Animals of the Pantanal

My other few blog posts about the Pantanal covered the journey to, the daily adventures and some of the plants that we saw along our journey.  This blog post is specifically related to just some of the fun and crazy animals we encountered, or saw signs of during our stay in Tres Gigantes Research Station.  Enjoy!

One of the many hundreds of frogs/toads that we saw during our stay.  You always had to be careful when you went to the bathroom at night because the frogs loved to hang out all around the bathroom, including in the toilet, sinks, showers, etc.  Also if you’re thinking that water is dirty it is because all of the water used for bathing and such was river water pumped up every day, so all the creatures just love it that much more!  

Since this is a biological station they have these game cameras set up all around the trails and around the station itself.  They were not on while we were there but they have pictures of some of the many animals they have gotten photos of which are super impressive.  

The Pantanal is home to the elusive jaguar of which few are actually left in the wild.  Here during our stay pretty much every day we saw signs/ actually was able to hear jaguars.  One day when we were walking on a trail we heard a jaguar that was feeding up in one of the large trees.  Even though I wanted to get closer to get some photos they said it was too dangerous.  One because the jaguar was feeding, during which time they are more aggressive, and two since he was up in a tree it would be really easy for him to pounce down to the ground.  So although we were really close to a jaguar and saw signs and heard them everywhere I was unable to get photos of one.  I was just impressed by the size of this track though, and don’t think I would want to cross him by myself!

One of the many bird species that we saw during our stay.

A small deer that liked to hang around the station late afternoons.

Two other birds, one of which is a cardinal that were always hanging around.  

One of the larger birds that hung around the station that really enjoyed after we cleaned up the fish so they could get the leftovers. 

A really interesting nest which is very common for many of the birds up there made of fibrous material hanging from tree limbs.  

Another large cat print that was really fresh!  They have both pumas and jaguars here in the Pantanal.  

One afternoon we took the boat upriver for the guards to visit another “neighbor” and we tagged along with them.  This is just one of the alligators that we saw from the boat.  Every night we could see their eyes as bright red lights reflecting from the water and during the day we could hear them/ see them from a distance.  They usually preferred the Bolivian side of the river by day and then would move to our side at night.   

A family of carpinchos that we saw from the boat.  In English they are evidently called capybara and is the largest rodent in the world.  This was the first carpinchos that I have seen in the wild, I had seen a couple during my visit to Villarica and had gotten some great pictures last year but this was my first time in their natural environment.  It is hard to see but in the background there are some young/baby carpinchos!

One of the many kingfishers that we saw along the river.  One afternoon I just sat down by the river and watched some of the intelligent birds sit on a limb and then dive-bomb the water to just come back out with fish just a few seconds later, very fascinating to watch!

A very cool lizard, many of which came around on a daily basis to the station.  I was just impressed by the large size and the quick movement of these lizards!

Another bird that was wading into the river off one of the trails.  

Another very large kingfisher sitting along the bank waiting for a fish to catch its eye.  

The large lizard hanging out around the garden at the research station.  

A heron sitting on the deck railing catching some afternoon sun.  

One afternoon we ran across this woodpecker nest that was located in a hollowed out fence post.  So every day we kept looking at the nest, (and making the mom a little angry) but unfortunately the eggs didn’t hatch before we left.  

A bird that loved to hang around the docks when we were fishing to help “catch” the scraps.  

A very large deer that came running into camp one morning, the park guards thought it was being chased by a jaguar with the sounds we were hearing and quick movement on the deer’s part.  So the nice buck paused just long enough to get his photo taken and then quickly ran and jumped into the river and swam all the way across, which you can see below.  

When walking on a trail this was one of the beautifully made birds’ nests that we found made out of just sticks somehow stuck together.  

Another lizard picture.  

A beautiful male cardinal, one of many that was constantly hanging around the research station.  

One of the cool frogs that liked to hang out in our room.  I really like having them around though to help control the obscene number of mosquitos and other insects.  

This is a small crustacean that are found all over the trails and throughout the Pantanal.  They are a major food source of many of the birds, many of which have adapted over time and have beaks specifically designed to pull out the “meat” from the shell.   

A small crab that we found one day walking on the trail.  I told them that in the US we usually eat crabs and that they are really good but all the Paraguayan park guards thought I was crazy and said it was just a very large spider.  

A large group of birds we saw on the river one morning.  

Just a picture trying to capture the wide avian diversity found in the Pantanal.  

A frog that met his sad fate one night when I shut the bathroom door that we found a couple of days later, he was just at the wrong place and wrong time.  

Some birds that were out eating the leftovers put out by the guards, they really love fruit!

A big snake that came up to the research station one day.  I thought it was a very large snake but they said it was just a “little guy”.  Luckily this snake is not venomous so they let him get away.  

The last large birds we saw that we hanging out on the “runway” before our flight landed. 

So as I sit here (and yes I know FINALLY) get my last Pantanal blog post up I just keep thinking back about how wonderful that experience was.  At the time I was just so stressed out about how I was going to get back and what we were going to eat but looking back now it was just one great adventure.  Today is Christmas Eve and I have been reminiscing about all the years in the past and what I usually do this day.  I will be writing up a blog post about my Christmas preparation and events but for now I just hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas surrounded by all your family and friends!  

"May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears." -Nelson Mandela