Guyana Trip Log
Calgary Zoo Tour
October 3 – 14, 1998
Written by Brian Keating, Tour Leader
Brian and Dee Keating (keatingb@calgaryzoo.ab.ca)
Murray and Penny Young
Ray and Lois Garety
Bud and Georgina Clarke
Nipper and Eleanor Guest
Compiled November 1998 for Wilderness Explorers
Oct 3: We left at 12:30 a.m. on the red-eye to Toronto with no hitches, and the connections in Toronto and Miami were perfect. At the stopover in Trinidad, however, the aircraft developed some kind of problem. After an hour’s delay, we were shunted into another craft (fortunately there was one there!). After nearly 20 hours of travel, we at last arrived in Guyana. Wilderness Adventures drivers Teri and Louis met us at the arrival hall and quickly transferred us into two well-kept vans. The drive into Georgetown along the black, winding airport road passed at least three roadside parties blaring music, crowded with Saturday night socialites. We saw the occasional donkey on the road, the ubiquitous third-world dogs, and lots of smells, from burning vegetation to open sewers. Sometime after 1 a.m., the bed at the Pegasus Meridian was a welcome sight. The nearly full moon shone down on us, with Jupiter just above, in a clear sky, and the air was alive with the sound of frogs. It’s great to be back in the tropics. But for now, we are all definitely ready for a horizontal position. The frogs will have to wait.
Oct 4: Up at 8 a.m., we had a quick breakfast before being met by Tony Thorne and Louis. We first went to the market, which contrary to what Tony had been told the day before, was closed. We still managed to gain entry and walked the dark corridors past a multitude of typical boarded up stalls, imagining the usual hustle that this place witnesses on most mornings. The market structure was built at least two hundred years ago, making the entire scene look like it’s from a black-and-white movie set. Behind the main structure, adjacent to the wharf, was a narrow walkway past more stalls, one of which was open. Contained within was a fellow with several cages, two containing about 20 small birds and another with two parrots, likely orange-winged. He explained that the small birds are used in gambling, with bets placed on the one people think will whistle the most in a set period of time! Apparently these birds go for up to US$30.00 each, and much more for the proven whistlers! Better than cock-fighting, certainly, as none get killed in the process.
Along the street we met a fellow with a huge green iguana over his shoulder. The iguana’s arms and legs were bound tightly behind the poor animal’s back. The lizard looked pathetic, and when I asked the man to show it to the group, he swung it off his shoulder as if it was a sack of flour, hitting the concrete with a thud. I picked it up for everyone to have a closer look, we discussed the species, took some pictures, then with a tip, I gave it back to the owner. He wanted to sell it for GU$3,500 (CN $35.00), but offered a $500.00 discount for us. I gave him a $100 (CN $1.00) tip. Guyana could likely do very well with a breeding program, like the ones in Central America used for producing meat and new stock to replace animals from the wild.
After a nice tour of the city’s largest wooden cathedral by a very enthusiastic minister, we completed an interesting tour of Georgetown’s oldest buildings. Peter Katoo came in for the afternoon to meet us at the Zoo after lunch. We had about 50 posters for the Zoo, (assembled by very keen Calgary Zoo Docents) and we made a point of photographing the gift-giving, with the group holding the colourful laminated posters (thanks to Xerox) in front of Peter’s new aquarium. We were impressed with the changes Peter has been able to make in the previous 18 months, including renovating the peccary pen into a roomy jaguar exhibit, moving the puma into the back pen that was originally for the lions (of which there is only one left now….a deworming accident), and the creation of a multi-species pen. After some entertaining birding in the botanical gardens, we headed back to the Pegasus for supper, a BBQ poolside, and a slide talk by Dr Graham Watkins, the Acting Director
General for Iwokrama, an international centre for rainforest conservation and development.
He also presented some insights on the potential of some of the negative impacts of
development upon the land, the forest and the wildlife within. Tony gave a good intro. to
the outline of our trip too.
