Greetings Everyone,
We are in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon searching for primates, birds and other wildlife while heading upriver in a collective boat from Los Amigos Biological Station (see the previous post) to Pacal Port. It was a pleasant afternoon with sunny skies and calm winds. There were a few other passengers and many crates of eggs, sacks of rice and mining equipment onboard.
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Collective Boat
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It was getting close to sunset but we had one more stop to make at the village of Mazuko before reaching our destination. It turned out to be a long delay as the boat captain and mate had to unload all the supplies then wait for someone to pay for them. I was anxious to reach Pacal Port by dark and was hoping that our guide would still be waiting to meet us. Finally, someone showed up to sign for the deliveries
and the boat was on its way.
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| Unloading Mining Equipment |
We pulled into Pacal Port just as the sun was setting and I was relieved when our guide, Ciro, came up and introduced himself along with our cook, Betty, and boat driver, Lider, who would be with us for most of the remainder of the trip. I was surprised when transferred to another boat for an additional 35-minutes upriver to our final destination for the night at Boca Colorado. I don’t know why the collective boat only goes as far as Pacal Port and not all the way to Boca Colorado.
By the time our boat docked at Boca Colorado, it was dark and we had to carefully make our way through a maze of boats and up slippery boards to the town with our bags including all the food and water for our stay at Manu Birding Lodge. Ciro was hoping to get a vehicle to take us across town to our hotel but none were available. We started walking carrying heavy loads toward the center of town and were finally able to hail a tuk-tuk to take us the rest of the way.
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| Tuk-tuk in Boca Colorado |
Boca Colorado is very much a frontier town carved out of the Amazon Rainforest to accommodate the thousands of gold miners who have flocked there to seek their fortunes. I was shocked to see the muddy streets lined with shops, restaurants, and houses. Fortunately, our hotel was located in a “quiet” section of town and we’d only be here for one night.
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| Marc at the Fiori Hotel |
I was eager to leave Boca Colorado the next morning and head further upriver past the gold mining operations. No doubt illegal mining is having a disastrous effect on the environment and the people who live here.
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| Dredging for Gold along the River |
About 30 minutes upstream, we left the gold dredging behind and entered an area of pristine rainforest. It was nice to be on our own boat and enjoy the wildlife along the river at our own pace. We observed many birds along the way including Large-billed Terns, Collared Plovers, Cocoi and Capped Heron, Black Skimmers, Great Egret and several Spectacled Caimans basking on the sandbanks.
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| Spectacled Caiman |
We arrived at Manu Birding Lodge in the early afternoon and settled into our room before heading out to explore the surrounding forest and encountered our first primates, a family of Colombian Red Howlers near the river and later a troop of Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarins near the lodge.
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| Colombian Red Howler |
The next morning our boat took us downriver to the nearby Blanquillo Macaw Clay Lick. When we arrived at the viewing platform, flocks of Blue-headed, Orange-cheeked and Mealey Parrots were already at the clay lick.
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| Blue-headed Parrots |
It is generally believed that parrots eat clay to neutralize toxins in their diet. A bit of excitement occurred when a Roadside Hawk swooped down and snatched a Tui Parakeet in its talons. Predators are also drawn to these clay licks for an easy meal.
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| Roadside Hawk with a Tui Parakeet |
We spent the remainder of the morning on the viewing platform hoping that the Red-and-Green Macaws would show up in greater numbers but they didn’t. Ciro told us that at this time of year they don’t come in big flocks. On the way back to the lodge, Marc spotted two Capybaras, the world’s largest rodent, on the river bank.
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| Capybara |
Giant Otters had eluded us on this trip so the following morning we made a visit to Blanco Oxbow Lake for one last attempt to find them. On arrival at the lake, we discovered that the pontoon boat didn’t have any paddles so Lider had to make do with a pole. It was slow going and the lake was large, time was running out as I wanted to get back to the lodge to see the tamarins. There were many great birds, Hoatzins, Wattled Jacana, Macaws, and the bizarre Horned Screamer but no otters. Finally, I heard them before I spotted them on the far end of the lake. A family of five were fishing and luckily heading back toward the dock so we did our best to keep up with them. Marc used a plate and I used a broom as makeshift paddles but couldn’t get close. The sun angle wasn’t great for photos but at least the otters were found!
