Winter 2009 - Lima to Montevideo - Birding Trip Report - Part 8 of many - Cacoal Home » Forums » Birding » Trip Reports

Our next stop on the way to Uruguay from Porto Velho was Cuiaba, our
entry point to the Pantanal. But it was too far for one bus ride, and
we stopped in Cacoal. Cacoal is a fast growing city with a population
of around 50,000. Even at this small size it already has the
characteristics of most Brazilian cities, which is a 'sprawling'
space-consuming nature. We had been recommended Selva Park Hotel as a
great place to see nature. Being a pricy hotel ($110 Real/night, or
about $30), the taxis wanted $40 Real just to take us there. We
walked away several times just on principle before finally paying $30.
Selva Park Hotel is a large resort with swimming pool, caged animals,
paddle boats, and all sorts of recreational activities. They justify
the low rates by charging for all of the meals, and being miles away
from the grocery store.

The reason is am writing so much about this hotel and city is that it
is connected directly, according to the last Google Earth map I saw,
to the rain forest. I mean, the forest behind the hotel is not a
fragment, but continues for kilometers into the heart of the Amazon.
So potentially you could see any animal or bird here. But many
squares are popping up around the hotel, and I would check Google for
the latest.

The first thing you notice are the Macaws. I saw a few from the taxi
on fence posts, and also saw caged Ostrich, so just assumed they were
pets with their wings cut. After check-in I walked out towards a
mixed group of Macaws, and a few flew away! The hotel apparently from
time to time captures Macaws and cut their wings, and then allows them
to grow back so the bird can escape. What happens is the bird becomes
adjusted to the hotel, and will come back voluntarily.
Blue-and-yellow Macaws, Scarlet Macaws, and Red-and-green Macaws were
in about equal numbers. A few White Woodpeckers were seen in the
fields around the hotel.

There is a one kilometer path into the jungle, but in about eight
circuits I saw one large unidentified guan, a Tiger Heron, and a
woodpecker of some sort. Very few small birds, and the Macaws wre
really more outside the jungle. What I read about Tambopata and the
Andes foothills being more biodiverse than the interior of the Amazon
basin seemed true. But the highlight was a Southern Tamandua, or
anteater. He was foraging, looked up and saw me, and briefly went
into his defensive posture, and stood on back legs with front claws
ready to defend. After a few seconds of this he climbed a small tree
about a meter, took another look at me, and climbed down and went on
foraging. The Tamandua has sharp front claws, and are known to kill
dogs who mistake them for defenseless animals. The Giant Anteater can
kill a Jaguar from the same defensive posture.

One downside to the hotel was that two beautiful Jaguars were kept in
small cages for no apparent reason. We couldn't get more information,
but if you stay here I encourage you to protest this.