Snowy egret Wattled jacana
Little blue heron Ruddy ground dove
Tricolored heron Orange-winged parrot
Striated heron Green kingfisher
Cattle egret Lineated woodpecker
Yellow-crowned night heron Whimbrel
Laughing hawk (falcon) Smooth-billed ani
Lesser kiskadee flycatcher Palm tanager
Great kiskadee flycatcher Blue-grey tanager
Silver-beaked tanager Carib grackle
Pied water-tyrant Rufous crab-hawk
Oct 5: It was too late to bed last night, then once there, a poor sleep for me because of all the excitement, and up at 4 am to be ready to fly to Annai at 6 a.m. With a 25 lb. weight limit each, we had some serious culling of stuff, and even then, our total group overweight was some 32 pounds, costing about Gu$16,000 (Cn$16.00). It was a Caravan aircraft that took us into the interior, flying over some wonderful green tropical forest, and finally through some very dark rain clouds.
The Rupununi was flooded, so much so it looked like a swamp from the air with water stretching to the horizon, shimmering amongst the grassland to the east against the low sun. The box-like Caravan hydroplaned down the strip, kicking mud the entire way, making quite a sight. Colin Edwards of Rock View Resort was there to meet us, break-dancing with energy and smiling from ear to ear as we had so fondly remembered him.
After a relaxed walk around his place, meeting “Tony the tapir”, “Annie the anteater” and “Sheena the peccary”, we settled in for a nice breakfast in his cosy kitchen.
Soon after we all piled on the deck of the Bedford truck to begin a 3 hour rumble for 25 miles down the road to Surama Village, stopping for some excellent birding here and there, with a jabiru stork being the highlight. Meadowlark, various birds of prey, some excellent flycatchers including a water tyrant and a fork-tailed flycatcher, were some of the birds we saw before entering the forest.
A brief, cooling rain ended just as we drove into the forest, followed by the sun, creating an explosion of calling cicadas. We walked a length of road, allowing for some superb looks at macaws through the scope, nearly full frame! Outstanding.
At Surama, we were taken to the newly-built guest house for an excellent lunch. Due to the previous three days of unseasonal heavy storms, the Burro Burro River was in rainy season-like flood with levels five meters above normal. We found out our boats had been lost (they were tied to a tree, and now sat under several feet of rushing water), and our camp was flooded out. Schedule change: we went to see their cassava co-op, some farm plots, did an excellent walk on the road, some birding (after first walking across a flooded bridge), and after supper, enjoyed a “ceremony” put on by the village. The evening was conducted in the new UNICEF school, and we, being the guests of honour, sat in some new wooden chairs. The headmaster gave several speeches, including some incredible comments on the value of tourism to his little village. He told us about the near disaster they saw happening around them five years ago, when they started in the consumptive
wildlife trade, and how species of once abundant birds all but disappeared in a very short time. Somehow they thought better of it, and stopped the parrot (and other bird) catching and snatching, and focused instead on the idea of non-consumptive eco-tourism. The children sang several songs, as did the moms from the group, and our group responded with a rousing chorus of Home Home on The Range. And, hey, we weren’t bad! After our rendition, I did a little speech and we presented the head master with some of the laminated wildlife posters the Docents put together, some pencils, and some school books complete with a “donated by” insert that Wilderness Adventures organised for us. The evening was warm, genuine, and most memorable for all of us. We felt we were a privileged few, being among the first to be a part of this new and hopefully successful focus on an alternate form of income raising for this little, remote village.
Black vulture Fork-tail palm swift
Turkey vulture Fork-tailed flycatcher
Crested caracara White-headed marsh tyrant
Savannah hawk Mealy parrot
Roadside hawk Burnished-buffed tanager
Pearl kite Red-billed toucan
Paurauque Toco toucan
White-vented euphonia Red-breasted blackbird
Eastern meadowlark Red-and-green macaw
Jabiru stork Great egret
Oct 6: We departed to walk to the Burro Burro River just after 6 a.m., walking first through rolling semi-open grassland and tree islands. Good birding, including an excellent look at a pearl kite, some toucans, and at last a confirmed classic look at some scarlet macaws. In fact, once we had our first macaw sighting, we saw them by the score, including a tree with at least 7 or 8 in it. Apparently they will soon be leaving, migrating into the Amazon. High up in one tree, a Spix’s guan sat very still, trying not to be noticed, with his red chin waddle giving him away, and the spotting scope (a 22 power birdwatching telescope) making the view possible. Morphos butterflies were abundant in the forest, often sitting on the ground lapping moisture or minerals. When they flew away, they appeared and disappeared with each wing beat. One of the guides spotted a remarkable moth that had what appeared to be “feather pencils” on the posterior end, which looked as if someone had glued a bunch of down feathers to it!
