Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
is carrion and they're most easily spotted riding thermal air currents in the canyons around
Arequipa.
Other prominent high-altitude birds include the Andean gull, which is commonly
sighted along lakes and rivers as high as 4500m. The mountains are also home to several
species of ibis, such as the puna ibis, which inhabits lakeside marshes. Other species in-
clude torrent ducks, which nest in small waterside caves, Andean geese, spotted Andean
flickers, black-and-yellow Andean siskins and a panoply of hummingbirds.
Swoop down toward the Amazon and you'll catch sight of the world's most iconic trop-
ical birds, including boisterous flocks of parrots and macaws festooned in brightly plumed
regalia. You'll also see clusters of aracaris, toucans, parakeets, toucanets, ibises, regal
gray-winged trumpeters, umbrella birds with gravity-defying feathered hairdos, crimson-
colored cocks of the rock, soaring hawks and harpy eagles.
Wildlife-Watching Tips
•
» Hire a knowledgeable local guide - they know what to look for and where.
•
» Get up
really
early - animals tend to be most active at dawn and dusk.
•
» Bring a pair of lightweight binoculars.
•
» Be quiet: animals tend to avoid loud packs of chatty humans.
•
» In the Amazon, opt for canoes instead of motorboats - you'll see much more.
•
» Have realistic expectations: vegetation can be thick and animals shy.
Mammals
The Amazon is also home to a bounty of mammals. More than two dozen species of mon-
keys are found here, including howlers, acrobatic spider monkeys and wide-eyed mar-
mosets. With the help of a guide, you may also see sloths, bats, piglike peccaries, anteat-
ers, armadillos and coatis (ring-tailed members of the raccoon family). And if you're
really lucky, you'll find giant river otters, capybaras (rodents of unusual size), river dol-
phins, tapirs and maybe one of half a dozen elusive felines, including the fabled jaguar.
Toward the west, the cloud forests straddling the Amazon and the eastern slopes of the
Andean highlands are home to the endangered spectacled bear. South America's only bear
is a black, shaggy mammal, known for its white, masklike face markings, that grows up to
1.8m in length.
