Pantanal, Serra das Araras ( Harpy Eagle Site) and Chapada dos Guimarães National Park

alt

 07 Day/06 Night – Birding Tour
Mato Grosso: Pantanal, Serra das Araras and Chapada dos Guimarães National Park

1st. Day:

Arrival at the International Airport in Cuiabá and immediate transfer to the Pantanal. Meeting your Birding Guide ( He will be holding a sign with your name and/or the Logo of  Boute Expeditions). From the airport we shall be driving on a paved road for about one hour until the village of  Pocone. Then, we will be driving for ten more minutes, making a stop on a Hyacinth Macaw & Jabiru nesting tree – There is no better way to start your trip to the Pantanal!!! Then, the next stop will be at  the  our lodge, where we shall have a very nice lunch, right after checking in. In the afternoon, we shall have a great combination of a forest walk*,   with a boat ride that will take us to a Look Out, from where we will be able to watch a nesting colony of Roseate Spoonbills and American Wood Storks. We shall watch the sunset from our boat. In our way back, we will have some owling with chances to watch the Great and Grey Potoos and also the Tropical Screech- Owl. Dinner and Field Check List Track (FCT). Overnight.*On the forest walk, we may see the Great Rufous, Straight-billed and Narrow-billed Woodcreepers, Ondulated Tinamou, Glittering-throated Emerald, Black-fronted Nunbird, Bat Falcon, Black-bellied Antwren, Planalto Slaty Antshrike, Saffron-billed Sparrow and Blue-crowned Trogon.

2nd. Day:

Early  breakfast ( Read: Before Sunrise). Check out. Transfer to the lodge along the Pixaim River.But, since we never turn our back to the birds, we will be watching some of the great birds right by the lodge such the  White and Green-barred Woodpeckers, Crested Oropendola, Blue-fronted Parrot/Amazon, Buff-necked and Plumbeos Ibis. Along the Transpantaneira Road ( We shall cover about 40 miles in 4 hours), we may see up to 100 different species of birds. Some of he hightlights will be Scarlet-headed Blackbird, Rusty-collared Seedeater, Black-capped Donacobius, Golden-collared Macaws, Lineated & Crimson-crested Woodpeckers, Maguari Stork, Laughing Falcon, Whistling Heron, White-faced, Black-bellied & Muscovy Ducks, Bare-faced Curassow, Blue-throated Piping-Guan, Bay-winged and Giant Cowbird. We will arrive at the next lodge on a very convenient time of the day:  Lunch time. So, right after we check in, we will be able to have a very nice meal! For the afternoon, we will be doing a lovely boat ride that will offer us a new class of birds such the ALL the five species of kingfishers of South America: Ringed – Amazon – Green – Green-and-rufous and Pygmy, Cocoi Heron, Sungrebe and Sunbitern. We will stay long enough to watch the sunset & get  the Band-tailed Nighthawks that fly low over the water. Once we return to the lodge…”The show has to go on”!: With our vehicle we will drive on back roads in search of Spot-tailed and Scissor-tailed Nightjars. We may also encounter the local Great Horned Owl, that has red eyes and a different call to the one in North America   (Possible future split?). Eventually, we may see some mammals such the Crab-eating Fox and Ocellot. Return to the lodge for our daily log on birds, followed for a nice dinner. Overnight.

3rd. Day:

Early Breakfast. We shall start the day, with a anothe boat ride in search of possible missing birds of the previous day. Among our targets, we shall look for: Band-tailed Antbird, Pale-legged Hornero, Rusty-backed Spinetail, Lesser Kiskadee, and the magnificent Agami Heron (Very Rare!). The boat ride will take about two hours. Once we return to our lodge we will have a short break , followed by a lovely forest walk, where we will try to get as many birds as possible for the rest of the morning: Southern Beardless Tyrannulet, Green-backed Becard, Golden-green Woodpcker, Plain Antvireo, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Ashy-headed Greenlet, just to mention a few. Lunch. PM: We will use our vehicle this afternoon & have a “milk man pace drive”, which means we will be making stops along the route any time and every time we fell there are birds to be watched. This activity will allow us to explore different types of habitat at the Pantanal such: Marshes, Savannas and Forests. So, the chances of seeing many kinds of birds will be very good such: Helmeted Manakin, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, White-lored and Cinereous-breasted Spinetail, Mato Grosso , Red-billed Scythebill, Flavescent Warbler, Moustached and Buff-bellied Wrens, Purplish Jay, Orange-backed Oriole (Troupial), Crested Oropendola, Solitary Black-Cacique, Blue-crowned Trogon, Black-fronted Nunbird, Silver-beaked Tanager, Rusty-collared and White-bellied Seedeaters, Lesser/Chestnut-bellied  Seed-Finch –  We will stay long enough to we can drive back at night in search of nocturnal animals and birds. We will be back  just in time for our Check list Review & Dinner. Overnight.