The river itself was certainly swollen, and in fact we couldn’t get to the main channel because the water was too high in the small tributary. We expected to be back by 8 a.m.,
but rolled in, tired and thirsty near 10! Breakfast was consumed with vigour, to say the least.
After a shower and a break, five of us walked to a nearby silk cotton tree (a Kapok), just to see this king of the forest. The tree was nice, but the highlight was a huge common toad find. It puffed itself up and leaned into the “danger” as if to hide its face and further expose his neck glands to a potential “bite”. The thing was as big as a grapefruit, with lovely eyes and a very fat body. Just my kind of toad!
Two trucks arrived a bit late, around 2 p.m., to take us to Iwokrama. We made a couple of roadside stops, once to observe two macaws mating, and behind them, two Guianan toucanets eating fruit! Our drivers put the trucks into 4 wheel drive in a few muddy spots. At one point I saw the pug marks of a jaguar. The sky became darker and darker until all hell broke loose, with the rain coming down in sheets. At times we must have been hydroplaning, as the road was awash in muddy water. Just before sunset, we arrived riverside, and the boat was called in to pick us up at Kurupukari Landing, sparing us the bumpy driveway into the camp from the main road.
The camp has changed a lot in 18 months, with the rooms arranged in a very nice way, the masses of cots removed, floors redone and varnished, and generally a lot more welcoming. Everyone was really pleased, and before supper, some 5-year rum was used to have a celebration drink.
After supper, we spent about two hours on the river with 4 staff: the boat driver, the caiman catcher, a bow paddler and the night lighter with a million candle power light powered by a car battery. We wanted to catch a caiman (a South American alligator) just to see one up close, then to release it. An attempt was made on at least 7 caiman, with no luck. The catcher even had a noose around one at one point, but somehow it slipped away. To have a small caiman in the hand would have been great, but for everyone to see at least the eye shine made it all worthwhile. We did see a boa (fairly small, no bigger than a metre) up on a branch, lots of fishing bats and other unknown bat species, numerous nightjars, two small owls, a snake bird, and the highlight: a huge tree frog. It was greenish-grey in colour, with large classic frog eyes, a narrow waist, long slender legs with webbed fingers and toes, terminating in fat, sticky pads. We had a chance to get a close look at it, do some video, and let him go. Into bed late again, with the prospect of the morning arriving too early. What a blast.
Crested oropendola Scarlet macaw
Dusky parrot Screaming piha (heard)
Swallow-wing Guianan toucanet
Spix’s guan Anhinga
Oct 7: We were in the boat for our morning float by 5:40 a.m., and moments later the engine was off and we were drifting. Starting off with a pair of skimmers and pied lapwings, we drifted in silence, enjoying the quiet of the morning. The wall of green that bordered each side of the river towered over us, perhaps 40 metres tall. Parrots flew overhead now and again, but they were surprisingly quiet. Just the sound of dropping seeds came from the green wall, an indication of the parrot populations in the canopy. Their sloppy eating habits of food dropping, acts of course, as seed dispersal. A few groups of howlers called, their deep growls coming from the green depths, but other than that, we were skunked for primate sightings.
At a sand bank, we got out to stretch and look around, and found capybara, jaguar, iguana and caiman tracks. Some parakeets, nunbirds, and swallow-wings were identified, and an unseen trogon teased us from some thick foliage. The outstanding sighting, however, was of three green aracaris with their toucan-like bills and bright plumage. The birds were in perfect light, harvesting the fruit from a Congo palm, stripping each finger-like morsel and popping the bits into their mouths. Their colours were brilliant, and we oohed and ahhed for some time. An interesting fungus-like egg mass of tiny white moths was later found by Lois, and some fun was had working out their place in the scheme of things.
After breakfast, we took a packed lunch and motored downriver about 20 minutes in the boats to a trailhead up to the top of Turtle Mountain, a hike with a view about 1000 feet above the river. We hopped out of the boat quickly, as we had to do a fast trot through a mass of army ants! Loading the lunch into our packs, we began the two and a half hour trek through the steamy, humid forest. Passing classic forest trees with huge buttress roots made it an excellent first serious rainforest hike for everyone. We identified glass wood (its grain straight like cedar, making great firewood and house posts), greenheart (the country’s most important economic tree), crabwood (its nuts loaded with oils that work as a skin lotion to reduce itching from biting insects), and balata trees complete with the scars of Amerindian rubber collecting. At a pond, we suddenly came upon three river otters, who, with the expert calling of Zachariah, our local Amerindian guide, came in really close to check us out! What an experience! They dodged back and forth between the roots and submerged vegetation, closing in especially near to Dee and Zac! I missed the video because of the tricky lighting, but got a good look at the bug-eyed face of one of them. Apparently they frequent this pond when the river water is really high.
