BRAZIL PANTANAL Photo Tour - Tropical Birding · for the Hotel Pantanal Mato Grosso, a known...

BRAZIL CUSTOM PHOTO TOUR TROPICAL BIRDING Photo Tour Report

www.tropicalbirding.com +1-409-515-0514 [email protected] 1

A Tropical Birding CUSTOM tour

BRAZIL PANTANAL Photo Tour

A Jaguar lazes by the Cuiaba River, while we clicked away!

6 – 14 September 2014

Tour leader: Pablo Cervantes

All photos included within this report, were taken by Pablo Cervantes, on this tour.

TROPICAL BIRDING Photo Tour Report BRAZIL CUSTOM PHOTO TOUR

www.tropicalbirding.com +1-409-515-0514 [email protected]

Day One: This personalized photo tour of Brazil’s Pantanal, started in Cuiaba City, where we spent

one night. Following breakfast the next morning, we drove out to the nearby Pantanal. We were soon

in the famous ‘Transpantaneira”, or “Pantanal Highway” , complete with its multitude of rickety

wooden bridges, as we beat our way down the dusty road towards what is currently the best place in

the world to see, and photograph, Jaguars: Porto Jofre. Our long journey down the dusty highway was

broken only to photograph large, photogenic birds, like Jabiru, Bare-faced Curassow, and Southern

Screamer. While this was, to some extent, a travel day, as we moved out of the bustling city of Cuiaba

to the Pantanal port of Porto Jofre, this did not mean that birds and other wildlife did not instigate use

of our cameras along the way, as a healthy bird list for the first day will attest to:

Bird & Animal List for Day 1:

Birds:

Greater Rhea

Southern Screamer

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck

Muscovy Duck

Chaco Chachalaca

Chestnut-bellied Guan

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga

Rufescent Tiger-Heron

Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Cattle Egret

Striated Heron

Capped Heron

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Green Ibis

Bare-faced Ibis

Plumbeous Ibis

Buff-necked Ibis

Roseate Spoonbill

Black Vulture

Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture

Black-collared Hawk

Savanna Hawk

Roadside Hawk

Sunbittern

Gray-necked Wood-Rail

Limpkin

Black-necked (White-backed) Stilt

Southern Lapwing

Large-billed Tern

Pale-vented Pigeon

Plain-breasted Ground-Dove

Ruddy Ground-Dove



Scaled Dove

Blue Ground-Dove

White-tipped Dove

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher

Chestnut-eared Aracari

Toco Toucan

White-wedged Piculet

White Woodpecker

Golden-green Woodpecker

Southern Caracara

American Kestrel

Peach-fronted Parakeet

Hyacinth Macaw

Great Rufous Woodcreeper

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero

Rufous (Gray-crested) Cacholote

Vermilion Flycatcher

Cattle Tyrant

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee

Boat-billed Flycatcher

Rusty-margined Flycatcher

Streaked Flycatcher

Purplish Jay

Blue-and-white Swallow

White-winged Swallow

Pale-breasted Thrush

Rufous-bellied Thrush

Red-crested Cardinal

Yellow-rumped Cacique

Crested Oropendola

Shiny Cowbird

Orange-backed Troupial

Bay-winged Cowbird

House Sparrow

Yellow-billed Cardinal

Silver-beaked Tanager

Saffron Finch

Yellow-bellied Seedeater

Grayish Saltator

Unicolored Blackbird

Mammals:

Red Brocket

Marsh Deer

Capybara



The mighty Jabiru, one of many, large, photogenic birds that dotted this tour.

