Day 2 - Posada Amazonas

We got to Posada Amazonas, a tourist lodge, in late afternoon, but after a cold shower and quick cleanup had enough time to take a nature walk with our guides Jhin Solis, from Puerto Maldonado, who was learning the birds; Fino a Brazilian cowboy turned Pantanal naturalist and now learning the birds, too, to become a guide for Rainforest Expeditions, and Richard Amable our main RE guide.

L - Stairs leading up from river to the muddy trail to Posada Amazonas;

R - Walkway at Posada Amazonas; uncovered area very slippery when wet, which it was frequently

 Boot rack near boot cleaning station at Posada Amazonas; R - my bed with  mosquito netting above and  unscreened outdoor wall

The "ensuite" bathroom, no tp because toilet tissue is never thrown in the toilet; my bag in the room's "closet" space

On our nature walk we saw a red brocket deer, spider monkeys, a group of white-lipped peccaries (maybe 20 or 30). First we heard and smelled the peccaries: Very loud nut cracking noises, grunting from adults, retching from juveniles, and indescribably musky odors accompanying them. The adults grunted angrily and stared hard at us when they thought we were too close.

Red Brocket Deer and Spider  Monkey

We also saw a flock (covey?) of Pale-winged Trumpeters, a large (17 to 20+ inch) bird of the forest floor with a loud booming vocalization described in the books as “a deep booming series of rolling and puttering notes.” As they approached, I heard their vocalizations as a combination of high wind and distant thunder.

Jhin showed us a chicken spider, and then poked a twig into another hole at the base of a buttress root and showed us another large tarantula, which was holed up with its young—about half its size.

Next we came upon a huge cane toad. Dean reached out and casually touched the toad. Jhin moved back and cautioned us about this toad’s habit of shooting poisonous liquid at its enemies. Then he squeezed the toad a bit and it released a narrow three-foot stream of white poison from the lump near its head. It’s skin is also poisonous.

Pale-winged Trumpeters

Jhin holding a cane toad

The guides also helped us identify some of the jungle trees, particularly the tall canopy trees such as the ceiba (kapok) tree, ironwood trees, the brazil nut trees, giant fig trees, strangler figs, cecropia, walking palms, banana palms, swamp ariod, bamboo, and acacia trees, the last favorites of sloths.

The ironwood trees at Posada Amazonas and TRC were very tall, smooth-trunked trees. Most of the macaw nest boxes at TRC were suspended in ironwood trees. Jhin told us that the powdered inner bark of a pink-flowered species of ironwood tree, pau d'arco, is sold as a popular herbal remedy that reportedly stimulates the immune system.

Brazilnut Tree from the tower at Posada Amazonas with the Tambopata River in the background; R - Ironwood Tree with PVC macaw nest box in it

Then there were the fig or ficus trees. One was a very large canopy tree; another the infamous strangler fig, that slowly killed all trees it embraced. Strangler figs sprout in the crotch of another tree and then send down roots to the forest floor. Eventually the fig grows so large it strangles its host, which eventually rots, leaving the strangler in its place.

L - Internet pic of a strangler fig at TRC that has engulfed the original tree and gradually killed it, R - young strangler fig just getting a chokehold

   The Kapok tree, is an emergent tree that can grow to a height of 150 feet or more, towering over other trees in the rainforest. When young (and struggling for light) large spines protrude from its trunk to discourage climbing vines (such as strangler figs) and damage to the trunk. Thin, plank type buttresses stabilize the giant and can extend to 30 feet.

Internet pic of the buttress roots of a Ceiba or Kapok tree

Before being replaced by cheaper synthetics, the kapok fiber—which is eight times lighter than cotton and five times more buoyant than cork—was used as the floatation for life preservers worldwide. In addition to these attributes the kapok fiber is totally water repellent and resistant to rot. My mother used it in the 50s and 60s to stuff rag dolls, one of which I still own.

And, of course, I must tell about the “walking” palm trees. Their lower trunks and older roots rot away and are left behind when the tree sends out new roots and slowly “walks” away from its germination point or toward a sunny area.

The stilt roots of the Walking Palm Tree

Then there are the familiar bamboo thickets and acacia trees, acacias being a favorite hangout for sloths Richard told us, but alas, though I searched ,I never saw a sloth.

