An endangered widow This amazing species is yet another example of how selfish human desires to keep exotic pets drives a species to extinction. Why is it so hard to understand that keeping a bird captive does not benefit anyone? This delusional idea that the pet has been bred from long standing captive populations and […]
These wonderful and uncommon parrots just flew into the garden of the Amazon Research and Conservation Center (ARCC) and started eating from the fruits of this palm tree. They didn’t stay long, and did not show their front side, so this is all I got. This is what’s so great with ARCC – the garden […]
This clay-lick is about one our boat drive downstream from the Amazon Research and Conservation Center (ARCC) in the Peruvian Amazon. This lick was dominated by the red-and-green Macaw, but if you look closely on the top of the image, just a bit to the left, you’ll see a pair of green parakeets waiting for […]
I was focused on photographing landscape panoramas, and did not bring my heavy lens! I have learned the hard way, and now I always bring all my gear even to the most barren of places! This species has a somewhat safe haven inside the Chapada dos Guimaraes National Park, and they need all remaining protected […]
A common species in the Pantanal and in general in South America, and this one I encountered during one of several landings far upstream from Porto Jofre. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/8 Camera: NIKON D4S Focal length: 700mm ISO: 500 Shutter speed: 1/500 s
For some reason this species has evolved very different nesting habits compared to the other parrot species. It’s hard work making and maintaining these structures, so many use the underside of jabiru stork nests. You can find trees with many of these nests along the rivers in Pantanal – some are quite large and noisy […]
This magnificent macaw species is recovering well, and some places in Pantanal you can see many of them. This is one very special couple though, as they have gradually become so accustomed to humans that they will come close as well as talk back when you call them. They were exceedingly talkative and babbled constantly […]
A brief and only encounter of this species during my stay at Hotel do Ype,this was the only one in a passing group I managed to photograph. Altitude: 1021 metres. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/5.6 Camera: NIKON D4 Focal length: 500mm ISO: 560 Shutter speed: 1/250 s
This was my one and only encounter of this species of parrot. This is just one of two individuals that found time to sit in this Brazil nut tree. This is typical of the encounters from a canopy tower, and although I encountered many bird species from the western canopy tower of Cristalino Jungle Lodge, […]
Yet another of many species of parrots you may see on the grounds of Cristalino Jungle Lodge. This couple is eating off the spikelet, or the stem holding the coconuts! What nutritional value could it possibly hold, except lots of cellulose and fibres? They were quite persistent, and possibly will continue until the spikelet can […]
Even though I was close to this tree and heard a lot of noise from these birds, it was hard to locate them, as their size and color is just like the leaves of the tree! Cristalino Jungle Lodge has many species of trees around the buildings that bear fruit, and thus you can get […]
My last day at Pousada Xaraés was a wet one, and a totally different setting than the previous two, which were sunny and hot. This group of parakeets look soaked and miserable, but they seemed to welcome the wetness as a different sort of having a bath. In the dry season they have to find […]
The sitting bird looks frightened in this photo, but this is all play and fun! This tree is often busy with younger birds (less than 7 years) as well as established pairs. You can see the branches have been chewed on, and they will be bitten to pieces much quicker than the process of decomposition. […]
This is perhaps the best time of day as the air has cooled substantially and the light is mellow and soft. Many birds are now preparing for the night, but these macaws were still in food mode. The macaws are noisy and should be easy to see as their plumage is intensely colorful, but these […]
It’s such joy to see how the hyacinth macaws thrive here at Pousada Xaraés, and they will continue to do so as the owner is truly committed to continuing his support for this amazing and endangered species. This is a group of juveniles (7 years or younger) resting in the evening sun in a cecropia. […]
The hyacinth macaw can get very old, and the chicks take a long time to fledge – almost 4 months! After they leave their nest they will spend many years in groups of other singles. At around 7 or 8 years they are mature and will find a mate for life, and this bond is […]
