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By Jess Webster, Junior Researcher on Seven Worlds, One Planet

Nestled in the Misiones Province of Argentina and bordering the Brazilian state of Paraná to the north, Iguazú falls is the largest waterfall system in the world and one of South America’s most famous tourist attractions. Deriving its name from the indigenous term for ‘great water,’ the Iguazú River forms a large horseshoe shaped bend at the heart of the falls, which measures in at an impressive 80 meters high and almost 3 km wide.

Surrounding these dramatic drops are swathes of tropical forest that support an abundance of life including 2,000 species of plant, 400 species of bird and up to 80 species of mammal.

But for one resident here, home is not where you might expect.

Each year the great dusky swift builds its nests on the rocky outcrops lining the falls. After being cared for by their parents for six weeks, chicks must make the perilous journey through the falls’ unrelenting torrents, flying their way to independence and at the same time, gaining their very first glimpse of the outside world.

But Iguazú falls is not just a tale of stunning sights and epic endeavors. It is also a story of hope and of communities coming together to safeguard the natural world. Due to the geographic nature of the falls in traversing both Argentina and Brazil, effective management of the site and protection of the species within relies on a collaborative effort between the two South American countries.

Cooperation, however, was not always at the fore, with Argentina first establishing Iguazú National Park in 1934 and Brazil protecting its own portion of the falls six years later by creating its sister park, Iguaçu. Both parks gained further protection in the mid-1980s when they were individually upgraded to World Heritage Sites.

In recent years however, there has been a more concerted effort towards cross-country collaboration, with representatives of both countries coming together to develop long term conservation and management plans. A key aspect of this relates to the regulation of a hydroelectric dam system up river, which has the potential to harm the great dusky swift and its fellow inhabitants through the altering of water levels. Alongside these strategic efforts, joint activities on the ground have also increased including patrolling, species monitoring, education and research.

Perhaps the most encouraging development of all is that these two countries have now joined together with Paraguay, which also shares a border at the Paraná River basin, to participate in a project aimed at improving trans-boundary cooperation in order to help develop the region’s resilience to climate change. Termed ‘Triangle City Cooperation,’ the project is also receiving wide support from foreign organisations including The International Development Research Center in Canada and the UK’s University of Leeds.

Today the fall’s Iguazú and Iguaçu National Parks together occupy 240,000 hectares and the jungles within them are a remnant of the once vast Atlantic forest. Deemed one of the most vulnerable global conservation priorities with ongoing threats in the form of development and poaching, there has never been a more important time for countries to come together and defend the falls and the huge diversity of life within.

Argentina and Brazil’s united effort to achieve this sets an example for other countries with shared conservation goals and is a symbol of hope for the future of this extraordinary natural wonder.