This was an exciting day as we reached the deepest part of the Pacaya-Samiria Reserve. We are navigating along the Ucayali River, which is one of the main headstreams of the mighty Amazon River. The Ucayali River has sediment-rich water and a murky appearance. The Pacaya River has black, tannin-rich waters. Our morning exploration was mainly along the black water that floods the forest of this large reserve.
The moment we entered the reserve to navigate along the black water, we felt like we were on a giant mirror! The black water reflects everything, including trees and clouds. It is a unique experience to observe the mirroring effect of the water. The river is surrounded by green, and it is home to many creatures, including birds, pink river dolphins, and various monkeys. The most special of all is the brown sloth, and we saw many!
As we explored the flooded forest, we had our first sightings of large flocks of great egrets, large-billed terns, and horned screamers. This reserve is also home to the black-collared hawk, which is a fishing hawk. The flooded forest offers great opportunities for fish eaters, cormorants, and hawks.
In the afternoon, we explored Magdalena River, one of the many tributaries of the Ucayali River. This river is a good place to observe toucans, tanagers, saddle-back tamarins, and squirrel monkeys. We had an exciting afternoon at Magdalena, and we look forward to seeing more in the coming days!
