Carnival

Photo by Mark Watson.

Moving north from El Palmar toward the Paria Peninsula, we encountered the Carnival boys and girls. The boys, painted blue or black from head to toe, extracted a payment of coins to allow passage.

Photo by Mark Watson

Although they look serious, it was all in good fun. By evening, the Zocalo (city center) was packed, often forcing us to detour around the community to reach our lodging. The festivities went on until the wee hours of the morning, at about the same time as all the roosters woke up. The birding team became ever more sleep deprived.

Photo by Mark Watson

A not-so-enjoyable Carnival costume. Fortunately, this one was on the side of the road and didn't manage to collect a toll from our bus.

After the Harpy

Our little entourage moved on to the Imitaca Forest Reserve dominated by rampant vegetation accompanied by particularly thick muck. Those in the back of monster truck from Hell were nearly thrown out the open back when the truck hit an especially large ditch which our driver plowed through. It proved to be the road collapsing over a broken culvert and now we were on the wrong side of the only road out. Everyone walked back and waited to see if the trucks would make it.
As the day grew longer, Sam opted for a snooze.
Followed by another member that needed to take a load off his feet,
and his legs.
The day grows long when it begins at 4 a.m. Along about noon, or later as the rain forest heats up and the sun beats down relentlessly, a siesta is just the right thing to do. Mark opted for the blue jeep for his nap. I, on the other hand, was skulking through the jungle, searching for an elusive antbird. It took a while, but we finally found him, walking on the ground beneath the vegetation, circling us continuously while singing his territorial song. I didn't capture the little Ferruginous-backed Antbird on film, but intrepid photographer, Jerry Oldenettel posted the image on his Flickr page.
The trees in the Imitaca, with higher water levels than other areas we had been, had an even higher number of prop roots supporting the trees. In fact the main trunk of most trees no longer reached the ground.
Leaf cutter ants built huge mounds in the forest
and the ants were busy carrying bits of leaves across the road, always in perfect ant formation.
The structure of many of the plants is simply superb.

Good-bye Rainforest

The edge of the rain forest. Will Venezuela survive the current regime and the rampant destruction of its natural wonders? Most shocking during the trip was the huge transmission line that ran from the Orinoco River, through old-growth forest, all the way to Brazil. In its path is a 1/4 mile wide clear-cut through supposedly protected areas like the Imitaca Forest Preserve, and Canaima National Park.
Look at the leafless tree in the background. This is where the juvenile Harpy Eagle waited for food deliveries. While this might seem like an ideal spot to watch for his parents to bring food, it is grim evidence of the slash and burn agriculture that is rampant throughout Venezuela. It takes two years to raise a juvenile Harpy Eagle to independence, during which time the parents are tied to the nest. Their nesting habitat is dense lowland tropical rainforest with an adequate supply of sloths and monkeys which are hunted beneath the canopy. The nest is within the patch of woods on the right. As you can see, it has been cleared almost right up to the nest. Where will this pair of adults have to go now to find another suitable location for their next nest?
The burned tree stumps were much in evidence at the viewing point for the Harpy Eagles. If you look carefully, you will see a small vegetable garden on the right side. Rainforests are dependent on the constant decomposition of organic matter to provide nutrients to the vegetation. When the cycle is broken through clearing, soils only support crops for 3-4 years before being depleted of nutrients. This leads to more clearing. During our trip, we often saw smoke from fires burning the forest.

Good-bye rain forest.

Harpy Quest

Would we, could we, did we see the Harpy Eagle?

It's the bird that inspired me to take this trip, the Harpy Eagle. I always said that if I could see a wild Harpy, the world's largest eagle, found only in lowland tropical rainforest, I would die a happy woman. I had been warned that it might be a challenge to find the bird. So, being of a cautious nature, I snapped a photo of this painting in the Puerto Ordaz hotel.

Photo by Mark Watson.

This was our earliest departure, by far, of the whole trip. Promptly at 5 a.m. we assembled near our bus, only to learn that our tranportation of the day was none other than an old, beater 4WD truck with a handmade, black metal canopy with boards running along each side. Those at the far back end, had to hang on tight to ensure that they were not tipped out. Jerry T and I are full of enthusiasm as we depart, destination unknown, time of drive unknown, condition of roads unknown, but full of trust.
Mark W. and Jerry O. were similarly enthusiastic as we departed. However, our enthusiasm was rather short-lived when we realized the truck belched exhaust into the compartment in the back, burning our eyes and making it hard to breathe.
The monstrous truck that was our avenue to the Harpy Eagle site.
An indigenous family lived near the nest and the woman made coffee for us while we waited for the rain to end. Would it end? Would we have to hike in the rain? Would the rain ruin our chances of seeing the eagle?
Our Venezuelan guides: Javier is the smaller man, and he drove the equally dilapidated blue jeep. After the rain stopped, the whole group trooped off through the muck. Within about 1/4 mile, we came to a clearing in the jungle where the family was growing their vegetable garden. Looking to the west, a large bird was perched atop a leafless tree.

