Barro Colorado Monument, Panama
The last day of the trip! After seeing so many things as we have seen during the last week, the last day is full of expectations of wildlife. Those expectations were well rewarded. During the morning we visited Barro Colorado Island. Barro Colorado Island is a research station in the middle of Gatun Lake, half way across the Panama Canal. So much research has taken place on the island, that today Barro Colorado is an icon of tropical ecology.
While some people decided to take a hike in the Rain Forest of the island others chose to do a Zodiac ride around the island. Some of the forest hikers were lucky enough to find a fig tree in full production of figs. This was a lucky sight since the nutritious figs usually attract a lot of wildlife. Feeding on the fig canopy were a troop of Howler Monkeys, several colorful toucans, and a troop of white-faced monkeys. While on the ground around the same tree there were a group of agoutis and a group of coatis feeding on the dropped fruits. It seemed with so much food available that the animals were oblivious of our presence like the white nosed coati in the picture above. Maybe for them we are just another species attracted by the figs. On another area of the island the hikers got the opportunity to see the Gerffroy’s Tamarin, a type of monkey whose farthest northern limit is Panama. On the Zodiacs people saw a 10-foot crocodile and a troop of spider monkeys. After so many activities during the morning we got back on board to relax and take it easy Panamanian style, while we enjoyed the last half of transit trough the Panama Canal, one of the biggest human achievements of the previous century.
The last day of the trip! After seeing so many things as we have seen during the last week, the last day is full of expectations of wildlife. Those expectations were well rewarded. During the morning we visited Barro Colorado Island. Barro Colorado Island is a research station in the middle of Gatun Lake, half way across the Panama Canal. So much research has taken place on the island, that today Barro Colorado is an icon of tropical ecology.
While some people decided to take a hike in the Rain Forest of the island others chose to do a Zodiac ride around the island. Some of the forest hikers were lucky enough to find a fig tree in full production of figs. This was a lucky sight since the nutritious figs usually attract a lot of wildlife. Feeding on the fig canopy were a troop of Howler Monkeys, several colorful toucans, and a troop of white-faced monkeys. While on the ground around the same tree there were a group of agoutis and a group of coatis feeding on the dropped fruits. It seemed with so much food available that the animals were oblivious of our presence like the white nosed coati in the picture above. Maybe for them we are just another species attracted by the figs. On another area of the island the hikers got the opportunity to see the Gerffroy’s Tamarin, a type of monkey whose farthest northern limit is Panama. On the Zodiacs people saw a 10-foot crocodile and a troop of spider monkeys. After so many activities during the morning we got back on board to relax and take it easy Panamanian style, while we enjoyed the last half of transit trough the Panama Canal, one of the biggest human achievements of the previous century.
