The peninsular, northeastern arm of Argentina is home to some of
the last remaining remnants of a South American ecosystem known
as Atlantic Rainforest, which used to run all along Brazil's
coast from the state of Rio Grande Do Norte thousands of miles
south to Rio Grande Do Sul. This MODIS image of southeastern
Brazil shows the Misiones region of Argentina (lower left),
where the original Atlantic Forest veered inland from the coast.
Portions of the forest can be seen along the coast between the
cities of Sao Paulo (brownish patch at the right center of the
image) and Curitiba, to the southwest. According to thematic
maps published in the 1970s, the original forest would likely
have covered the entire area east of a line drawn diagonally
from the tip of the Misiones region up to the top right corner
of the image. Distinct from the Amazon Rainforest, the forests
have some of the highest rates of biodiversity and endemic
species (species found only in a particular location) known in
the world despite the fact