Aragarças

History

The first penetration into the region now occupied by Aragarças occurred in 1872 by a group of prospectors seeking diamonds from Mato Grosso. They were massacred by the Bororó Indians who lived in the area. In 1933 the news that an enormous diamond had been discovered brought droves of prospectors. In the 1950s Aragarça, the name given to the settlement and made up of the name of the Araguaia River and its tributary the Garças, was the center of the government campaign to open up the east of Mato Grosso. A hotel was built to house visitors and a residential area to house the government workers involved in the project. Other improvements were the building of an airstrip and a concrete bridge over the Araguaia River. Araguaia became a district of Baliza in 1951 and a municipality in 1953.

Most-observed species

• Rufous-tailed Jacamar

  Galbula ruficauda Cuvier, 1816 · Aves
  11
• Amazonian Motmot

  Momotus momota (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  10
• Yellow-chevroned Parakeet

  Brotogeris chiriri (Vieillot, 1818) · Aves
  9
• Green iguana

  Iguana iguana (Linnaeus, 1758) · Squamata
  7
• Rufous Hornero

  Furnarius rufus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  7
• Picazuro Pigeon

  Patagioenas picazuro (Temminck, 1813) · Aves
  7
• Blue-and-yellow Macaw

  Ara ararauna (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  7
• Roadside Hawk

  Rupornis magnirostris (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  6