From there we set a very steady pace, passing by an ocelot den at the foot of a rock outcrop, and eventually we emerged at a stunning viewpoint above the Iwokrama Reserve. When I set my pack down, a cryptic grasshopper of immense proportions went into a wonderful wings-up stance, trying to intimidate me! I grabbed and bagged it for later photography.
We searched in vain for spider and howler monkeys, though Zac saw the former and tried to call them in using some excellent monkey mimic calls. Howlers called now and again, but no sightings were made. A macaw flew way below us, presenting a very nice view, but the show was taken by a fruiting tree not 10 metres from us: in no time, we saw three species of manakin, two tanagers, two honeycreepers, and a euphonia. We went nuts doing all the identification, having one brilliant sighting after the other.
Then the wind picked up, a rainbow appeared in full view across the entire vista. To all this “natural high”, Zac was trying to call in some black spider monkeys. The entire sight was surreal, presenting an awesome image that I will never forget. I tried to capture it on video, but I’m sure it’ll just be a scant representation of the moment. Zac stood, arm draped around a tree, half hanging on and leaning into the tree, looking down into the forest canopy far below. The storm-induced wind was blowing strong, and the rainbow off in the near distance was brilliant. A light rain had begun, and it threatened seriously for more. Zac all the while made spider monkey noises, using his hand as a way to vary his voice, patting it onto his open mouth. With rain increasing in intensity, most had left the cliff edge and were making their way down the steep trail. Zac was so keen, his intensity held me, Dee, Ray and Lois there until we too had to eventually pull ourselves away. The return trip down took just over an hour. No spider monkey, but a rich experience indeed. I found an interesting scorpion on the way back.
Lorna, a researcher working at Iwokrama, gave us an excellent talk after supper on balata, the rubber-tree alternative. She imparted some very important thoughts on the survival of the rainforest through economic gain. Her research is looking at two items, the balata tree and the nibbi vine, and their market potential, development, and their importance in economic terms. She is looking for arguments for the justification of leaving intact forest ecosystems for the country. The idea of setting up a sustainable industry will be a major part of her work, ensuring a continual income for the locals. We had some good discussion after her presentation, further exploring the concept of the reality of our ever-consuming world and how wildlife preservation will fit in.
I then spent about an hour showing all the Amerindian camp staff Jupiter and its moons, and our own waning moon, through my spotting scope. In a touching moment, one fellow came up to me and quietly said: “Thanks for being so patient with us”…… What wonderful, warm, gentle people.
Black skimmer Yellow-rumped cacique
Amazon kingfisher Red-capped cardinal
Yellow-billed tern Painted parakeet
Pied lapwing Green aracari
White-winged swallow Black nunbird
Drab water-tyrant Capped heron
Large-billed tern Black-collared martin
Green honeycreeper Great tinamou (heard)
Purple honeycreeper Osprey
Golden-headed manakin Bay-headed tanager
White-throated manakin
Oct 8: We started the day at 4:30 a.m. to try to be in the boats by 5 on our attempted jaguar drive. Although we were unsuccessful with that agenda item, we did see three agouties, a red-and-green macaw nest, (actually two) with birds in them, a bat falcon on the top of a dead tree, several toucans and many others. The highlight, however, was at a site with several bloodwood trees in bloom with clustered red tube flowers.
Hummingbirds, mostly mangoes of various unidentified species, were everywhere, having their spats and fits of territoriality. Then the prize appeared, a crimson topaz hummingbird. With two long tail feathers gracing a rufous tail, an iridescent rufous chest and a ruby throat that glowed in the light, the male entertained us for at least a half an hour. We watched through the scope as he returned time and time again to the same two or three perches after each battle or feeding foray. In the sun, he became a living jewel. Behind us sat a red-billed toucan, overhead flew parrots of various species, but this tiny little bird kept us focused. Zac said later that it was his first sighting of this bird in the 3 years he has worked at Iwokrama!
