The Cavernas do Peruaçu National Park, with an area of 56,448 hectares (139,490 acres), was created on 21 September 1999 and is administered by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation.

[1] The park covers parts of the municipalities of Januária, Itacarambi and São João das Missões in the north of the state of Minas Gerais.

[4] Temperatures average about 18 °C (64 °F) and are slightly higher in winter due to greater cloud cover in summer.

[2] Infrastructure work, expected to be complete in July 2014, created six routes for visitors with eight caves open to the public.

[6] Protected species include maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus), cougar (Puma concolor), jaguar (Panthera onca), ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), colocolo (Leopardus colocolo), chestnut-bellied guan (Penelope ochrogaster), Minas Gerais tyrannulet (Phylloscartes roquettei) and the fish Trichomycterus itacarambiensis.