In 1988 when we started working in the pantanal as tour guides, we were used to mini-expeditions and safari drives along the pantanal, both by river and by land. It was an adventure travelling around and so few we knew about the pantanal in those days. Twenty years later, we want to bring back those glorious days, we know where to find the wildlife, we know all bird species by ear, and what is even better, we know where to go to find them.

SOUTH AMERICA'S BIG FIVE

South America, like Africa, has a mammal “big five” that wildlife-watchers dream of seeing: jaguar, maned wolf, giant anteater, giant otter and Brazilian tapir. With effort, a judicious itinerary and a dose of luck, this safari offers a good chance of clapping eyes on the entire quintet. There is no better place to see four of them, and there are a couple of good sites for the fifth (maned wolf). But even without these five biggies, the Pantanal provides the continent’s best mammal-watching, with most visitors enjoying close views of a wide variety of species.

GIANT OTTER

Giant otters tick all the boxes required to be part of that exclusive group, South America’s “Big Five”: they are undeniably big – up to 1.8m long and 35kg; they are impressive predators, all sleek muscularity underwater as they effortlessly catch their fishy prey; and they offer that irresistible blend of the elusive and the showy – hard to find (so raising the blood pressure) but consummate performers (so worth the effort). Finally, giant otters have rarity value, habitat destruction and persecution having caused populations to plummet so far that the species is classified as globally threatened.

BRAZILIAN TAPIR

By far the heaviest land mammal in South America, the Brazilian tapir would merit its place in the continent’s “big five” even without its rarity and bizarre looks. Due to incessant hunting and habitat destruction, this species is globally threatened, and seeing one is a near-impossible task – except in the pantanal, where is a regular feature on night drives. As for looks, the pony-sized tapir is in a class of its own, with an elongated proboscis of an upper lip and humped forehead that leads into a short, erect mane. The long snout is a boon for getting at vegetation and fruit, but the mane’s purpose is less clear.

GIANT ANTEATER

Lumbering through grasslands on its daily trip to harvest termite mounds in its home range, a giant anteater evokes awe and amusement in equal measure. With a long snout, small eyes, strong claws and an extendable, sticky tongue instead of teeth, giant anteaters are supremely adapted for eating ants and termites. Seeing a giant anteater is an undoubted trip highlight.

MANED WOLF

The unmistakable maned wolf is South America’s largest canid. Routinely omnivorous, its diet is as likely to include fruit as rodents; wolf’s apple is a particular favourite. The best chance of seeing this globally threatened carnivore is in cerrado habitat at Emas NP.

JAGUAR

The jaguar is the largest cat in the Americas and the third largest worldwide. The pantanal subspecies is the largest and heaviest – twice the size of those in Central America. Jaguars are primarily forest animals with a fondness for riverbanks. Glimpsing a jaguar may be the pantanal nirvana.

It is hard to say what experience is more impressive in the wild: see the elusive Jaguar along a riverbank, or the odd-looking Giant Anteater digging termite mounts with its long claws in an endless grassland environment, or a family of Giant Otters chasing fish in a pristine river; or the heavy weight Brazilian Tapir on its nocturnal routine, or even the long-legged Maned Wolf on its solitary hunt through the grasslands looking for food.

Now, imagine all these scenes in one single tour, the South American “Big Five”, the most sought after mammals in this continent dominated by birds. And birds will be seen as well, not just “little brown jobs” or skulkers, but huge Greater Rheas, odd-looking Red-legged Seriemas, world’s largest Hyacinth Macaw, flocks of Blues-and-yellow Macaw, colorful parrots, all three South American storks, all five South American kingfishers, Plumbeous, Buff-necked, Bare-faced and Green Ibis, Sunbittern, Bare-faced Curassow, Brazilian endemic Chesnut-bellied Guan, noisy Chaco Chachalaca, several kind of egrets, herons, raptors and many, many more.

We chose the best two places in South America to see wildlife in an easy way, not like the Amazonian experience where wildlife is there but is hard to be seen; we wanted something like the African safaris in the savannah. This safari takes place in the best two areas to spot wildlife in South America in a so called "easy way":

The Pantanal of Mato Grosso, a vast grassy lowland at the heart of South America that is home to the greatest concentration of wildlife on the continent is the world's largest freshwater wetland and, therefore, one of the world's best birding areas. The numbers of birds, especially in the dry season (July-September) has to be seen to be believed. A dead-end dirt road, known as the "Transpantaneira", pierces the Pantanal.

Emas NP is the largest remnant of cerrado left where wildlife is still present as it was for thousands of years before we decided to "develop" the area with agriculture. Pampas Deer, Giant Anteater, Maned Wolf, Brazilian Tapir, several species of armadillos including Giant Armadillo are still present and common!