Later, we went upstream past the local village to two sites where there were some interesting petroglyphs. The petroglyphs, all etched into the rock, are of unknown age, meaning, and origin. One consisted of a honeycomb-like pattern, another was a lizard or iguana. Several others were unidentifiable as much of anything. At the first site, there were four kids that did some serious body surfing through the rapids. No fear here! Georgina suggested this is not the kind of thing a mother would appreciate! It was amazing seeing these little kids bobbing up and down through the boiling water.
On the way upstream, Zac saw an iguana in an incredibly difficult, well camouflaged spot, and we spent some time trying to find it with our binoculars.
On the way back from our expedition, we paused at Martin’s Island for a swim and cooldown at the beach. He had a puma skin there, which he said was “left” by a gold miner. Pretty sad whatever the story, as the pelt was pitiful with the fur being short and the skin itself crudely skinned and tanned.
After lunch, we had a short farewell ceremony in the cooking shelter beside the dining room, where I presented the tip and some gifts to express our appreciation. Our drive to Rock View Resort was hot but comfortable in the good vehicle of Iwokrama, arriving by mid afternoon. In short order we were sipping drinks in the pool and listening to wonderful story-telling by Colin.
Colin’s resort has really become lush and thick with well organised flowering vegetation that appears to attract a wonderful variety of bird life. As I write this, I just heard the buzz of a hummingbird, several parrots in the distance, and a variety of unidentified chirps and calls all around. It’s a paradise, and he has a lot to be proud of.
Later: After an entertaining discussion with Colin over drinks in his living room-come-museum, we settled in for a delicious home-cooked meal served by Velda and her family. Rupununi beef, chicken, Brazil beans, rice, farine (a cous cous-like meal), mixed salad, sorrel drink and beer. For dessert, we had guava cheese and cream. The entire supper experience had a warm feel, with Colin’s family members hovering and serving, making everything just right. Good fun was had by all.
Colin’s ranch house was built in the 1950’s, and used to be a rest house for those involved in the huge cattle drives of 40,000 head through to the coast. The returning cowboys would find this ranch “the” place to be. His bar, a former meat butchering and hanging room, is now a local going concern.
Velda is wife #3 with whom he has children # 5 and 6. In his living room stands a meter tall statue of a woman squatting in childbirth: a gift for a previous wife. This carving must weigh in at 600 pounds, and is carved from one solid piece of tree. A basket full of arrows and spears sit in the corner, and other paintings and carvings adorn every shelf and wall space possible. A large hammock hangs from a centre support to the wall. One can easily tell that every item, every carving, tells a story. Colin arrived in South America from England at the age of 22, and he’s in his 50’s now…….he says this is his final resting place. I suspect Colin was one serious rolling stone in many of his former years.
Since there are only four guest cottages (but four more are in progress), Dee and I were to sleep in the farm house, but have elected instead to sleep outside where it’s cooler and where we can catch a breeze. We have a “nest” of a comfortable mattress under a mosquito net, all set up under the thatch of the pool-side bar.
Blue-and-yellow macaw Lesser swallow-tailed swift
Mottled owl Barn swallow
Crimson topaz Black currassow
Bat falcon
Oct 9: Six of us were up and in the land rover by 5 a.m. for the 30 minute drive back to the forest edge to spend some time birding. As we stood beside the jeep drinking our coffee in the pre-dawn glow, three oropendolas, silhouetted in the eastern sky were doing their breeding display calls, showing off some remarkable acrobatic contortions, complete with bizarre squeaky, wet rubber-like calls. From that great start, we proceeded to add seven new birds to the list, including a woodpecker, an aracari, a dove, a parrot and another species of oropendola (a green). A superb walk in nice cool weather. Meanwhile, the others added a toco toucan as their morning highlight from the “rock view” at Rock View Resort.
After breakfast, we visited with Annie the anteater, Sheena the peccary and Tommy the tapir, photographing them all. During a late morning swim in the pool, we found a new species of hummingbird, as it sat patiently in the scope for all to see. After lunch and our farewell tip and gift ceremony, we boarded the Bedford truck and began the long grinding drive to the Rupununi River, stopping for a green ibis, Savannah hawk, jabiru stork and a huge mud puddle that we walked around to off load the truck. Arriving at the pick up point, Ginep Landing, we departed only about 15 minutes late (at 3:45 p.m.), but arrived at Karanambu Ranch well after dark, somewhere around 7 p.m. Our boat engine was guzzling more gas than it should, causing us to run out of fuel three times. Fortunately, there was a second boat, and refills were easy. During the first “forced” delay, Nipper tied us up to prevent a downriver drift, and I told a few jokes. The joy of it all was the bizarre call of an ibis, which sounded like some unearthly creature. A tiger heron flew by, and some saw a leaf preener. During the final nocturnal tour, we enjoyed the fireflies and the stars.
