All good things - and trips - must come to an end, and today we enjoyed our last full day exploring the Peruvian Amazon. It was another great day that started very early in the morning when we boarded our skiffs to explore the Supay River. A small tributary to the larger Ucayali River, the Supay is well known locally for its abundance of both wild and cultivated camu-camu bushes, which produces the delicious sweet berry that we have been enjoying all week-long on board Delfín II in juices and deserts. The thick growths of camu-camu plants are a good habitat for a great variety of birds and this morning we watched many different species, including greater anis flying around in large, organized flocks, red-capped cardinals, and tropical kingbirds, while in the river itself numerous white-winged and rough-winged swallows flew above the water feeding on flying insects. We also had the opportunity to watch some truly beautiful and less common species like the scarlet-crowned barbet and the leathered aracari. A plum-throated cotinga with its gorgeous blue feathers took everyone's breath away while the clicking of cameras sounded like rapid fire.
We also found several three-toed sloths, some sleeping and some having breakfast on cecropia tree leaves. Another mammal species, new for the trip, was the coppery titi monkey, a newly recognized species endemic to Peru. A small family group of three individuals delighted us with their intriguing vocalizations as they were calling back and forth to another group far away.
During the afternoon we visited the small community of San José de Paranapura, with about eighty inhabitants. San José is a very small but extremely nice town and a real pleasure to visit. It is very clean and well-kept with gardens/orchards surrounding the houses and there are fruits everywhere. There we enjoyed watching the magnificent Victoria regia, the giant pond lily, an Amazonian icon, putting a fitting end to our week exploring the Peruvian Amazon.
