The five regions

The twenty-six states and the Federal district of Brazil are divided into five geographic regions; the North, Northeast, Southeast, South and the Center West.

North
Rondenia, Acre, Amazonas, Roraima, Para, Amapa and Tocantins are the seven states in the North region of Brazil. The region has a total of 3,869,638 square kilometres and takes up 45.3% of Brazil's territory.
The tropical forest in the region is home to the planet's richest wildlife.

Northeast
Nine states make up the Northeast region. These states are Alagoas, Bahia, Ceara, Maranhao, Paraiba, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio Grande do Norte and Sergipe.
The Northeast covers 18.3% of the natural territory of Brazil with 1,561,178 square kilometres.

Southeast
Espirito Santo, Minas Gerais,Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo are the only four states that make up the Southeast region. The region has a mass of only 927,286 square kilometres and takes up 10.9% of the natural territory.

South
The South has a temperate climate and only has three states; Parana, Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. These three states cover only 6.8% of Brazil's territory with a total of 577,214 square kilometres.

Center West
Goias, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasilia as well as the federal district are the four states in the Center West region of Brazil. The region takes up 1,612,077 square kilometres of Brazil and covers 18.9% of its natural territory.

Wildlife

The Amazon rainforest, the Atlantic forest and the Cerrado together hold the world's greatest plant and animal life. The Araucaria pine forest in the south grows under a temperate climate. A number of natural habitats are reflected upon by the rich wildlife and almost on a daily basis new species are being found. The total amount of plant and animal species in Brazil could reach four million as estimated by scientists.

Brazils natural heritage is threatened by cattle ranching, agriculture, logging, mining, oil and gas extraction and fire. In some areas of Brazil the wildlife is threatened by development. Highways have opened what used to be remote areas of the country for agriculture and settlement.