Diane McTurk was in wonderful form when we arrived, pouring rum punches and, over a delicious supper, telling wonderful stories of her upbringing, cattle selling problems, ranch life and so on. I bungled remembering Dee’s birthday, so Colin was nice enough to call ahead and tell Di, so a cake was ready and a happy birthday cheer was had in Dee’s honour. We collapsed into bed at 10:30 p.m. anticipating another early rise tomorrow morning.
Rock dove White-tailed hawk
Spotted sandpiper Green oropendola
Brown-throated parakeet Southern lapwing
Black-necked aracari Glittering-throated emerald
Scaled pigeon Tropical mockingbird
Yellow-tufted woodpecker Green ibis
White-necked heron Pale-legged hornero
Tropical kingbird Pale-vented pigeon
Muscovy duck Rufescent tiger heron
Oct 10: On the river at 5:30 a.m., we were following our guide, Kenneth, as he was blazing a new trail around the regular path due to the high water levels that resulted in flooding. At Acouri Pond, the height of the water level coupled with the beautiful sight of the giant Amazonia pond lilies and their blossoms was a showstopper. Jacanas, gallinules, egrets, herons, kingfishers and an assortment of other birds welcomed us to the pond. A crane hawk perched on a branch right beside us, and gave us an excellent view of this gymnogene equivalent of South America. A huge caiman also made an appearance, bringing a reality check to the “quaint” feel of the place.
Before lunch we played with the two giant river otters, Lara (the baby), and Peter the Great, now just over four years old. We had a ball swimming with them, feeding fish (piranhas), and just enjoying.
At 3:30 p.m., 8 of us drove out into the ranch landscape, and did a nice walk through a forest (highlight: a trogon!), followed by a rum punch at a pond, backlit with a fiery red sunset, complete with reflections. Several Nacunda nighthawks flew over, just as we were getting ready to drive back to the lodge.
Dinner was entertaining in a different sort of way, as the Anglican Bishop of Guyana joined us. The conversations took on a less intense tone than usual, and we told jokes for about an hour after dessert.
Purple gallinule Great black hawk
Greater ani White-tailed trogon
Yellow oriole Black-crowned night heron
Crane hawk Bare-faced ibis
Vermilion flycatcher Nacunda nightjar
Oct 11: Because the trail into Crane Pond needed to be re-cut due to the flooded sections, we elected to go to the Oxbow Lakes and Simoni Pond to look for otters and monkeys. As it turned out, we happened upon a small group of brown-bearded sakis feeding hardly 10 metres above the water in the flooded forest. Their thick, blunt-ended tails gave their presence away, as did their sloppy feeding habit of dropping food items. I got a good look at their brown coat, and some in the boat managed excellent looks at their faces, including their strange-looking Afro-bouffant hairstyle. Interesting monkeys, as they are reputed to be specialised nut feeders, possessing a gap between their molars to fit the nut to be cracked.
The route to the ponds was beautiful, with overhanging trees making a complete canopy most of the way, giving an intimate feel to the engineless float in and out. We saw more of the “water-roosting” bats, which looked like bark chips on a tree from a distance. They flew like butterflies when we disturbed them. Some good birds were seen, too, including a squirrel cuckoo. Mornings are the best without question, with the birdlife being most active, the changing light and sunrise painting the Rupununi sky, and especially the air feeling cool and crisp. Because the boating was so nice, we rolled into camp some time after 9 a.m. for breakfast.
At 3 p.m., 8 of the 10 of us headed to Crane Pond to see the nesting egrets, herons, anhingas, boatbills, jacanas, and gallinules. Wetting our shirts and hats in an attempt to keep cool, the walk turned out to be shorter than expected, and very pleasant. The new trail skirted the flooded portions, literally tunnelling through mats of sharp vines with grass-like leaves that were armed with serious cutting edges. The pond appeared, and Dee immediately identified a sun grebe, a new one for us. Good omen, as from there, we saw all the listed birds above. An aluminium boat that has seen better days appeared from the bushes, and with half our group in it, Ashley and his assistant paddled over to the giant pond lilies. The leaves, most measuring over a metre across, complete with perfect up-turned edges, would easily support a baby human, according to Diane. The flowers are as big as a dinner plate, and vary in colour from pink to white. The sun was low, making some perfect filming opportunities.
