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A fabulous male Jaguar hunting...one of our main goals of the trip! (Photo by guide Marcelo Padua)

This was a strange year in the Pantanal as the rains started later than the usual and extended into what should have been the dry season (something we experienced first hand on our first encounter with a Jaguar). But this meant that we got to the Pantanal at a very magical and ephemeral period of the year -- when there is still a lot of moisture in the soil in most places, but the water has already disappeared from the surface in the vast majority of the fields.This timing can't be planned as it varies from year to year, but it is something to be thoroughly enjoyed when we get to experience it as everything is greener yet the water birds already are concentrating and preparing for the breeding season. I could not have asked for a better group to be with at such a time of the year as we had many fields of biology represented and were able to take full advantage of everything we saw from Fish such as Oscar and the many species of Catfish to several species of frogs that were still abundant thanks to the water that was still very much present.

Our tour started at Piuval lodge, the very first lodge on the Transpantaneira and one that sits right in the ecotone of the Cerrado and the Pantanal. Here we were treated to a variety of species less likely to be seen further into the wetlands, including Black-bellied Antwren, Planalto Slaty-Antshrike, and Red-legged Seriema, and it was here that we had decided to add a day to the usual itinerary we do in the pantanal. This worked extremely well as we were able to explore the area a bit more, and the extra time produced some unusual sightings for the area, such as Long-winged Harrier and several South American Snipes. This setting also allowed us to unwind and settle into the rhythm of the tour.

Next we tackled the long transect that is the Transpantaneira and went all the way to Porto Jofre, but first we made a strategic stop and got some great looks at Undulated Tinamou, Pale-crested and Crimson-crested woodpeckers, as well as the handsome Yellow-collared Macaws. But the true reason we had made it this far down the road was to see a Jaguar, and we wasted no time in going after it, which was a good thing since shortly after we saw a nice male some heavy rains forced us to retreat to our lodge in what seemed like a rain of needles as our 150 horsepower motor blasted us through the rain. We made it back safely but were all wet, cold, miserable, yet strangely happy after having seen a massive male Jaguar! We got some food, hot beverages, and dry clothes and jumped right back on our horses (all 150 of them!) and headed back to the spot where we had seen the Jaguar earlier in the day, a bet that paid off as we watched this guy stroll around and scent-mark his territory for several minutes. From then on we had freed up time to enjoy other things and we slowed down a bit and connected with Sungrebe, Golden-green Woodpecker, and Pied Lapwing and took some time to do a night drive that resulted in seeing an Ocelot, Ohh… and by the way we did end up seeing another Jaguar -- and we got to enjoy watching it sun itself practically by ourselves.

Porto Jofre had been good to us, but it was time to start heading back towards civilization, and we made a strategic stop on the way at Rio Claro where we picked up a few more goodies such as Common and Great potoos on a night drive, Rusty-backed Antwren, Grassland Sparrow, Nanday Parakeet, and a few other things that were seen again nicely which is always a treat.

On the last day, having felt that we had "done" the Pantanal properly, we decided to cut our morning short and head up to Chapada dos Guimaraes to add a few Cerrado specialties to our list, an idea that turned out to be a great one as we got wonderful looks at Chapada Flycatcher, Rufous-winged Antshrike, Plain-crested Elaenia, a nice King Vulture, Yellow-faced Parrots, Crowned Eagle, and many other birds that we would not have seen if we had stayed in the Pantanal.

Our journey was over, but the memories will live long, and when I think of our tour I will always recall a nature-loving group that was as much fun to travel with as any of my close friends would have been.

Thanks for joining me, and I hope we can do it again some day!

--Marcelo

KEYS FOR THIS LIST
One of the following keys may be shown in brackets for individual species as appropriate: * = heard only, I = introduced, E = endemic, N = nesting, a = austral migrant, b = boreal migrant

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Totals for the tour: 241 bird taxa and 16 mammal taxa