Much of our time at Porto Jofre was spent on a boat looking for Jaguars on the banks of the rivers.  Birding took a back seat, but there were still plenty of birds to see along the rivers.  Our boats were comfortable, the rivers calm and the weather a sunny 103 degrees.  The scenery in and along the rivers was, to use an over-used term, gorgeous.

Our first morning on the river turned up empty of Jaguars. We started the morning with nice looks at nesting

Large-billed Terns

At the end of the hot morning I was exhausted and for the only time on the trip, I skipped the afternoon activities, took a nap, and birded around the Lodge.  Of course, afternoon on the River produced the group’s first Jaguar sighting of the trip.

As is the case in many areas where wild-life sightings are the objective, when a guide finds an animal he radios the other guides in the area, and they all converge.  This can be an unpleasant experience due to the jockeying for photographic advantage that goes on.

The next morning Marcello decided to abandon the main river and go in the opposite direction to a smaller tributary.  That decision was a very good one, because shortly after entering the tributary, two young Jaguars were spotted along the shore line.

 

We were the only boat in range, so the time spent observing them inter-act with each other, (licking, playing) was lovely.  The entire group was relieved that I, who had missed the first Jaguar, now could add Jaguars to my life list of mammals.

Later in the day, back on the big river, we were fortunate to find a fourth Jaguar.  This one was spotted by our boatman as it cooled itself behind a fallen tree in the shaded waters of the river, but this one did not stick around long and did not provide much opportunity for pictures, although the sighting itself was very satisfying.

The search for Jaguars was primary while we were at Porto Jofre, but the birding was also excellent.  Among the interesting species that we were able to see and photograph driving down the Pantaneira and after our arrival at Porto Jofre are these:

Hyacinth Macaws

Campo Flicker

Amazon Kingfisher

Egrets 

Maguari Stork

Rufescent Tiger Heron

Capped Herons

Cocoi Heron

Yellow-rumped Caciques

Orange-backed Troupial

Green and Rufous Kingfisher 

Southern Screamer

Nacunda Nighthawk   

White-wedged Piculet     

Buff-necked Ibis  

There were many Jabiru Storks.  This one was busy fishing for his dinner.

We saw this Jabiru Stork family high in the tree.

No photographic record of our time on the Pantaneira would be complete without a picture of the ever present Cayman.

The final installment of my blog of Brazil will cover the drive from Porto Jofre back to the north end of the Pantaneira, where we spent the night at Piuval Lodge and explored the surrounding ranch.