During the course of this safari, we will give special emphasis looking for the “Big Five” and meanwhile we will be granted with other wildlife as well.What is going to be seen in the course of this safari is the best selection of mastofauna in South America, from mammals to reptiles and amphibians and of course the best birds, some colorful other not much but equally impressive.

During previous safaris we saw: 05 species of cats (Pampas Cat, Ocelot, Jaguarundi, Puma and Jaguar) 04 species of mustelids (Tayra, Molina’s Skunk, Neotropical River Otter and Giant Otter); 04 species of deer (Brown brocket, Red brocket, Pampas and Marsh Deer) 05 species of armadillos (Yellow, Nine-banded, Seven-banded, Southern Naked-tailed and the rare Giant Armadillo); 03 species of canids (Crab-eating Fox, Hoary Fox and Maned Wolf); 04 species of monkeys (Black-and-Gold Howler, Black-striped Tufted Capuchin, Black-tailed Marmoset and Azara’s Night Monkey); 02 species of anteaters (Lesser Tamandua and Giant Anteater); 02 species of peccaries (White-lipped and Collared Peccary); 02 species of procyonids (Crab-eating Racoon and South American Coati); Brazilian Tapir; Capybara; Azara's Agouti; Brazilian Tapiti (rabbit), and several species of bats.

To maximise our chances to see wildlife, we are running this tour only between July to October, where roads and weather conditions allow us long days in the field without rains. Our fixed departures (dates below) are open to any participant, but you can request this tour in private basis for your party at any time.

Mammals of Central Brazil: In search of South American “Big Five”, 12 days/11 nights itinerary

DAY 01 – CUIABA to the PANTANAL

Tour will start at Hotel reception in Cuiaba at 06:30am. Immediate transfer to the PANTANAL, the first 100km of good paved road crosses a disturbed cerrado transition ecosystem, featuring examples of cerrado vegetation, gallery forests and a unique tall cerrado forest, we will stop for some birding when necessary. The pavement stops just after Pocone, and the Transpantaneira dirt road starts. A different habitat, birds all over, from Greater Rheas to tiny Pearly-vented Tody-Tyrants, the pantanal is full of life and is hard to don’t see a bird in any bush we put our binoculars on! Big birds such as Jabiru, Wood Stork, Plumbeous, Bare-faced and Buff-necked Ibis, Great, Snowy and Cattle Egrettes, Roseate Spoonbill and many more will maintain us busy along the road. But, not only birds, there are hundreds of Yacare Caiman sharing ponds with Capybaras, the world´s largest rodent, while majestic Marsh Deer, the largest deer species in South America could be seen feeding in almost always in or near water on a wide range of plants, from water lilies to grass and legumes. Its large hooves can each spread more than 10cm (4 in) apart so the deer can walk and run more easily across mud and aquatic vegetation. Our goal is the Rio Pixaim river with its rich gallery forest and this time of the year the only remnant of water, we will get there for lunch. After lunch, we will be crossing the pantanal along the famous Transpantaneira road, all the way south, this road get wild every single kilometer we go ahead, along 83km we will cross 97 wood bridges! Capybaras are along the road and do not want to move. The road start to warm up and several reptiles are using it to warm their bodies, with luck we may see Yellow Anaconda, Black-and White Tegu Lizard (a kind of monitor lizard), Green Iguana, Amazonian Whiptail lizards and the Paraguayan Caiman Lizard (rare). Birds which could be seen along the road are Southern Screamer, Chaco Chachalaca, Chesnut-bellied Guan (Brazilian endemic), Bare-faced Curassow, Blue-throated Piping-Guan, Scarlet-headed Blackbird. By the end of the day, we will be along the Cuiaba river looking for the most elusive of all big cats in the world. At dusk, hundreds (if not thousands) of bats overfly the river catching insects. (B,L,D)

DAY 02 – CENTRAL PANTANAL

A full day search tracking the Jaguar by boat. The central pantanal is by far the best place to see a Jaguar, the largest of the American cats, subspecies palustris from the pantanal are reportedly some of the largest in South America. In the Brazilian Pantanal, where jaguars have been studied, females range over at least 25-38 sq km and males over an area more than twice as large. The range of females overlap, and the ranges of males include those of several females. However, it seems that the land tenure system of jaguars may vary with prey density. Jaguars are solitary except when females are in heat and when a female is accompanied by cubs. Jaguars are most active after dusk and before dawn, though they may be active throughout the day. We will devote this full day to look for jaguars, and as the road ends here we will use boats to cover bigger distances. During our jaguar search we will also encounter other mega target. Once occurred throughout Amazonian South America from Venezuela to northern Argentina, but it is now absent from most of this range. Its huge size (up to 2m, 6.5ft, and 34kg, 75lb) and noisy vocalisations in family groups make it easy to find. Its luxurious pelt makes it a target of intense persecution by people. It remains now only in isolated and highly protected patches of its former range. There are only a few places left in South America where you can still hear the haunting whistles, screams, and hums of a group of theses wondrous animals as they frolic in the water of pristine lakes or river just like the one we are in looking for Giant Otters! (B,L,D)

