Pousada Aguapé; a Brazilian wildlife extravaganza

A year ago I posted a two-part blog on the superb Pantanal, the vast ephemeral wetland lying in south-western Brazil (and overflowing into neighbouring Bolivia and Paraguay). At that stage I'd only visited the northern part, as do most visitors there. Since then however I've had the opportunity to visit the less-known southern section - though as the map shows, there is very little road access to this huge wild expanse of country.

The red arrow points to the approximate position of Pousada Aguapé, a delightful lodge on a fazenda,
a working cattle property. While almost none of the Pantanal is formally protected, fortunately many of
the landowners now realise there is a real and tangible value in managing their land to encourage
wildlife alongside the cattle. The pousada is near the southern edge of the Pantanal, but
entirely within it. (Map courtesy Pantanal Escapes.)

The rooms are scattered through extensive gardens; the outdoor eating area is surrounded by wildlife. You can - and probably will - spend quite a bit of profitable time in and immediately around the accommodation, which is what we'll do in this post. Next time I'll take you on a drive through the property.

Red-legged Seriema Cariama cristata outside our room. To have these wonderful birds - one of just two
quintessentially South American species together comprising an entire Order - right outside the door is
far from the least of Aguapé's delights.

Another old South American actually lived under our room.

Six-banded Armadillo Euphractus sexcinctus (the number of bands is actually variable) disappearing into
its basement apartment beneath our rooms. They potter about the garden and frequent the compost heap.

Other garden dwellers can be encountered anywhere in the yard, and favour gardens everywhere.

Giant Ameiva (or Amazon Whiptail or Racerunner) Ameiva ameiva (Family Teidae), a handsome
big lizard widespread in South and Central America.

Pale-breasted Thrush Turdus leucomelas, another widespread species in north-eastern
South America (plus an isolated population in northern Peru), often seen in gardens.

Rufous Hornero Furnarius rufus, widespread in the south-east of the continent - it is
the national bird of neighbouring Argentina.

Hornero is Spanish for an oven (indeed the members of this whole extensive family of ancient South American
passerines are known as ovenbirds); this impressive enclosed mud nest is the reason for the name.

However early in the morning the activity is focussed frenetically on the feeders situated, appropriately, alongside the human open air dining room. For up to an hour the parade can be non-stop, though it varies from morning to morning. The following photos were all taken virtually from the breakfast table.

A general view of the feeders at a quiet time, from the dining room.

Black-hooded and Monk Parakeets crowd the breakfast bar.

Black-hooded (or Nanday) Parakeets Aratinga nenday are very attractive parrots,
limited to the Pantanal and mostly found only in the south.

A menacing Giant Cowbird Molothrus oryzivorus, an Icterid (or North American blackbird) found from
the Pantanal north to southern Mexico. The cowbirds are all brood parasites, and this one concentrates
on other Icterids such as oropendolas and caciques. Unlike cuckoos the cowbird chicks live alongside
those of their hosts.

Plush-crested Jay Cyanocorax chrysops, found across central South America.
A few species of jay are the only crows to have become established in South America.
Truly glorious.

Purplish Jay Cyanocorax cyanomelas, a less striking but ubiquitous and more often seen jay.

Greyish Saltator Saltator coerulescens. Saltators are now recognised as tanagers (along
with many other South American birds); this one is widespread.

South American cardinals comprise another bird group which actually belongs to the tanager family. Two species come to dine at Pousada Agouapé.

Red-crested Cardinal Paroaria coronata; this species is much less frequently seen in the Pantanal
than the next one.

Yellow-billed Cardinal Paroaria capitata, one of the commonest and most conspicuous birds in
the Pantanal, including around settlements.

Other visitors to the morning buffet prefer to forage on the ground, to avoid the competition above them or just because that is their preferred environment.

Picui Ground Dove Columbina picui, one of several species of ground-feeding doves in the area.
Picui is a Guarani word, of the central South American people of the same name.

The even smaller Saffron Finch Sicalis flaveola has a large but discontinuous range in the west,
north and centre-east of the continent. It too is actually a tanager!

Shiny Cowbirds Molothrus bonariensis are much smaller (as we might expect!) than their Giant
relations, so parasitise much smaller host species, such as sparrows. They are found almost throughout
the continent and are still expanding their range.

And lastly some large visitors who dropped by, starting with another Red-legged Seriema - you can't have too much of them!

Red-legged Seriema partly showing off the patterned underwing.

Chaco Chachalaca Ortalis canicollis, the very raucous and ever-present voice of the Pantanal!
A member of the guan family (Cracticidae), which lives in groups of several to dozens of boisterous birds.

But the star of almost any South American party is likely to be a toucan, and thus it probably was at Aguapé.

Toco Toucan Ramphastos toco, the biggest and one of the most striking of this splendid family.
One day they will feature in their own post here. Toco is apparently also a Guarani word.

Meantime, just over the back fence, the pin-ups of the Pantanal, the simply magnificent Hyacinth Macaw Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus come to feed on palm fruits cut for them, ensuring that visitors see and properly appreciate them. At a metre long they are the largest living parrot, though the flightless New Zealand Kakapo is heavier; being electric blue makes them fairly noticeable too.

A victim of the insidious pet trade, numbers plummeted in the 1970s and 80s; in the latter decade around 10,000
were stolen from the wild, leaving only 3,000. They are now limited  to just three isolated populations in Brazil;
two of those seem still to be in decline.

The Pantanal is their stronghold, with at least 5,000 of the estimated world population
of 6,500 (though those figures seem to be more than a decade out of date).
I would suggest that they alone justify your visit to the Pantanal - and at Pousada Aguapé
you are virtually guaranteed to enjoy them at your leisure.

I only feature commercial properties in this blog if I deem them exceptional in nature, and with an appropriate environmental ethos. I believe that Aguapé easily meets these criteria and I look forward to exploring it further with you next time.

NEXT POSTING THURSDAY 31 JANUARY
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