Day Two: Our day started with a dramatic Pantanal sunrise, as we headed out right at the crack of

dawn after our main quarry: Jaguar. In order to get the best views and shots, we headed out by boat,

for the banks of the rivers are the best place to see this apex predator. In recent years, Porto Jofre, has

become the place to see and photograph Jaguars, as the boatmen have become very wise to the appeal

of these large cats, being both skilled now at knowing the habits of the Jaguars, and are also part of a

network of similarly focused boatmen. Thus, when a Jaguar is sighted, the radio network that connects

the boatmen, crackles to life, and word spreads fast. It has subsequently become unusual to NOT see a

Jaguar! As if to prove the extreme reliability of these creatures in this part of the World, our morning

ended with great photos of two different Jaguars, both on opposite sides of the river, casually

strolling along the banks. Their movements were unrushed, giving us plenty of time to fill memory

cards with images of our first unforgettable encounter with this celebrity cat. In the afternoon, we

were back on the water again, for further chances to focus our lenses on this spotted beast. Once

again, Jaguar was seen, although this time only a single individual, and probably one of the same ones



that had graced us with their presence that morning. Day one in Jaguar country and we already had

three separate encounters to have kick-started our cameras into overdrive; we were feeling pretty

happy with our start!

This gorgeous sunrise over the Cuiaba River opened our first Jaguar search


Birds:

Blue-throated Piping-Guan

Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Striated Heron


Roseate Spoonbill

Black Vulture


Black-collared Hawk

Crane Hawk

Great Black-Hawk



Pied Lapwing

Yellow-billed Tern

Large-billed Tern

Black Skimmer

Pale-vented Pigeon

Picazuro Pigeon

Scaled Dove

White-tipped Dove

Little Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Nacunda Nighthawk

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher

American Pygmy Kingfisher

Rufous-tailed Jacamar

Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker

Southern Caracara

American Kestrel

Monk Parakeet

Hyacinth Macaw

Red-shouldered Macaw

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero

Rusty-backed Spinetail


Cattle Tyrant

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee


Tropical Kingbird

Purplish Jay

Southern Rough-winged Swallow


White-rumped Swallow



Palm Tanager


Bay-winged Cowbird

Shiny Cowbird


House Sparrow

Other Animals:

Jaguar

Giant Otter

Capybara

Caiman



The animal that needs no introduction! (Jaguar 1, & Jaguar 2)


8 www.tropicalbirding.com +1-409-515-0514 [email protected]

Day Three: This was our second day on the river, and the first mammals we saw

that morning are all too frequently “Jaguar bait” in this part of the world:

Capybaras, which were seen resting on the banks of the channel. Another good

mammal twist occurred when a family of Giant Otters came swimming close to

the boat, and were also observed fishing, making for great portraits of another star

Pantanal animal…Our animal haul increased further when groups of monkeys

were found feeding on seeds in the forest canopy as we ambled along in our canoe.

This included two species: Brown Capuchin and Black-and-gold Howler. As

always in the Pantanal there were plentiful birds around too, as birds rested on the

riverbanks, bathed in wonderful light for photography; this included species like

Black Skimmers, Yellow-billed and Large-billed Terns , and handsome Pied

Plovers.

A playful family party of Giant Otters spent some time around our

boat




Birds:

Southern Screamer

Chaco Chachalaca


Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Striated Heron

Buff-necked Ibis

Black Vulture


Black-collared Hawk

Great Black-Hawk


Pied Lapwing

Yellow-billed Tern

Large-billed Tern

Black Skimmer

Pale-vented Pigeon

Picazuro Pigeon

White-tipped Dove

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher


Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker

Southern Caracara

Monk Parakeet

Hyacinth Macaw

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero




Cattle Tyrant

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee


Social Flycatcher

White-throated Kingbird

Tropical Kingbird



Black-capped Donacobius


Saffron Finch

Grayish Saltator


Bay-winged Cowbird




House Sparrow

Other Animals:

Giant Otter

Gold and Black Howler

Brown Capuchin

Capybara

Caiman

Pied Plovers are handsome riverside birds of the Pantanal

Day Four: This was our last day in Porto Jofre, and so we had one final boat ride in

the morning that was punctuated by further monkey sightings. Post lunch, we

headed back in the direction of Cuiaba along the Transpantaneira, this time headed

for the Hotel Pantanal Mato Grosso, a known hangout for photogenic birds like

Chestnut-eared Aracaris (a kind of small toucan) and the dazzling Orange-

backed Troupial, which visit the bird feeders on site. The aracaris were not

obliging on this day, although the troupials quickly obliged and posed for

photographs soon after arrival, as did Silver-beaked Tanagers, Yellow-billed

Cardinals, and Purplish Jays.