4th. Day:

Ealy Brekfast. Check out. This morning we will head off for Serra das Araras: The home of the Harpy Eagles & Crowned Eagles too! But, we won’t be simply driving thru. the Pantanal. We will, as always, drive on a pace that will allow the guide not just to see the birds along the road but, also to hear them! So, we still will be making a good number of stops to add “new comers” to our bird list, that will be about this time around 200 ! Even, after getting to the paved road, we may get new birds such the incredible Streamer-tailed Tyrant. Arrival by lunch time ,with chances of seeing the Dusky-headed Parakeet & Red-shouldered Macaws right by our bedrooms!!! Lunch. PM: We will go  for the HARPY EAGLE ACTIVE NEST. The chick was born last March, which means we will get  it during all the year of 2012!!! Besides the Harpy Ealgle, we may watch, as well, the following birds: Gray Hawk, Yellow-tufted Woodpecker, Warbling Antbird, Magpie Tanager. After the Sunset we will search for the following birds: Tawny-bellied Screech-Owl, Ocellated Porwill and Black-bande Owl. Dinner. FCT. Overnight.

5th. Day:

Breakfast. Early Birding with spectacular chances to watch the following birds: King Vulture, Dusky-headed Parakeet, Sharpbill, White-flanked and Black-throated Antbirds, White-eyed Attila, Turquoise and White-shouldered Tanagers.Transfer to Chapada dos Guimarães, with birding and lunch in route. Arrival at Chapada in time for some great birding such: Blue-winged and Red-and-Green Macaw, Curl-crested Jay, Gray Monjita, Crested Black-Tyrant and Swallow Flycatcher. Arrival at the hotel. Dinner and FCT. Overnight.

6th Day:

Early Breakfast. It will be great to start birding & watching the Sunrise at the same time. We will enjoy the morning chorus, checking every call, allowing us to know which birds are around.  Our targets will be: Rufous-sided Pygmy-Tyrant, Small-billed Tinamou, White-eared Puffbird, Collared Crescentchest, Horned Sungem, Yellow-billed Blue Finch, Rufous-winged Antshrike, Black-faced Tanager, Red-legged Seriema, White-eared Puffbird, White-rumped and White-banded Tanagers, Coal-crested Finch, Plumbeous Seedeater, Black-throated Saltator and many others. We will have a stop for lunch on a very nice restaurant & a small break at our hotel. PM: We will be birding at the Bridal’s veil Waterfall, which is the roost for the lovely Blue-winged Macaws. We may also have chances for the Yellow-ridge Toucan, Chesnut-eared Aracari and White-collared & Biscutate Swift. Return to our hotel at the end of the day. Dinner. FCT. Overnight.

7th. Day:

Breakfast. AM: Full morning birding – Superb Special Targets: Band-tailed, Fire-Crowned Manakins and Southern Antpipit. We may also check a nesting area for Ornate Hawk-Eagle. Return to the Hotel. Check out and transfer to Cuiaba. Check in at the airport.

PRICES: Sorry if, they are not displayed in our site – But, there is a good reason for that – We offer our guests the chance of saving money according to the number of tour participants. Our groups take a maximum of eight tour participants. If, the dates, you have chosen we have already 06 people, you will be paying a much lower rate, compared to a set departure with just four tour participants. Why we do that ??? Because we don’t want you to miss the opportunity of seeing LOTS of birds & saving LOTS of money! Making a Short Story: Perfect Trip Combination!!!

So, what are you waiting for? Please, send us an e-mail, right now, telling us the dates of your choice & will inform you, right way,  the booking status. Thanks.

Combining the above trip with the Atlantic Forest Tour
Itatiaia National Park and Ubatuba Reserve:

Please, check with us if the group will stay overnight in Cuiaba, catching a next morning flight or if the group will go to Sao Paulo on the “7th.day”; with transfer to the Itatiaia National Park, on the next day. The arrangements for that overnight could be made, under request, by Boute Expeditions. Thanks.