Pacaya River & Zapote Caño
After being in the rainforest for several days already our guests are now synchronized and connected with the rainforest and have a deep appreciation of its complexity. Today in the morning we visited one of the main rivers of the reserve, the Pacaya River. It is one of the most important components of the Pacaya–Samiria National Reserve. The reserve is the most extensive area of protected floodable forest (varzea) in the Amazon Rainforest – not only in Peru but in South America. All over this protected area there is an incredible amount of water in the shape of countless lagoons, lakes, gorges, oxbows and canals.
We had a very hot day, therefore hats and sunscreen lotions were a must. During the morning’s exploration we had several highlights like the sighting of large flocks of herons that were seen along the river edges. We observed several giant water lilies (Victoria regia) as well and we even had the unusual sighting of a great potoo (Nyctibius grandis) during daytime. There were also numerous horned screamers (Anhima cornuta) which are a relatively large goose-like bird that brawls like a donkey.
Later in the morning we swam in the middle of a refreshing beautiful lake, Yanayacu. Most of us jumped in the water for it was a hot morning. It felt like heaven, floating in peace while being surrounded by the magnificence of the forest.
In the afternoon we explored Zapote Caño. In this location we found, once again, many colorful bird species. One in particular, the orange-cheeked parrot (Pyrilia barrabandi), deserves special mention. Its striking coloration resembling the colors of a rainbow – including yellow, red, black, orange, blue, pale blue and shades of green – makes this bird species one of my favorites ever. We spotted, at very close range, a juvenile brown-throated three-toed sloth (Bradypus variegatus) as well. The animal was resting peacefully on top of a bushy green area and it was a delight to observe.
The highlight of the day, and in fact, for me, the highlight of the whole week, was the unforgettable encounter we had with a mixed troop of monkeys. Mammals are usually difficult to see in the rainforests but today we were fortunate to spot several species of them together! I am very fond of mammals for this is the specialization I had when I was in college; so today I was in heaven! I spent several years collecting and classifying specimens before becoming a naturalist.
This is the list of the troop spotted today: squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus), monk saki monkeys (Phitecia monachus), saddle-backed tamarins (Saguinus fuscicollis) and brown capuchin monkeys Cebus apella). The latter species is one of the most difficult ones to see; it is in fact not rare but is very elusive. Brown capuchins move constantly and fast, leaving just glimpses of their presence. Today one capuchin came close to the skiff and observed us for several magical minutes. This unusual sighting is the best that our naturalist Luis Ihuraqui has ever had in his life! Luis was born and has lived all his life in the Amazon area. This tells to you how rare and close the sighting of this elusive monkey species was. For the very first time in my life I was able to photograph the brown capuchin monkey as well.
As we returned to the ship, we felt good and renewed to have experienced in the last days the full spectrum of life and beauty of the Amazon.
