This morning we were up early once again and out in the skiffs for an exploration of the waterways that flow through this life-rich basin. While at home, you may be familiar with the morning rush hour traffic sounds around you. There is somewhat of an equivalent here. There are whistles, beeps, sirens, squawks, and honks but these are not of motorcars. This cacophony is produced by exotic sounding creatures such as horned screamers, black-fronted nun birds, black-capped donacobius, and blue-and-yellow macaws. These are some of the more than two dozen bird species identified during our morning outing, along with male and female three-toed sloth, saddleback tamarin, and brown capuchin monkeys. The morning sound of the tropical rain forest in the Peruvian Amazon is not “noise,” it is a symphony of life, and it is a privilege to be in the audience for this daily performance.
4/13/2024
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Delfin II
Iricahua Creek and Amazona Community
We began our day exploring Iricahua Creek just before breakfast. The clear skies of the morning allowed us to enjoy all the sightings that nature had to offer us. The flooded forest was covered with lush vegetation and our naturalists explained the capabilities many plants have to survive the six months of high waters. For our afternoon activity, we visited the Amazona Community. The friendly inhabitants had prepared an interesting presentation of their daily life for us. The extraction of sugar cane juice, their local cooking methods, and the preparation of the chambira palm fiber were some of the daily activities about which we learned. We all gathered in the main house, called maloca. Here a group of teenagers shared their experience on how the NGO Minga Peru had supported them in becoming young entrepreneurs. It was a life changing experience for all of us. What a lovely way to finish our expedition through the Upper Amazon.