DAY 03 – CENTRAL PANTANAL to POUSO ALEGRE FARM

We are going to use the morning to continue looking for jaguar. After lunch, we will drive back the Transpantaneira road, our goal is the Fazenda Pouso Alegre where some walks and wildlife watching from our vehicle will be a routine here. A festival of parrots and raptors await for us here, there are Hyacinth macaws nesting in the near forest, Golden-collared Macaws, Blue-crowned, Monk & Golden-chevroned Parakeets, Turquoise-fronted & Orange-winged Amazons as well as Southern Crested & Yellow-headed Caracaras, Savanna, Black-collared, Great Black, Roadside & Crane Hawks, Pearl & Snail Kite, Laughing Falcon, American Kestrel, Black, Turkey & Lesser Yellow-headed Vultures. Also here we will find the best Pantanal bird specialties, among them Mato Grosso Antbird, White-lored Spinetail, Ashy-headed Greenlet, Gray-crested Cacholote, Helmeted Manakin, Red-billed Scythebill, Pale-crested Woodpecker, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Blue-crowned Trogon, Rufous-fronted Tody-Flycatcher to mention few. At night, Great Potoos and Great Horned Owls share with Pauraques our attention in our night outings. Our checklist will produces over 100 species of birds a day! (B,L,D)

DAY 04 – PANTANAL at POUSO ALEGRE FARM

Our attention will be focus on the three species of monkeys we could find in this rich area. Black-and-Gold Howler Monkeys are highly arboreal and rarely come to the ground; typically they spend most of their time in the upper reaches of the forest. In contrast to many other monkey species, howlers are relatively slow-moving and more deliberate in their canopy travels, they eat fruit and a lot of leafy material and due to this they are very inconspicuous, unless males let loose with their amazing lion-like roaring, which is amplified and modulated by a special bony plate over the throat. We will track their voices in the attemp to see them. Hooded Capuchin Monkeys are very active monkeys, spending 80% or more of daylight hours moving through the forest, they forage over all levels of the forest, from canopy to lower tree trunks, and they also occasionally come to the ground to feed. Their diet is broad, consisting mainly of ripe fruit and insects, but also bird eggs, young birds, baby squirrels, and small lizards. Troops maintain exclusive territories, aggressively defending their turf whenever they meet other troops of the same species at territorial boundaries. The last of the three species is also the smallest, Black-tailed Marmosets are small in size with long tails that are NOT prehensile. Their feet have claws instead of flattened nails. They travel in noisy troops giving chirps and twitters that sound more bird-like than primate-like.

Other interesting mammal species we may find while we look for the primates are the Azara’s Agouti and the South American Coati. And as soon as the light starts to dim, our spotlight will be spotting Brown Brocket Deer, Crab-eating Fox, Crab-eating Racoon, the heavy weight Brazilian Tapir or even an Ocelot. (B,L,D)

DAYS 05 and 06 – PANTANAL at BARAO DE MELGAÇO

An early morning game driving and after breakfast we will move to the other side of the northern pantanal. The Barao de Melgaço pantanal has the “baias” (big lakes) and a closer mountains ridge. Babassu palm forests are incredible good for Southern Tamandua and also for its bigger relative, the Giant Anteater. Here we will look for both anteaters and also for the elusive Azara’s Night Monkey. Red Brocket Deer, Brazilian Tapiti (rabbit) and also several species of armadillos could be seen during our night drives.

DAY 07 – PANTANAL to RONDONOPOLIS in our way to EMAS NP

A pre-breakfast game drive will be our last chance to find any of the anteaters and other crepuscular mammals. After breakfast we will take a boat trip in the enormous lake and also along the tributary rivers looking for Southern River Otter and Giant Otters. Capybaras and Yacare caimans will be seen again. Golden-collared Macaw, Blue-and-yellow Macaw, Cream-colored Woodpecker are pretty common around here. After lunch, new habitat is waiting for us in our way to the Brazilian Central Plateau. We will go half the way to Emas NP, overnight in Rondonopolis. (B,L,D)