After dark, we headed out on a nocturnal walk and quickly found a few nightbirds

to photograph like boisterous Common Pauraques and a cute Ferruginous

Pygmy-Owl, before we retired the night.


Birds:

Undulated Tinamou

Southern Screamer

Chaco Chachalaca

Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Striated Heron

Plumbeous Ibis

Buff-necked Ibis

Black Vulture


Osprey

Black-collared Hawk

Great Black-Hawk


Yellow-billed Tern

Large-billed Tern

Black Skimmer

Picazuro Pigeon

Ruddy Ground-Dove

Scaled Dove

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl

Common Pauraque

Blue-crowned Trogon

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher

Black-fronted Nunbird



Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker

Southern Caracara

Monk Parakeet

Hyacinth Macaw

Mato Grosso Antbird

Olivaceous Woodcreeper

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero




Yellow-chinned Spinetail

Sooty-fronted Spinetail

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee


Streaked Flycatcher

Purplish Jay




Moustached Wren

Buff-breasted Wren





Bay-winged Cowbird



Other Animals:

Capibara

Caiman

A Wood Stork cruises above the Pantanal



Rufescent Tiger-Herons are ever-present in the Pantanal

Day Five: On this day we split out time between boat rides along the river, and

extended photo shoots at the lodge feeders. During our morning and afternoon

boat rides along the Pixaim River, we bumped into, and photographed, more giant

Jabirus, typically challenging us to take full frame shots of their substantial

frames; in addition to three different species of kingfisher, several gorgeous

Sunbitterns, the ever-present Rufescent Tiger-Heron, the oddball Sungrebe,

and the confiding Black-collared Hawk. Back on firm ground, the lodge feeders

drew in the hoped for Chestnut-eared Aracaris, more Orange-backed Troupials



(sunshades required for that stunner!), Picazuro Pigeon, Giant Cowbird, and

Solitary Cacique, among others. Night walks are always fun in the Pantanal, as

you just never know what you might see, and continuing our good run of

mammals, we ran into a close Brazilian Tapir; not easy to photograph in the pitch

black, but it was a close and memorable encounter all the same.

This handsome Chestnut-eared Aracari visited the feeders

at Hotel Pantanal Mato Grosso



Typically, Black Skimmers, were readily photographed on our

Pantanal boat trips


Birds:

Muscovy Duck

Chaco Chachalaca


Jabiru

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Striated Heron


Boat-billed Heron

Black Vulture

Turkey Vulture

Black-collared Hawk

Great Black-Hawk

Sunbittern


Sungrebe



Pale-vented Pigeon

Picazuro Pigeon

Scaled Dove

Squirrel Cuckoo

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Common Pauraque

Great Potoo

Blue-crowned Trogon

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher

Green-barred Woodpecker

Yellow-headed Caracara

Blue-winged Macaw

Yellow-chevroned Parakeet

Barred Antshrike

Narrow-billed Woodcreeper

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero

Sooty-fronted Spinetail

Purplish Jay






Palm Tanager

Saffron Finch

Grayish Saltator

Bay-winged Cowbird

Shiny Cowbird

Giant Cowbird


Eupalet Oriole

Other Animals:

Brazilian Tapir

Caiman

Day Six: We moved on again this day, to another ranch, Pouso Alegre. Our reason

for changing location was simple, that ranch is famed for having roosting Great

Potoos, which the photographers on this tour were keen to get shots of. Thus, this

was our main aim of the day. However, this was not likely to be our only highlight.

We had heard through the grapevine, that this ranch had also recently been

playing host to a regular, and confiding Giant Anteater, which we were all very

keen to see. I would like to say the tension mounted and then there it was, but in

reality it was much more simple than that; we checked in and then found this

glorious beast wandering around beside our rooms in beautiful light. We could not

have asked for more. To top it off, we went on a walk for the potoo and found it

sitting just where it should be, which initiated a flurry of photos for all! The other



species that deserves a mention on this day was a fine male Blue-crowned

Trogon, found loafing quietly within the open woodland, where the potoo was

hanging out.