Quickly departing once we all had had the chance to do the boat trip, we motored back downstream, slowing to look at a large black caiman Ashley guessed was over two meters long. We soon met up with Diane and Murray and Penny in their boat. They excitedly told us that a group of howler monkeys were just a few hundred metres downstream, high in a tree, in a sleeping “clump”. We quickly found them, and had some excellent looks from the boat. Ashley pulled over to the bank to give me a chance to clamber up the edge to put up the scope for all to get a better look, and no sooner did we find an opening in the canopy with a clear view to a howler, that they clambered out of view. Too much commotion I guess. However, we all were rewarded with a rain shower of poop and piss from the now disturbed monkeys. I did manage some video, though, and it turned out surprisingly well.
Needless to say, sundowners were enjoyed in celebration on the river, drifting under an incredible sunset sky, nightjars and bats dripping from the forest as it grew darker.
Good stories by Diane during supper made for another very enjoyable evening.
Ringed kingfisher Green-tailed jacamar
White-ringed flycatcher Boat-billed heron
Squirrel cuckoo Golden-green woodpecker
Sun grebe Cream-coloured woodpecker
Oct 12: The Caravan aeroplane was late, but we still made it to Kaieteur Falls by 9:30 a.m. after a 40 minute flight. We had a somewhat rushed and scattered goodbye with Diane and her staff, as I performed the task after the aeroplane had landed, not knowing the pilots wouldn’t turn the thing off.
The warden at the falls, Michael Phang, met us, and he proceeded to do a very nice tour. At the cock-of-the-rock lek site, three of us did see a pumpkin-coloured streak whiz by (the male), and I got a good look at a female, enough to see her crest. Sadly, neither stuck around for a look with the scope, but an excellent video encounter with a golden frog in one of the huge bromeliads was a bonus. The falls were looking very good, with normal flow (I’m pleased the El Nino drought is over!). We took our time walking the trail, quizzing our guide on the plants and birds. At the falls, we had time for a relaxed lunch (egg sandwich with mustard?), to poke around and play with the tadpoles, photograph the wildflowers, and enjoy the view.
After four hours on the ground, we took off, flying another 40 minutes over the vast, unbroken forested landscape. We descended from the high plateau past huge cliffs and rugged escarpments, carpeted in thick green forest. Blackwater rivers meandered amongst the broccoli-like canopy in the lowlands, and the flooded forest glistened here and there. Huge rain showers forced the pilots to do a bit of extra air miles to avoid their rough and wet character. It’s a thrill to see that kind of untouched expanse of such biologically productive landscape. I just hope they can preserve a healthy chunk of it.
Upon landing just upstream of Bartica, we were picked up in two fast boats and transported to Shanklands Resort. We met with Iola and her cooking team, and after an orientation, we met our guide Winston, and did a short walk into the forest. A reasonable look at a brown woodcreeper was had by most, then we returned to the open to look for a toucan, and we found one: an aracari.
Supper was a fine affair on the balcony, followed by some good banter and story telling.
Guianian cock-of-the-rock White-collared swift
Oct 13: I awoke to howler monkeys calling very close in the adjacent forest. Our early morning walk began well, with Nipper immediately seeing a large monkey, likely a capuchin, soon after we entered the forest. From there, birding was painfully slow in very difficult deep, dark forest conditions, first starting beside a very quiet manakin lek. Winston, our guide, did his very best to show us some forest birds, but in nearly two hours, we had yet to see even any bird, though lots was happening well above us in the canopy, judging by all the calls. The moment was salvaged when Ray found a Spix’s guan, and we managed to put a scope on it. In the thick canopy foliage, we watched this huge bird walk ever so carefully on some unseen arboreal walkway of branches, picking fruit as he went. A moment later, a group of four cayenne jays appeared, coursing through the lower canopy level like a group of teens looking for trouble. On the walk out, the big prize sighting at last occurred: a family group of white-faced sakis. They were feeding on some passion fruit-like berries, then seeing us, moved off to the mid-upper canopy, pausing several times in full view for us to observe and photograph. The males have stunning round white faces and black thick fur coats, and a tail that is long and blunt. We followed them for a short distance, allowing for some excellent video, then gradually they drifted into the forest. After breakfast, we went back into the forest to do another saki watch, and amazingly, we found some and obtained excellent views with the scope. As a finale, we spotted a barbet with a group of three yellow-tufted woodpeckers, and a nunbird slaughtering a large preying mantis to feed it to a boisterous youngster.
