Nauta Caño, Nucuruchi Caño & San Francisco Town
Today we started our day by taking a ride on our fleet of skiffs with the intention to explore a nearby seasonal black water creek known locally as “Nauta Caño.” This pre-breakfast outing by skiff or kayaks was of great success for we spotted a very large number of bird species that included special highlights like: several species of raucous parrots and parakeets and colorful Silver beaked Tanagers. We came back at around 0730 to the Delfin II for breakfast.
At around 0830 once our energies were replenished we were ready for our next activity; a long skiff ride of exploration, this time on “’Yanayacu Caño.” Several small troops of Squirrel and Saddle back Tamarin monkeys were seen as well. Squirrel monkeys (Saimiri scireus) are very conspicuous for they move quickly, constantly and noisily in the middle and lower strata of the riverbanks looking mainly for food. Insects like crickets and grasshoppers are an important part of their diet as well as ripe fruits of the flooded forests. Many diverse bird species were seen as well, in particular several huge and noisy Horned screamers and colorful Oriole Blackbirds, White- eared and White-chinned Jacamars. As the day was warming up we returned to the ship and after a talk on photography by our Expedition Leader and certified National Geographic Photo Instructor Carlos Romero we had lunch.
In the afternoon, after a well-deserved nap, a few guests opted to disembark at San Francisco community to go for a hike on “Terra firme” forest while most of the rest opted to take a skiff ride instead. In both options we all had a great time. A last minute activity was included in the program by suggestion of our expert team of naturalists; before going on the hike or the rides we went to see one of the many treasures of the Amazon, the famous Giant Victorian Water Lilies (Victoria regia). The naturalists mentioned that in a nearby little lagoon these enormous plants were blooming already, therefore we decide to give it a go and it turn out to be great for we saw many of them. Many were up to four feet across and several had beautiful white flowers. Besides being extraordinarily large and beautiful, they are also pollinated by beetles! Then, went to explore another creek; Nucuruchi Caño.
Later in the afternoon just after the visits we all gathered at San Francisco community where we spent some time admiring the local handicrafts. After a sensational dinner we had an extra activity, a night walk that gave us the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere and in total darkness, just with the company of the many nocturnal sounds of the rain forest. At around 2145, the day was finally over; we went to bed after spending a magical day in the always challenging and magical Amazon.
