Country : Équateur
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Pagaie nocturne à la lampe torche pour observer les caïmans et la faune nocturne
After dinner, a torchlight paddle-canoe outing searches the water for many nocturnal species and for black caimans, closing the day on the dark channels around the lodge.
En savoir plusObservation des oiseaux sur les eaux blanches du Napo
After lunch, a motorized-pirogue ride along the Napo looks for the river's "white-water" riverine species — the name coming from the light-brown colour of the great Amazonian rivers, which carry silt from the high Andes where they rise.
En savoir plusSaladeros d’Añangu : berge dégagée et saladeros forestiers
On the banks of the Napo, the group visits two "saladeros" — mineral-covered clay walls that several parrot species ingest to aid digestion of an almost entirely acidic-fruit and plant diet. The first lick sits directly on an open bank of the Napo; the second, inside the forest, has more the shape of a cave and attracts very different species.
En savoir plusVisite de la station scientifique de Yanayacu et séance de macro-photographie
In the afternoon the group visits the Yanayacu scientific station, where researchers have developed projects on the reproductive biology of Ecuadorian birds and a study of the parasites of several particularly attractive caterpillar species. One of the station's scientists presents the projects in detail, and the caterpillars make an unexpected macro-photography subject.
En savoir plusObservation des ours à lunettes aux postes de nourrissage inférieurs de l'Antisana
The same lower stop carries one of the day's quiet hopes: an attempt to see the Spectacled Bear, one of the rarest mammals of this ecosystem, from the area of the hummingbird feeders. Sightings are a possibility rather than a promise — the attempt itself is part of what makes an Antisana day what it is.
En savoir plusCondors de l'Antisana, páramo andin de haute altitude et lagune de La Mica
The short road into the Antisana Ecological Reserve leads first to an observation platform, where the group scans the condor nesting walls with telescopes — one of the country's most important Andean Condor populations. The morning then works through the succulent, scrubby high-altitude vegetation for hummingbirds and high-Andean passerines before climbing into the Andean steppe of the páramo at almost 4,000 m, where diversity is low but every visible species is adapted to this particular ecosystem. A short walk along La Mica lagoon adds waterbirds to the day.
En savoir plusAffût photo Fruttitour près de Pedro Vicente Maldonado
Near Pedro Vicente Maldonado, a brand-new reserve opens a different window on the Chocó: from a deck facing a planted garden, the afternoon is spent observing and photographing several attractive, rare lowland species. The blind format suits the birds here — patient waiting, close views, and the chance of Choco Toucan, Pale-mandibled Aracari, Red-headed Barbet and Club-winged Manakin among the visitors.
En savoir plusAffûts d’après-midi à la réserve San Tadeo
Mid-afternoon brings a second photographic stop, at the hides of the small San Tadeo Reserve (1,750 m), where tanagers and other passerines dominate the frames. The day stays deliberately flexible — weather, missing species and known regional opportunities decide the final order of visits.
En savoir plusSéance de photographie aux affûts de la réserve d’oiseaux de Chocó
High in the Tandayapa Valley, the new private Chocó Bird Reserve (2,200 m) was laid out for photography: a network of hides and feeding areas where toucans, tanagers, hummingbirds, barbets and warblers come in close. The morning belongs to the hides, working through the compositions as different species move through the feeding areas.
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