We embarked our skiffs bound to Belluda Caño at six in the morning. Our goal was to explore the nearby shores of the Ucayali River where our ship was located. This area is a special kind of habitat known as aguajal. Aguajal, means ¨place of aguaje palms. These hollow aguaje palms are nesting and roosting places for blue and yellow macaws, Ara ararauna. We were lucky for we observed several red bellied macaws and the spectacular blue and yellow macaws coming out from the dead trees they inhabit. Several other bird species were seen as well as saddle back tamarins and three toed sloths.
We entered Belluda caño, to find night owl monkeys, and many species of parrots. The jungle in this area is higher and more diverse than in other places. It becomes clear that we are getting closer to the heart of the Pacaya Samiria Reserve.
We returned to the ship for breakfast later in the morning, happy for another fantastic outing, counting over 80 different species of birds!
In the early afternoon we had the opportunity to explore El Dorado River by kayak. It is amazing how unique it is to travel in complete silence through the rivers, surrounded by jungle! Later on we covered a much longer distance along El Dorado River, by skiff. Our skilled local naturalists handled to spot several bird species like horned screamers, ringed kingfishers, yellow-billed terns, some birds of prey, several three-toed sloths and some few monk saki monkeys. As the day was getting dark we experienced from the comfort of the skiffs a night ride in the way back. With the help of powerful spotlights in each skiff we found several elusive caymans, which are very difficult to see during the day.
After dinner, we had the opportunity to see the jungle at nigh, but now by foot. Flashlights in hand, we ventured into the darkness. All our senses sharpened, since the sounds of the jungle are more awake at night than during day time.