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| Giant Otter |
Rushing back to the lodge hoping that the tamarins had not already visited, Ciro told us that the lodge manager, Wilson, puts bananas out daily on a platform to attract the primates. He does this not for the tourists but for his family to enjoy the monkeys. In fact, we were the only guests staying at the lodge who knew about the feeding platform. I was hoping to get a better view of an Emperor Tamarin and waited for them to show up. Only a troop of Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarins came at 12:35, they were warier than expected even with daily feeding. A heavy rain shower blew in and we sought refuge in the dining room.
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| Weddell's Saddle-back Tamarins |
That afternoon we hiked a mile into the forest to a tapir clay lick where a hide 25-feet above the ground had been built. We decided to spend the night to see what animals visited the clay lick picking 3 mattresses at the far end of the hide as more guests were expected to join us.
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| Marc in the Hide |
The sun set and I heard voices coming through the forest. Five or maybe six people climbed the stairs to the platform in the darkness - it was hard to tell. Their guide kept telling them to be quiet and show no lights. At 7:10 Ciro said a tapir was in the clay lick but it was invisible in the darkness. At 7:15 a second tapir showed up and finally, I could make out its shape in the rising moonlight. Nobody turned on a light and I wondered if we’d spend the night watching them in the dark. A third tapir showed up at 7:31 and the other group asked if a light could be turned on. Ciro used my light to illuminate the tapir eating clay. We took many photos and it didn’t seem bothered by the light or camera flashes.
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| South American Tapir |
Once the family had seen a tapir they headed back to the lodge. We put down our mosquito nets as a few bats were flying around. Marc and Ciro went to sleep but I got up periodically to check the clay lick with my light. Every time I looked there was a tapir or sometimes two in the clay lick. Sometimes I would wake Marc so he could take photos.
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| South American Tapir |
I checked the lick until about 2:40 am when it started to rain. At sunrise the next morning, the clay lick was empty.
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| Tapir Clay Lick |
We packed up our stuff and retrieved a trail cam set up the night before. Upon reviewing the videos, they showed that tapirs visited until 5:30 am and that a Brocket Deer came around 2:40 but I must have just missed it. Fortunately, the rain had stopped but the trail was muddy. We spotted a few Amazon Red Squirrels, too difficult to photograph in the dense forest. We decided to spend the day around the lodge waiting for the tamarins to show up. In the meantime, Marc photographed hummingbirds and bees in the garden.
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| Festive Coquette |
We could hear Toppin’s Titi Monkeys and I spotted one in a tree near the lodge. The Yellow-rumped Caciques and Russet-backed Oropendolas were busy nest building. I was hoping that the tamarins would arrive early today but the Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarins returned at about the same time as yesterday. They were very wary so Ciro suggested moving into Wilson’s family’s kitchen to use as a blind. We watched the tamarins as they cautiously came to the platform for bananas. They knew something was different with strangers in the kitchen watching them. Once again only the Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarins showed up. Where were the emperors? The group left and we went to lunch almost an hour late.
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| Delicious Lunch |
After lunch, we resumed our tamarin stakeout. A second group arrived around 3:30. Wilson and his wife were in their kitchen and invited us to come in to watch the second group. Once again it appeared to be just Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarins but Wilson’s wife whispered “el negro, el negro”. We all saw it about the same time, a smaller all-black monkey hanging out in the back but in the open on a horizontal tree branch. I told Marc to take the photo! It was the extremely rare Goeldi’s Monkey! Ciro had said that they came to the feeding platform but I didn’t believe him. The monkey sat in the open affording us great views and photographic opportunities.
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| Goeldi's Monkey |
Apparently, Wilson’s wife knew that this monkey was different but she had no idea how rare it was. The second group left and we waited for the third group which apparently has two Emperor Tamarins. However it was 4:30 and time to let the family have their kitchen back. Thanking them for allowing us the opportunity to see this rare marmoset. I was overcome with emotion and was on the brink of tears. Now, the family knows how special this monkey is!
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| Goeldi's Monkey |
After dinner, we set off to look for the Forest Rabbit or Tapeti that lived in the garden. Not finding any, we continued down a trail to look for other nocturnal mammals. At first, it was quiet but then heard something moving through the trees. They were Black-headed Night Monkeys! Finally, they paused long enough for Marc to get some decent photos.