Balsa trees were also found in the rainforest. Balsa needs a warm climate with plenty of rainfall and good drainage. For that reason, the best stands of balsa usually appear on the high ground between tropical rivers. The word balsa itself is Spanish meaning raft, in reference to its flotation qualities. In Peru, it is known as boya, meaning buoy. The blossoms of balsa trees are a popular drinking spot for parrots and parakeets.

The last tree on my list—the cecropia—is a relatively short tree most obvious at TRC along the river’s edge and on the island opposite the colpa. The cecropia is adapted to succeeding in cleared areas. To avoid the entangling vines of new undergrowth, it grows 15 to 35 feet before extending any branches. As it grows higher, it discards the lower branches, giving creepers no hold. At this point its large leaves shade out the undergrowth, allowing slower, shade-tolerant canopy trees to grow.

L- A cecropia tree from the Posada Amazonas tower; R - The large leaves of the cecropia may sometimes be so riddled with insect holes that they appear to be lace against the sky. This photo was taken in 2006 of a cecropia in Ecuador.

Speaking of leaves, many of the rainforest’s plants contain a drip tip on their ends. This pointed tip promotes drainage from the surface of the leaf and thus helps keep the leaf surface clean of epiphytes and fungi in the humid forest.

Leaves with "drip tips"

Okay, enuff about trees. Also on our walk we saw and heard red howler monkeys (see below). They are the loudest mammal in the world, Their deep, booming, echoing roars can be heard nearly 2 miles away. We saw them seldom but heard them nearly every day at TRC.

Internet photo of a red howler monkey

As for insects, on our evening Posadas Amazonas nature walk we found a BIG rhinoceros beetle (or it bumbled into us), so called because of its large rhino-like horn.

Rhinoceros Beetle 

We also saw leafcutter ants and army ants, the first of many of the literally thousands of ants in the jungle. Some researchers estimate that ants make up 30 percent of the rainforest’s animal biomass—an incredible statistic. One study of insect species in a single rainforest tree revealed over 40 different species of ants.

We saw three or four species of ants with regularity: Leafcutter ants, bullet ants, army ants, and red fire ants.

Leafcutter ants (Atta) consisting of about 190 species in 12 genera—farm gardens of fungus in protected chambers and are known as fungus growing ants or gardening ants. They spend much of their time in the canopy snipping large sections of leaves (30 times their own body weight), which they carry back to their chambers protected by guard attas that are much smaller. The workers are adept farmers, fertilizing their crop with fecal droplets and meticulously weeding out nondesirable species of fungi. As gardens mature, the fungi hyphae develop swollen tips, called gongylidia, which the workers harvest for food.

 Bullet ants (Paraponera clavata) are another interesting species best known for its giant size and unusually severe sting. Workers are 18-25 mm (up to 1 in.) long and look like stout, reddish-black, wingless wasps. Their stings, not bites, are the most painful and debilitating known for any insect. Intense pain (being stung by one feels like being shot by a bullet—hence their name) typically lasts 3-5 hours then lessens over the next day but can remain for days. Severe pain may be accompanied by trembling, perspiration, nausea, and inability to use an injured arm or leg.

Army ants (Eciton burchelli) colonies consist of the queen, the queen’s brood (her eggs), soldiers, and the workers. Army ants are nomadic, which means that they must make temporary nests as they travel. The nest is made up of army ants themselves. They form walls and fasten onto each other by using their mandibles (jaws) and their claws. This way they can hang from a log or another surface, while the nest encloses the queen and her brood. These nests are referred to as bivouacs. Chambers and corridors exist in army ant nests. Also, prey is being brought inside the nest and the eggs are being transported to other areas in the nest as well.

We saw two different army ant colonies on the move in wide ribbons across the trails. While I never saw a fire ant mound similar to those of the red imported fire ant (RIFA) mounds of the southern USA, red fire ants were frequently found on rainforest trees and shrubs. Another reason not to grab a tree or the trailside foliage.

After our nature walk it was great to take another cooling shower and to sit down with the group over an excellent dinner. There is no electricity so meals are eaten by candle- or lantern light.

Dean waiting for the dinner bell and across the dinner table from me with a soulful look on his face

Alan L, our PI; Jhin our guide, Joan Chatterton, Alice Chaung, and Kathy Schroer at dinner table

Our delicious meal of chicken, cabbage salad and carrots; the classroom at Posada