The hyacinth macaws often roost right outside the buildings of Pousada Xaraés, and this morning I found a few of them enjoying the rays of the early sun together with a group of guira cuckoos. For me it wasn’t really cold, but for the cuckoos it seemed chilling as they eagerly showed their bare backs […]
One of the main reasons I chose Pousada Xaraés was to see the hyacinth macaws. And see them I did! A large group resides on the farm, and one reason being that the owner is a long participant in the program that seem to have saved this gorgeous species from extinction. I remember seeing a […]
The feeding trough is visited by many wild bird species including these macaws that also like to raid the many mango trees nearby.. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/14 Camera: NIKON D3S Focal length: 210mm ISO: 2500 Shutter speed: 1/200 s
I’ve never seen so many species of parrots as in Pantanal! Some species are in large groups and others just like this couple enjoying each other’s company. They are social birds, so it’s rare to see a loner. The branch is hanging over the river that runs through Fazenda San Fransico, and I could glide […]
Fazenda San Fransico’s rice fields are irresitible to a number of bird species, and the black-hooded parakeets are feasting. Also named Nanday Parakeet. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/9 Camera: NIKON D4 Focal length: 700mm ISO: 2000 Shutter speed: 1/2500 s
Many of the parrot species are happy to raid the mango and other fruit trees on the property, but also love the seeds and food handed out by Fazenda San Fransico. Up close you can see that the apparent (for humans at least) beauty of their colorful plumages may hide injuries and wear of life […]
This species was attracted to the mango trees on the property, and I also saw them the in rice fields of Fazenda San Fransico. Also named Nanday Parakeet. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/7.1 Camera: NIKON D4 Focal length: 700mm ISO: 640 Shutter speed: 1/1600 s
One of several parrot species commonly seen on the grounds of Fazenda San Fransisco, and this one was right outside my room. Also named Blue-Fronted Amazon. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/9 Camera: NIKON D4 Focal length: 700mm ISO: 1250 Shutter speed: 1/1250 s
These small parakeets are surprisingly hard to see in the foliage. The small trees outside my room were filled with parakeets, but even though I stood right in front of them it took a while for me to separate the birds from the leaves! It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/8 Camera: NIKON D4 Focal length: […]
The green-cheeked parakeets were quite hard to see up close, as they were usually in the dense canopy when in the valleys. Not in dead trees, like the mitred parakeet seemed to prefer. Altitude: 1064 metres. It sounds like this:
This is perhaps the most numerous of the parakeet species here, and I saw many flocks of them escaping the various birds of prey. They nest in cracks and holes on the cliffs, and here it appeared at least 2 couples had their nest. A perfect spot it seemed, as they had this dead tree […]
As I’m photographing a Plumbeous Kite I hear the calls of Military Macaws! I’ve just entered the fringes of Amboro National Park in which Refugio Los Volcanses resides, and I see this magnificent macaw – my very first sighting of the species. I am standing on a steep slope prohibiting me from moving closer to […]
Yet another pair I was able to get quite close to – this is on the grounds of the neighboring Santa Rosa (no longer in business, unfortunately). As you can see they’ve got an eye on me, but just barely. They kept on with their “Macaw-business” until they moved on. It sounds like this:
Chalalan has a good population of both Blue-and-yellow and Red-and-green Macaws. If you are able to get in the canopy (usually most unlikely), on a hill or like I am here, a look-out-platform Chalalan installed not long ago, you might get some amazing experiences as you are level with many of the birds flying between […]
The large bird is a Mealy Amazon. The size, it’s one of the biggest parrots, the greyish tint on the back and the wider white eyering are keys to tell them apart. This particular clay lick is only accessible by boat and you need powerful outboards to equalize the very strong currents and hold the […]
The Mealy amazon was not as common as the Yellow-crowned Amazon at this lick, and is at first easily confused with it. The size, it’s one of the biggest parrots, the greyish tint on the back and the wider white eyering are keys to tell them apart. It sounds like this: Aperture: ƒ/5.6 Camera: NIKON […]