A much needed river cooldown was had by Nipper, Dee and I, as Ray and Lois and Bud and Georgina went kayaking. It was soon raining in classic tropical style, eventually chilling the river water, forcing us out.
After lunch we again did some superb birding around the grounds, seeing a tody, a tityra, a new tanager and yet another new toucan. Later, Murray announced that Bud had noticed the grass was blowing on the ground, but there was no wind! We had a few moments to watch leafcutter ants (not enough time here!), then rushed over to the two waiting vehicles to take us on a short drive upriver to do some late-day birding. The significant sighting that made it all worthwhile here was a family group of four jacamars, with their long tails and needle-sharp beaks, all pointing skyward. One of the adults caught a dragonfly right over Murray’s head, returned to the perch and forced it down whole. A very nice way to end our last full day in Guyana.
Cayenne jay Channel-billed toucan
House wren Tourquoise tanager
Shiny cowbird Grey-breasted martin
Black-spotted barbet Common tody-flycatcher
Blue dacnis Paradise jacamar
Black-tailed tityra White-bearded flycatcher
Oct 14: I did a solo walk, the last one of the trip into the forest, after a nice coffee at sunrise with Nipper, Ray and Lois. I did the usual thing upon entering the morning gloom of the forest: walk about 30 meters, stop, look and listen. At the junction near the lek of the manakins, I saw a branch move and a small primate run along it. I quietly hurried up the path to get a look, and there staring back at me was a golden-handed tamarin! There were at least two, likely more, but I only had one long look at this individual, and it too, sat and stared. I could see his golden-coloured front and back feet, as he sat faceing me. A moment later, just as I managed to set up the video, it left his perch, and disappeared into the thick foliage, to re-appear even closer to me just for a moment. I secured momentary looks and shaking branches from then on, with the entire encounter over in under five minutes. My first tamarin sighting, what a pleasure!
At the bottom of the hill near the forest tidal creek that Dee and I explored last year, I received a calling card on my hand as I held the tripod. A golden-headed manakin was at least 25 meters above, feeding on some fruits in the canopy. His stunning yellow head contrasted sharply with its jet black body, presenting a colourful diversion from the gloom of the dark forest floor.
I met Dee near the forest entrance, and almost at once we spotted a group of brown capuchin monkeys and managed a good look at one. The morning walk was capped with the best toucan video I have ever managed, or have ever hoped to get: a red-billed displaying in a near-full frame. Stunning.
We departed after lunch, and after an hour’s speedy boat ride, Louis and another driver were waiting to take us to our dayroom at the Pegasus, and onward to the airport. Dee and I said our goodbyes at the hotel, but had one of the drivers drop us off at a friend’s home, (Dee’s hairdresser’s brother’s family). We had an excellent visit with the family, caught a cab back to the hotel, then began to repack for our next journey: the kayak trip in Argentina.
*Howler monkey (Heard throughout the trip, saw at Karanambu)
*Brown-bearded saki (at Karanambu)
*White-faced saki (at Shanklands)
*Brown capuchin (at Shanklands)
*Golden-handed tamarin (at Shanklands)
*Giant river otter (at Iwokrama)
*Agouti (at Iwokrama)
*Bats: including long-nosed bats (Iwokrama and Karanambu), fishing bats (Iwokrama), various insectivorous bats.
128 species
Included numerous frogs, black cayman, a tree boa, mata-mata turtle, giant river turtle, geckos, toads (including the big Bufo marianus), green iguana, tegu lizard, heard the infamous and real-life, grunt fish (eat your heart out), some very cool insects, including incredible numbers of morphos butterflies and other species, the clouds of yellow dragonflies at Shanklands, and the occasional handleable tarantula. The numerous red and yellow flowers, big trees, thick vegetation, green, green, green…..full of life.
Dee and I had an uneventful drive (the way we like it) to the airport at 3 a.m., with Louis chattering away, to catch our flight.