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| Black-headed Night Monkey |
Ciro joined us and was happy that we had finally got good photos of the night monkeys. I had my light but totally forgot my binoculars. It’s difficult to shine my light for Marc to get photos and to use my binoculars at the same time. Upon review of the photos we found that Marc had also captured an Eastern Lowland Olingo! No wonder the night monkeys were so agitated.
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| Eastern Lowland Olingo |
The following day we made the long journey back to Cusco.
Thunderstorms with heavy downpours had moved through during the night but were now tapering off. At 5:30 am we left the lodge for Boca Colorado. It rained off and on our downriver trip but we stayed dry. On the way, Ciro spotted a Brown Agouti feeding on the shore and Marc was able to get some good photos.
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| Brown Agouti |
We arrived at Boca Colorado around 8:00 and had to negotiate mud and a slick board to get to our awaiting vehicle.
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| Ciro and Lider Helping Marc |
Saying goodbye to Lider, we piled into a pickup truck along with Ciro and Betty for a 1-hour drive to a river crossing. Upon reaching the river we transferred to a small boat for the crossing. It was very shallow and a bit tricky to maneuver the boat past rocky shoals. On the other side, another vehicle was waiting for us. We said goodbye to Betty as she was to take the bus back to Cusco from here.
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| Last Boat Ride |
A taxi took us along with Ciro to Puerto Maldonado and joined the paved road from Cusco when I drifted off to sleep. The driver dropped us off at the airport where we said goodbye to Ciro and checked into our flight to Cusco with little time to spare. We’d like to thank Ciro for his tireless energy in trying to find all the animals on our wish list. Our sincere gratitude goes to Betty for cooking us delicious meals lovingly presented and to Lider who skillfully drove our boat and poled us across Blanco Lake to see the otters. What a hard-working team who went out of their way to make us happy!
Tomorrow we’d fly home to conclude an amazing trip to Peru.
We hope all is well with everyone,
Peggy and Marc
Peru Mammal List: June 21 - July 18, 2019
| No. | Species | Scientific Name | Comments |
| 1 | Mountain Viscacha | Lagidium viscacia | Machu Picchu |
| 2 | Shock-headed Capuchin | Cebus cuscinus | Los Amigos |
| 3 | Large-headed Capuchin | Sapajus macrocephalus | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 4 | Gray’s Bald-faced Saki | Pithecia irrorata | Los Amigos |
| 5 | Toppin’s Titi | Plecturocebus toppini | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 6 | Black-faced Black Spider Monkey | Ateles chamek | Los Amigos |
| 7 | Colombian Red Howler Monkey | Alouatta seniculus | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 8 | Bolivian/Peruvian Squirrel Monkey | Saimiri boliviensis | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 9 | Weddell’s Saddle-back Tamarin | Saguinus fuscicollis ssp. weddelli | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 10 | Bearded Emperor Tamarin | Saguinus imperator ssp. subgrisescens | Los Amigos |
| 11 | Black-headed Night Monkey | Aotus nigriceps | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 12 | Goeldi’s Marmoset | Callimico goeldii | MBL |
| 13 | Bicolor-spined Porcupine | Coendou bicolor | Los Amigos |
| 14 | Forest Rabbit (Tapeti) | Sylvilagus brasiliensis | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 15 | Amazonian Brown Brocket | Mazama nemorivaga | Los Amigos |
| 16 | Tayra | Eira barbara | Los Amigos |
| 17 | South American Coati | Nasua nasua | Los Amigos |
| 18 | Eastern Lowland Olingo | Bassaricyon alleni | MBL |
| 19 | Brown Agouti | Dasyprocta variegata | Los Amigos River |
| 20 | Collared Peccary | Pecari tajacu | Blanquillo Claylick |
| 21 | Capybara | Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris | Los Amigos River |
| 22 | South American Tapir | Tapirus terrestris | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 23 | Giant Otter | Pteronura brasiliensis | Blanco Lake |
| 24 | Amazon Red Squirrel | Sciurus spadiceus or igniventris | MBL |
| 25 | Mouse | sp.? | MBL clay lick |
| 27 | Bat | sp.? | Los Amigos, MBL |
| 28 | Puma | Puma concolor | Los Amigos |
| 29 | Lowland Paca | Cuniculus paca | Los Amigos |
For the 140 bird species seen and photographed by Marc go to his list on iNaturalist:
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