regions ranging from Andean-Patagonian forests and steppe plateaus to coastal marine environments, creating exceptional habitats for unique and rare avian species. Almost 300 species of birds have been recorded.

Reserva Laguna Nimez – ©Liam Quinn CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

For example, Yellow-bridled Finch is a striking alpine and scrubland finch native to the southern latitudes. The temperate woodland and wetlands of Reserva Laguna Nimez (El Calafate), for example, offer Austral Parakeets in the woodlands, Darwin’s Rhea on the plain and exciting waterbirds in the   compact 70-hectare wetland right on Lago Argentino as it hosts over 130 species, including Chilean Flamingos, Black-necked swans, and other localised waterfowl. The Strobel Plateau & Estancia Laguna Verde are famous as the primary breeding grounds for the critically endangered Hooded Grebe with Andean condors and Black-chested Buzzard among the variety of raptors that soar above. The Parque Nacional Los Glaciares, spans Andean-Patagonian forests and steppes where you can also spot Andean Condors, Austral Parakeets, and various hawks and eagles. Crested Duck is a common resident found across any local wetlands and aquatic habitats.

Isla Pingüino – ©Andreacav7 CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Perhaps the biggest attraction are the Atlantic Coastal Reserves (Monte León & Cabo Vírgenes) in the southern part of the province as they are exceptional for coastal marine birds and massive breeding colonies of Magellanic Penguins.  Santa Cruz Province also features Penguin Island (Isla Pingüino) located near the coastal town of Puerto Deseado. Its protected marine park hosts colonies of Magellanic penguins and is famous for being the only mainland location where tourists can easily visit a breeding colony of Yellow-plumed (Rockhopper) Penguins.