Paradise tanager, lineated woodpecker, bluish-fronted jacamar and a tree filled with tui, white-winged and cobalt winged parakeets – where can you find all of these and much, much more in a short outing all before breakfast? The Amazon River basin. Our day started with a 6:30 a.m. skiff ride up the Rio Zapote. Over the past week we have become familiar with the birds we see daily such as the black-collared hawk, yellow-headed caracara and muscovy duck, but the little gems still surprise and delight us. There were a few larger, fuzzier gems, such as the always entertaining squirrel monkeys and a group of three exceptionally hairy monk saki monkeys. Their effortless and daring jumps from tree to tree made us collectively gasp while we watched.
We made a short visit to the village of Urarinas for handicrafts. Items made with seeds, shells, catfish fins, porcupine quills and lots of palm fibers were on display for our perusal and purchase. A boat was being loaded while we were there with the local fish. Packed in large wooden crates with ice, an oversized canoe was soon to be on its way to Iquitos with fresh fish caught along the Rio Zapote.
Along the Iricahua Caño this afternoon we saw the familiar feathered faces of Amazon and ringed kingfisher, and the ever present and vocal yellow-rumped caciques, but there was still a surprise to be had. In the low bushes were a pair of screaming red masked-crimson tanagers and then not too far away a chestnut woodpecker was found. The vegetation was so thick and wild along the river; it wouldn’t have been surprising to see a pterodactyl go flying by.
Our evening ended with a scrumptious meal of Peruvian specialties and the invigorating, toe tapping and dance inducing music provided by the talented crew of the Delfin II. It was a fitting way to end the day and our week of discovery traveling the waters of the Amazon basin.
