Nauta area of the Rio Marañon
On our second day in the Amazon we continued our exploration of the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve. This immense reserve of 20,000 km2 was created by the Peruvian government in 1982. It protects an area of Amazonian rain forest and the remarkable biodiversity contained therein. At this time of year, approaching the peak of the high water season some 70% of the forest of the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve will be flooded. This has advantages in allowing our exploration of the region to leave the main rivers and venture up smaller tributaries and into lakes. These areas are typically productive places for finding wildlife and today at Nauta Caño was no exception.
Well-trained eyes found much of interest during the day. Three-toed sloths featured prominently in the sightings, including one young animal that was in low vegetation, almost at eye level. This is in contrast to most sloth sightings, which are of animals high in the trees. The fact that this was a young animal, perhaps inexperienced, was probably part of the reason why it was low down and quite unperturbed by the close approach of the skiff. There were other notable mammal sightings, such as several groups of an unusual monkey, the monk saki. These animals have a shaggy black fur coat, which looks uncomfortably hot in the heat and humidity of the jungle but presumably offers good protection from biting insects.
The sounds of the jungle are ever present and good ears are just as important as a good set of eyes to help us find wildlife. A loud birdsong in the undergrowth was expertly imitated by our guide and before long the source of the song came reluctantly into view. The source proved to be a small reddish-brown bird with an unusual name: varzea schiffornis. It is often the case that the best songbirds are drab and skulking, and this was no exception. This is a little known and rarely seen species and one that does not feature on many “Most Wanted” lists, but was a welcome addition to our sightings for the day.
