El Dorado River & Atun Poza Lake
In our second full day of exploration of the Pacaya-Samiria Reserve we visited the El Dorado River. We awoke again to a cloudy morning which is a blessing here in the Amazon. This river is a relatively large tributary of the Uyacali River. In this location we devoted our time to looking for wildlife. Our goal this morning was to reach a calm area to have our breakfast on the skiffs! It was not just peanut butter and jam sandwiches; we had a complete set with ceramic plates, cloth napkins, and we were served by our white-gloved drivers and dining staff a splendid meal of Amazonian juices, coffee and many different exotic delicacies like sweet potato and cassava breads and almond cookies. We had the company of the rainforest sounds under the shade of a couple of trees that attracted butterflies and birds.
After breakfast we continued to explore a little more. Our rewards were great, for we observed one of the most feared and dangerous snakes of the Amazon, the fer-de-lance or South American lance head Viper (Bothrops atrox). The snake was seen out of the water coiled on top of a branch. This species is mainly terrestrial but when they are in a flooded forest they climb on trees to rest or sleep.
As little by little the sun started to shine we made our way back to the ship. Once onboard and after recovering our energies I had the pleasure to give a talk on “The Ecology and Morphology of the Primates of the Upper Amazon.” This talk was followed by an exhibition of tropical fruits by one of our excellent Peruvian naturalists, Rudy Flores, who told us delightful stories about the large array of exotic fruits of the Amazon region.
In the afternoon, with a strong sun shining, we had a late visit to Atun Poza Lake and its surroundings. In this location we had plenty of time to explore many small lagoons and marshes. We were fortunate, for the beautiful light we had allowed us to see the spectacular and vivid coloration of the many colorful bird species that were spotted. Wattled jacanas, several raptors, the famous hoatzin, neotropical cormorants, parrots, macaws and many others were admired.
We found several hoatzins (Ophistocomus hoazin). This bird species is by far one of the most interesting of the Amazon. As an example, hoatzins when young have claws on their wings that they use to dive out from the nest when scared by predators. They remain underwater until the danger passes. If it were not for the claws, the chicks would not be able to climb out of the water and back into the nest. For me the true highlight, in addition to the many great opportunities for photography, was the chance to remain in silence for a long time enjoying the intrinsic beauty of the solitude that these remote locations evoke.
We stayed in the area until late in the afternoon with the intention to observe the spectacular sunset and to come back onboard covered with the night while enjoying the sounds of the rainforest.