The otherworldly Great Potoo was worth the entrance fee alone to

Pousa Alegre, although a “bonus” Giant Anteater turned our visit into

something sensational




Birds:

Greater Rhea

Chaco Chachalaca



Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Neotropic Cormorant

Anhinga


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Striated Heron

Buff-necked Ibis

Black Vulture

Turkey Vulture

Black-collared Hawk

Great Black-Hawk

Sunbittern


Limpkin

Pale-vented Pigeon

Picazuro Pigeon

Scaled Dove

Long-tailed Ground-Dove

Little Cuckoo

Squirrel Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Common Pauraque

Great Potoo

Blue-crowned Trogon

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher


Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker


Crimson-crested Woodpecker

Southern Caracara

American Kestrel

Monk Parakeet


Hyacinth Macaw


Barred Antshrike

Straight-billed Woodcreeper


Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero


White-lored Spinetail

Rusty-fronted Tody-Flycatcher

Cattle Tyrant

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee

Social Flycatcher

Tropical Kingbird

Purplish Jay











Palm Tanager

Grayish Saltator


Bay-winged Cowbird

Shiny Cowbird

Giant Cowbird


Eupalet Oriole


Crested Oropendola

Mammals:

Giant Anteater

Crab-eating Fox

Capybara

Azara's Agouti

Brown Brocket

This Blue-crowned Trogon was a nice distraction, post-Potoo



Day Seven: We had a final morning in Pouso Alegre, before we continued northwards to another

fantastic Pantanal ranch, Pousada Puival. The change in location was hoping to bring us further

shooting possibilities with Hyacinth Macaws, Giant Anteaters and others. Before we left Pouso Alegre

we spent some further time with Jabirus, immaculate White Woodpeckers, and South America’s

answer to the Emu, Greater Rhea. However, the morning will perhaps best be remembered for our

lengthy time with a single confiding Sunbittern, which posed for an age, and prompted plentiful

photos to be taken.

The Pantanal proved, once again, it is the place to photograph Sunbittern!


Birds:

Greater Rhea

Muscovy Duck

Chaco Chachalaca





Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant


Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Cattle Egret

Striated Heron

Green Ibis

Plumbeous Ibis

Buff-necked Ibis

Roseate Spoonbill

Black Vulture

Black-collared Hawk

Great Black-Hawk

Roadside Hawk

Sunbittern


Limpkin

Southern Lapwing

Large-billed Tern

Pale-vented Pigeon

Picazuro Pigeon

Ruddy Ground-Dove

Blue Ground-Dove

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Black-throated Mango

Glittering-bellied Emerald

Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher

Green Kingfisher

Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker

Little Woodpecker


Campo Flicker

Lineated Woodpecker

Red-legged Seriema

Southern Caracara

Monk Parakeet

Hyacinth Macaw

Orange-winged Parrot


Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero


White-rumped Monjita

Lesser Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee


Black-tailed Tityra

Purplish Jay






Saffron Finch

Yellow-bellied Seedeater

Grayish Saltator




Bay-winged Cowbird

Shiny Cowbird

Giant Cowbird


Eupalet Oriole

Solitary Black Cacique (Solitary Cacique)


Crested Oropendola

Mammals:

Crab-eating Fox

South American Coati

Collared Peccary

Marsh Deer

Brown Brocket

This handsome Green-barred Woodpecker was another Pantanal “poser”!



Day 8: As Pousada Puival was our last stop on this Pantanal photo tour, we made

the most of it. Normally, the routine at this site involves a boat trip, but with water

levels super low this had to be curtailed, and so we went on a Safari drive instead,

which proved very worthwhile. We spent plenty of time photographing a variety of

ibis (Plumbeous, Green and Buff-necked). But, the undoubted highlight for the

day was a second, and much better, encounter with another Giant Anteater, which

was lurking around a termite mound and made for great shots. Another major

highlight was a special visit to a Hyacinth Macaw nest on the ranch, which made

for our best shots of the trip of this mega parrot. We were also shown a roost spot

for Great Horned Owl, which was not well positioned for photos on this day, and

so we vowed to return in our final few hours the following day. The afternoon

activities were curtailed somewhat when a large tropical storm moved in, but after

the morning that we had enjoyed, this mattered little!

