About Us
With its expansive area and diverse habitats, Hato Piñero is one of the best bird watching locations in the world. Here, it is not uncommon to observe more than 100 species of birds in a single day. Just outside of your guest quarters it is easy to spot numerous types of egrets and herons; White, Scarlet, and Glossy Ibis; osprey; macaws; parrots; various hawks; black vultures; and hummingbirds among others. With the aid of a biologist guide, at every turn along the forest paths, you will run across a different species of animal- quite sociable and clearly unaware of the danger normally associated with man's presence.
Lazy giant tortoises leave their mark as they cut a path through the bamboo. The storks' flight bothers neither the herds of zebus grazing up in the lush green hills, nor the graceful white-tailed deers or peccaries down below on arid lands turned red by the afternoon sun.
Playful monkeys hang in the branches of purple and gold-flowered trees and mock the caymans below, while the tapirs bask in the sun under the watchful eye of the parrots. The jaguars and pumas come out at night. There are more than a million animals living here in total safety.
Filled with Exotic Wonders...
Because hunting has been banned for over 50 years, wild animals exhibit a sense of security not readily seen in many nature parks. Visitors to the ranch can observe numerous species of birds and mammals at extraordinarily close distances as they travel through the area in the search for food. Some of the regularly seen mammals at Piñero include: foxes, ocelots, capuchin and red howler monkeys, capybaras, white-tailed deer, tapirs, anteaters, and peccaries.
...And Accomodating Relaxation
By combining some of the most breathtaking nature sites in the world, with simplicity and purity, mahogany and adobe, Hato Piñero will help you forget your stress. For this is a place for peace and serenity even in the eyes of the animals that cross your path. Ceiling fans provide a calming rhythm in the white, colonial bedrooms with sculpted doors; in the lounges, and in the long soapstone corridor. Yellow-headed parrots chatter away in the central patio, against a backdrop of bougainvilleas, hibiscus and orchids.
An ideal hideaway for nature-lovers, birdwatchers, or travelers simply seeking peace, quiet, and happy without a swimming pool and the inevitable parasols. Here, the telephone loses its raison d'etre. At Piñero, there is no lack of resources available for discovering a reserve rich in surprises -on horseback, by boat, or in a four-wheel drive jeep, accompanied by a guide.
Hato Piñero is located in the southeast region of the State of Cojedes, a part of the natural sub-region known as Llanos Centrales de Venezuela (Central plains), which covers a large area of the country (25%). The relief of the llanos altos (high plains) is almost entirely flat, altered only by the presence of the Massif of El Baul, which constitutes one of the natural boundaries of Hato Piñero. Located in the north, the origin of said outcrops dates back to different geological times.
Metasedimentary sequences of the superior Paleozoic are present, which have been subsequently intrusioned by rocks of igneous origin. Also, a series of volcanic rocks dating from the Mesozoic era (Gonzalez de Juana, 1980) stand out. For this reason the Massif of El Baul is of great interest to geologists and paleontologists. The other boundaries are formed by a four-river system: on the west boundary, the Cojedes River, that flows into the Portuguesa River, which, in turn, defines the south boundary; and on the east, the Chirgua River. In addition, the Pao River runs through the ranch from north to south. These boundaries enclose Piñero’s lands in an area where topography levels range from 100 to 600 meters above sea level, thus originating a variety of habitats and vegetations, namely: wetlands, covered by plant species such as the “paja chigüirera” (Paspalum fasciculatum), the “paja lambedora” ( Leersia hexandra), the “paja de raiz” (Sorghastrum parviflorum) and the “paja de agua” (Panicum dichotomiflorum); the park-like dry plateau forest, covered by “paja pelua” (Trachypogon) and the “gamelotillo” (Paspalumplicatulum), associated with non-flooded lands, such as hills and mountains. These lands share said sites with low semi-deciduous to semi-evergreen forests; medium high deciduous forests, covered by dragon trees (Pterocarpus podocarpus) and “gateado” trees (Astronium graveolens); and gallery forests, associated to the course of the rivers of the llanos.
In addition to these communities, there are others of a more local nature and of lesser extension, which contribute to the creation of a greater heterogeneity in the different types of habitats. Examples of these arethe “palma llanera” (Copernicia tectorum), the mirity palm (Mauritia flexuosa) and the “corozo” palm (Acrocomia sclerocarpa), as well as the deciduous bush formed by the “lagunero” (Llecatostemon guazumeafolius).