DAY 08 – RONDONOPOLIS to EMAS NP

Today we will witness how the cerrado vegetation is being transformed into monocrops, and you will reflect if cattle ranching is really as bad as we heard while we eat our soybean products. But before arriving to Emas NP we will stop in our stakeout for Horned Screamer. Emas NP presents a vivid landscape of golden grasslands dotted with red termite mounds, and dissected by narrow green ribbons of gallery forest that follow the many clear, rushing streams. Here, spritely Cock-tailed Tyrants hover above the grass like so many toy helicopters, while flocks of Yellow-faced Parrots and Blue-and-yellow Macaws noisily commute between roosting sites and feeding sites in the nearby cerrado. We are scheduled to arrive in the park after lunch and as soon as we get there we will embark in our open safari vehicle. Giant anteaters, improbable in every respect, roam the grasslands, which resound with the songs of Red-winged Tinamous, Sharp-tailed Tyrants, Grass Wrens, and Black-masked Finches. Ephemeral marshes may host a mixed-species flock of migrant seedeaters, among them such prizes as Marsh, Chestnut, Rufous-rumped, and Black-bellied seedeaters. (B,L,D)

DAYS 09, 10 and 11 – EMAS NP

Three full days to explore one of the finest preserved examples of campo/cerrado habitats in central Brazil. Majestic Maned wolves, atop impossibly long legs, stalk tinamous in the grass, while Aplomado Falcons maintain watchful vigilance atop the termite mounds. The next bend in the road may reveal a group of huge Greater Rheas, or a herd of Pampas deer. Following a typical blazing sunset, the grasslands again come alive, as bioluminescent termites light up their mounds like so many Christmas trees, and elegant White-winged Nightjars hawk insects from atop their perches on the same termitaria. For its landscapes, ease of birding, and abundant mammal-viewing opportunities, Emas has been compared to the savannas of east Africa.

In addition, it is an excellent place to see the many specialties of Brazil’s campo-cerrado habitats, including such prizes as Lesser Nothura, Red-legged Seriema. We have timed our tour to coincide with the best period for migrant seedeaters, many of which have extremely limited distributions. A major attraction is the opportunity to see the recently rediscovered Cone-billed Tanager, a bird that was long known from only a single specimen. Other rare or locally distributed birds that we hope to produce include Giant Snipe, Planalto Foliage-gleaner, White-striped Warbler, and Great-billed Seed-Finch.Most birding in-and-out of van, with short walks along roads, trails in gallery forest, or into grasslands; easy terrain; full mornings in the field, usually returning to lodge for lunch and midday break, followed by late afternoons back in the field; some night drives; moderate to warm temperatures and relatively dry climate. (B,L,D)

DAY 12 – EMAS NP to CUIABA

Today is a transfer day but we will stop for some birds we may not seen until now, maybe better views of the odd-looking Horned Screamer. We should arrive in Cuiaba by the end of the afternoon. Transfer to Cuiaba airport or city hotel. End of our services. (B,L)

Our goal was to incentive several graduate students to develop the study and the passion for birds. Today there is a group at the local university working with birds and ready to take long-term projects. Most of them (if not all) very close friend of us. We are proud to be part of this local ornithological movement. During 10 years we offered grants to students who wanted to study bird in any kind.

Step one is done, and now starts step two: the purchase of land to be converted in nature preserves. Despite its critical importance for so many species, only 2% of this unique ecosystem is officially protected. This leaves too much of the Pantanal vulnerable to increasing threats, like intensive agricultural production. We started buying 210 acres, but our future goal is to increase this preserve as much as we can. Our heritage for future generations, because they have the right to enjoy the pantanal the same way we do right now. Right now we are building a research center to accommodate local students and hold long time researches.

In order to incentive all Pantanal visitors to enjoy our wildlife we printed a pocket guide which illustrate 151 species, nearly all big mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds. This pocket guide could be find in all souvenir store of lodges in the northern pantanal. Of course, all our clients will receive a free copy.

After nearly 30 years organizing and guiding tours, we were glad to guide people who really can make the difference, due to their fame, influence or roll in the society. Showing them our passion for what we do and our beliefs in what must to be done. We firmly believe that a tourist must come out of the forest knowing more about nature than before. The main goal of ecotourism is teach people how ecosystems work and why they must be preserved. It is more than traveling in natural area. It involves learning about nature. We want to turn our clients into enthusiastic advocates for nature preservation. Local community is involved in having pride on where they live and foreign people are willing to visit their backyard and enjoy the experience. Keep local people pride of their land is the start to preserve it to the next generations.

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Brazil | Pantanal Bird Club | South American Big Five: Mammals and birds of Central Brazil

Brazil | Pantanal Bird Club | South American Big Five: Mammals and birds of Central Brazil

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