The Razor-billed Curassow, Mitu tuberosum, is a big ground bird of up to 89 cm long, mostly black with white ends of the tail feathers. Its large red bill is flattened at the sides. Together with the Chachalacas and Guans, the Curassows belong to the Cracidae family. They can often be heard with metallic high pitched “pweet” calls or their songs of deep booming notes, though both sounds can easily blend in with all the other sounds of the forest.
The Brazilian Tapir (Tapirus terrestris) is the Amazon’s biggest mammal, up to 2,1 meter long, 1 meter high and weighing up to 200 kg. It has an elongated nose, which it uses to eat plants, especially in swamps and other water environments. It still has many characteristics from its Eocene family members that roamed Europe and Asia 55 million years ago. Its closest present-day relatives are rhinos and horses.
The Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a medium sized cat, living of small mammals, birds, fish, and snakes. Though smaller than the mighty jaguar, it was admired for its beauty and freedom and seen as a symbol for honor and courage by prehispanic people.
Capuchin monkeys, like this White-fronted (Cebus albifrons) version, are technically very smart, and have made their way up our society’s social ladder from organ grinders to assistants of quadriplegic patients. In the wild they have learned to use stone tools to break open seeds with hard husks – but look at this: it takes the juveniles eight years to master the skill!
Nine-banded Long-nosed Armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus or Quirquincho) are solitary, nocturnal animals that feed on ants, termites and other small invertebrates. They are covered with a leathery armor (“armadillo” in Spanish means “little armored one”) and the claws on their middle forefeet toes are enlarged for digging.
They belong to the Xenarthra superorder, together with anteaters and sloths, and are considered a primitive placental mammal. The Nine-banded Armadillo is different from all other armadillos in having each litter consist of genetically identical quadruplets.
Collared peccaries are originally related to wild pigs, but evolutionary distinct since the Oligocene (34-23 millions of years ago) forming a separate family, the Tayassuidae. They are omnivorous and can adapt to many different habitats, and they certainly thrive in the forest of Pantiacolla Lodge.
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One of the best places to spot birds in South America!
The Peruvian rainforest is a place full of natural wonders. This region is home to over 15,000 species of plants, including many that are not found anywhere else in the world. In addition to its impressive variety of flora, the Peruvian jungle also houses a large amount of fauna, including tapirs, sloths, jaguars, ocelots, howler monkeys, and others.
The Peruvian jungle is known as one of the best places to see birds in South America, with over 1,000 species recorded, including the Amazonian Umbrella bird, the King Vulture, the Harpy Eagle, and the Blue-and-Yellow Macaw.
Explore the Peruvian Rainforest’s diverse flora and fauna yourself.
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Watch this video of a harpy eagle carrying a squirrel monkey, recently made by biologists of the London Natural History Museum, in the garden of Pantiacolla Lodge.
