Bird Tours Peru - Iquitos
The Ultimate Amazonian Birding (13 Days)
From the air, the Amazon rainforest looks like a uniform green carpet, with the occasional river or lake for variety. In fact, the Amazon basin is a diverse patchwork of habitats, each with unique bird communities. This trip will take us to terra firme and varzea forest north and south of the Amazon River, to river islands of various successional stages, and of course to the fascinating white sand forest of Allpahuayo-Mishana. Though we cannot expect a total list as long as can be obtained with the elevational diversity of the Andes, we will find an excellent variety of species on this tour.
Day 1 - Allpahuayo-Mishana
Leaving Iquitos early, we'll spend the day at Allpahuayo-Mishana trying to get a good variety of its specialties under our belt early in the trip. Our main targets will be Allpahuayo and Zimmer's Antbirds, Mishana Tyrannulet, Saffron-crested Tyrant-Manakin, Citron-bellied Attila, and Brown-banded Puffbird. We'll return to Iquitos for the night.
Day 2 - Allpahuayo-Mishana to Tahuayo Lodge
In the morning we'll return to a different part of Allpahuayo-Mishana where we have better views of the canopy; this gives us a good chance to see Ancient Antwren and, with lots of luck, the Critically Endangered Iquitos Gnatcatcher. Other species we can hope for in this area include Brown Nunlet, Black-throated Trogon, and even Lunulated Antbird. After lunch in Iquitos, we'll make the boat trip to Tahuayo Lodge, where we'll stay for the next two nights.
Day 3 - Tahuayo Lodge
We'll spend the whole day around Tahuayo Lodge, especially concentrating on terra firme forest. Here we hope to find Rufous-necked Puffbird, Red-headed Manakin, Bar-breasted Piculet, and others. Of course there will be the usual Amazonian variety of antbirds and flycatcher to sort through as well.
Day 4 - Tahuayo Lodge to Muyuna Lodge
Today we'll concentrate on varzea habitats around Tahuayo, looking for Festive Parrot, Amazonian Antshrike, Grey-chested Greenlet, and others. After lunch we'll take our boat to Muyuna Lodge.
Day 5 - Muyuna Lodge
The main attraction here is the extremely rare and poorly-known Wattled Curassow, which we can hope to find in some patches of varzea forest near the lodge. In the same areas, the near-endemic Black-tailed Antbird is common, and we will find a variety of other species, possibly including Zimmer's Woodcreeper, Bluish-fronted Jacamar, and Orange-fronted Plushcrown. In the afternoon we'll walk in the forest behind the lodge, looking for Saturnine Antshrike, Dot-backed Antbird, and Blue-cheeked Jacamar.
Day 6 - Muyuna Lodge to Iquitos
We will have this morning reserved for a second chance at the Wattled Curassow; if we were successful yesterday we will concentrate on other species like Red-and-white Spinetail, Royal Flycatcher, Band-tailed Oropendola, and others. In the afternoon we'll make the boat trip back to Iquitos.
Day 7 - Allpahuayo-Mishana to Otorongo Lodge
We'll return to Allpahuayo-Mishana for the morning, hoping for some different species such as Pearly Antshrike, Pompadour Cotinga, Banded Antbird, and whatever specialties we're still missing. After lunch we'll make the boat trip to Otorongo Lodge, perhaps making a short afternoon walk to look for Yellow-billed Jacamar.
Day 8 - Otorongo Lodge
This morning we'll have our first shot at some river island specialists, and the excellent variety of islands in this area should allows to pick up most targets. Among them are Olive-spotted Hummingbird, Pale-billed and Lesser Horneros, Black-and-white and Ash-breasted Antbirds, Castelnau's Antshrike, Leaden Antwren, and Parker's and White-bellied Spinetails. Around the lodge in the afternoon, we'll hope for Point-tailed Palmcreeper, Orange-eyed Flycatcher, and Plain-breasted Piculet.
Day 9 - Otorongo Lodge to ExplorNapo
We'll have the morning to visit an oxbow lake and try for any remaining river island species; our targets may include Long-billed Woodcreeper, White-chinned Jacamar, Black-chinned Antbird, Lesser Wagtail-Tyrant, and Riverside Tyrant. After lunch we'll make the boat trip to ExplorNapo Lodge, where an afternoon walk will be our first chance for Black-necked Red Cotinga and others.
Day 10- ExplorNapo to ACTS
In the morning we'll make a walk around ExplorNapo, looking for species like Spotted Puffbird and Yellow-billed Nunbird among others. After lunch we'll bird our way in to ACTS, hoping for some varied understory flocks and rare species such as Striated Antthrush, Black Bushbird, and Undulated Antshrike. Tonight, and tomorrow night if necessary, we will try for the enigmatic Nocturnal Curassow, which is regular in the area but very hard to see.
Day 11 - ACTS
This morning we'll spend the early hours on the famous canopy walkway, which allows us to chase canopy flocks around the treetops! We should see a variety of species, hopefully including Dugand's Antwren, various tanager and flycatcher species, Black-headed Parrot, and raptors. Through the rest of the day we'll explore the terra firme forest in the area, picking up a variety of species while looking for rarities again: Grey-winged Trumpeter is a remote possibility, while Collared Gnatwren and Black-headed Antbird are also possible.
Day 12 - ACTS to Iquitos
We'll have the whole morning to bird around ACTS, perhaps trying especially for Ochre-striped Antpitta or hoping for army-ant followers like White-plumed and Bicoloured Antbirds. In the afternoon we'll return to Iquitos by boat.
Day 13 - Allpahuayo-Mishana
There are evening flights from Iquitos to Lima, so we'll have one more full day at Allpahuayo-Mishana. There are several difficult species that we will probably still need; some not mentioned previously include Orange-crowned Manakin and Zimmer's Tody-Tyrant, and more widespread species are also possible, such as Ash-throated Gnateater and Short-billed Leaftosser.
Price Information
Contact us for prices; because this tour uses different lodges which change their prices often, we prefer to quote each trip on demand.
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