Early breakfast and then finding galoshes to fit. We’re off on a horseback ride to see what we can see. I’m first up on their nifty mounting set up:
and then the other 5 riders. We head out into the meadows. It’s becoming quickly apparent that this is a birder’s paradise. The first variety we see is a greater rhea, which looks a lot like an ostrich. There are a bunch of them, and whenever we get close and spook them, they start running away. But they do not run in a straight line; they jump sideways and flap around and zigzag like crazy. I am beside myself and falling into fits of laughter. Of course, as soon as I try to capture it on video, they’re done.
On we go, and the recent rains cause us to ride through a pond that is up to our horses’ chest, an interesting experience:
and 3 sets of moms and babies makes me think of my horse-crazy sister:
and of course, there is the feisty caiman who needs a stick prodding to leave the path:
A few monkeys in the tree (not so close) and various birds, and we’re back at the stables. Mom dismounts with help:
and we walk along the path back to the lodge, snapping bird photos the whole way.
A yellow-billed cardinal:
a black-collared hawk:
i-have-no-idea-whats:
our lovely resort:
Last night there was a caiman in the pool!
I go for a bit of a walk with our guide and Tom, the Asian with the big lens (so he says) and we check out a hyacinth Macaw. Two, in fact, and their house. We watch one go in, and then another fly over and stick his head in to feed the baby?
We walk further, and see:
and he walks us over to a pond, and we are mindful of the sign:
and on the other side of the road:
(not) Leapin’ Lizards!
In case you haven’t used the Wikipedia or other link to understand the Pantanal, it’s a natural region encompassing the world’s largest tropical wetland area. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay. It sprawls over an area estimated at between 140,000 and 195,000 square kilometres (54,000 and 75,000 sq mi).Roughly 80% of the Pantanal floodplains are submerged during the rainy seasons, nurturing an astonishing biologically diverse collection of aquatic plants and helping to support a dense array of animal species. And it’s really so much easier to see wildlife here, rather than in the Amazon, which explains my decision to visit this area rather than the mighty river system.
Midday is pretty slow around the Patanal. The animals hide from the heat, and so do the humans. Lunch is at 11:30, then everyone retires to their rooms to snooze, or write on their blog. Around 4 pm, we meet up once again, this time for an 800 meter walk along a raised, boarded path (for when the rains come and the water level is so much higher)
to the howler monkey tower. As we slowly climb up the 6 or so sets of stairs, we can see a family of monkeys in the trees – the dad is the really dark one, and the other photo has a good-sized mom and a really small baby on her back:
There’s a lovely view of all the plains from the top, and a nice breeze as well. Of course, the monkeys head straight into the branches and away from us as we get closer. After a bit, I head back down to join mom, and we walk back on our own. It’s actually so much nicer this way, as we stop from time to time to admire a butterfly, or some birds, or just to listen to all the noises of the forest. Once back, I take mom over the the tree with the hyacinth Macaw, and we relax and shower before dinnertime at 7:30. And of course, passing by great-looking birds going about their business:
After dinner, we see a 30 or 40 minute movie on the Pantanal. So beautiful and so amazing to watch the changes the land undergoes from being 80% covered in water to being dried and cracked, and particularly how these changes impact hunting and mating season and overall survival For instance, the jaguars here are 60% larger than any in South America because the caiman are so abundant for the cats here to eat. Now that’s Darwinism!