The Giant Anteater is far from guaranteed, even in the wildlife Mecca

of the Pantanal, and so we were lucky to have two intimate encounters

with this strangest of mammals




Birds:

Greater Rhea

Southern Screamer

Muscovy Duck

Chaco Chachalaca

Bare-faced Curassow

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Neotropic Cormorant

Cocoi Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Cattle Egret

Striated Heron

Whistling Heron

Green Ibis

Bare-faced Ibis

Plumbeous Ibis

Buff-necked Ibis

Roseate Spoonbill

Black Vulture


Osprey

Black-collared Hawk

Crane Hawk

Savanna Hawk

Great Black-Hawk

Roadside Hawk


Limpkin

Southern Lapwing

White-tipped Dove

Squirrel Cuckoo

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Great Horned Owl


Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher


Toco Toucan

White Woodpecker

Red-legged Seriema

Southern Caracara

Monk Parakeet


Hyacinth Macaw



Orange-winged Parrot

Great Rufous Woodcreeper


Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero

Cattle Tyrant

Lesser Kiskadee


Thrush-like Wren


Sayaca Tanager

Palm Tanager

Grayish Saltator



Bay-winged Cowbird


Crested Oropendola

Mammals:

Giant Anteater

Black-tailed Marmoset (Silvery

Marmoset)

Crab-eating Fox

Hyacinth Macaw, the Pantanal’s flagship bird

Day Nine: We had just a short time left in Pousada Puival, before we were to

pack up and head back to the city of Cuiaba for the close of the tour. Thus, with

us being frustrated by the position of the roosting Great Horned Owl the day

previous, we returned to the spot, to find the owl sitting conveniently in the



open; a great close to the tour, just before we loaded up and headed back to

Cuiaba for departures.

This Great Horned Owl gave us the perfect send off

on our final day at Pousada Puival

Bird List for Day 9:

Birds:

Greater Rhea

Southern Screamer

Muscovy Duck

Chaco Chachalaca

Jabiru

Wood Stork

Cocoi Heron



Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Cattle Egret

Striated Heron

Green Ibis

Bare-faced Ibis

Plumbeous Ibis

Buff-necked Ibis

Black Vulture

Osprey

Black-collared Hawk

Roadside Hawk

Sunbittern

Limpkin

Southern Lapwing

White-tipped Dove

Squirrel Cuckoo

Guira Cuckoo

Smooth-billed Ani

Great Horned Owl


Ringed Kingfisher

Amazon Kingfisher


White-fronted Woodpecker

Little Woodpecker

Campo Flicker

Pale-crested Woodpecker

Red-legged Seriema

Southern Caracara

Monk Parakeet


Hyacinth Macaw

Blue-and-yellow Macaw


Buff-throated Woodcreeper

Red-billed Scythebill

Pale-legged Hornero

Rufous Hornero


Cattle Tyrant

Great Kiskadee

Purplish Jay

Thrush-like Wren



Grayish Saltator


Solitary Black Cacique


Crested Oropendola

Totals for the trip:

158 Birds; 15 Mammals



Woodpeckers of the Pantanal: Campo Flicker (above)

& White Woodpecker



Black-collared Hawks are one the most photogenic raptors in the Pantanal

Black-and-gold Howler, one of several monkey species seen and photographed



Kingfishers always feature heavily in the Pantanal (Green Kingfisher)

Black-capped Donacobius are a boisterous and conspicuous Pantanal bird



The carrot-billed Black-fronted Nunbird

Gray-necked Wood-Rail parading around in the open



A confiding Little Cuckoo

Yellow-billed Cardinals are regular visitors to a feeding station in the Pantanal



Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl is the most abundant owl species in the Pantanal

No photo tour to the Pantanal is complete without training your lens

on its most famous predator, the Jaguar

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BRAZIL PANTANAL Photo Tour - Tropical Birding · for the Hotel Pantanal Mato Grosso, a known...

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