Photo by Mark Watson.

It was the immature Harpy, waiting for a food delivery. The not-so-little fellow or gal seemed oblivious to our presence, almost as if it saw groups of people often. It was about 18 months old, already flighted, and just learning about hunting. It would not be independent of its parents for another six months.

Photo by Jerry Oldenettel.

While we watched, the adult male flew over likely checking on the well-being of his offspring. The youngster sat patiently for what seemed like a long time before disappearing into the forest. Later, on the way out, we also observed the adult female perched about a mile from the nest. While it was a thrill to see the largest eagle in the world, I had expected it to be harder, to be a slog through the mud with voracious insects nipping at any exposed skin, something akin to the African Queen. In reality, it was more like going to visit your cousin who lives in the country, and then walking to the back of his property to see the hawks that nested there -- almost as if we didn't work hard enough to earn the experience.

Welcome to Hotel Parador Taguapire

El Palmar is the closest town to the Imitaca Forest Preserve. It is the staging area for expeditions into the preserve, particularly for those who seek the mythical and often elusive Harpy Eagle, the world's most massive eagle. We had scheduled two days in the hopes of locating one of them.
Constructed of cinder blocks, the rooms in Hotel Taguapire resembled a jail cell painted a violent shade of pea green. But, a little cheer was added with and equally violent shade of nearly royal blue, perahps a cross between indigo and hunter green. The door was built of steel. There were no worries that anyone could possibly break into your room.
We shared our room with at least two other companions, one of which was a tree frog that lived in the shower. Apparently camera-shy, capturing his image was a lesson in high speed photography. That first flash drove him right up the wall, literally, with the camera woman pointing the lens increasingly higher with each click of the shutter.
Our other companion was our spider friend that hid in the corner near Sam's bed. I assured her that he/she wasn't poisonous and would almost certainly be gone in the morning, even though I had never seen this kind of spider before and had no knowledge of its biological history. Fortunately, she was no worse for wear in the morning when, indeed, the spider was gone and it was not in her boot.
The saddest thing about traveling in a third world country is all the wasted plastic. Because we couldn't drink the tap water, bottled agua was our friend. Unfortunately, the hotel provided the agua in tiny little bottles - many of them. We suspect that there is no such thing as recylcing in the small towns of Venezuela.

Now, lest you think poorly of our accommodations at Hotel Parador Taquapire, the host and his workers were quite gracious and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. They put out fresh fruit several times daily which attracted a wide variety of colorful fruit-eating birds, including the Venzuela Troupial, a member of the oriole family. To see a photo of this bird, visit Jerry Oldenettel's website and scan through the Venezuela album.

One day, four of us decided to play hooky from the dedicated birders that comprised the remainder of the group, opting instead for a leisurely morn watching the feeders and the birds that occupied the habitat beyond the fence. Our host plied us with endless cups of coffee, soda, beer, steak and fries for lunch, smiling all the time as we practiced our novice Espanol.

Tepuy Tale

In the background of this photo two shadowy tepuyes stand watch over the Gran Sabana. The tepuye on the left, the pointed one and the saddle between them are the subject of myth. Henry tells its story, "The Gran Sabana is from a God, a woman named Macunaima who was the queen of the Gran Sabana. The tepuye on the left was a great tree with a huge spreading top. Another god was jealous and wanted to take the Gran Sabana and they fought a fierce battle. The God wanted to chop off the head of Macunaima. He leaned back and swung, but his great sword missed and cut into the great tree. The tree and its large top fell, with the top breaking Grande Tepuye into two tepuyes. The tepuye on the right is Roraima, the highest tepuye at 2730 meters. When the tree fell, breaking the tepuye which formerly held all life, the water containing all the life of the Gran Sabana flooded the Earth, bringing life to it. Roraima is suspected to hold the richest diamond deposit in the world, but is currently protected from exploration. Roraima was the inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World.
Tepuyes Tramin on the left, and Ilu on the right, north of Roraima. Mesas of pre-Cambrian rock, part of the Guayana Shield and nearly 3 billion years old, the tepuyes tower majestically over the Gran Sabana. Those who have explored their summits describe them as being from another place and time, unlike anywhere else. Geologically separated for millions of years, many of the plants and animals found on the tops are endemic, adapted to weather extremes of wind and rain. The rock formations, similarly affected, have eroded into otherworldly formations. Henry once climbed Roraima with the help of a guide. It took two and a half days.

La Gran Sabana

Birding with the boys, near the top of theEscalera, just below La Gran Sabana

Sam at the waterfall

Birding the Gran Sabana

Only two stops had any crafts for sale. This young lady took a leisurely approach to marketing.

Tour leader, Jim Black, with Henry our host at Barquilla de Fresca Lodge.

City Life

Photo by Mark Watson.

They call them Chavistas, those that post the plethora of pro-Chavez signs. Toward the end of our trip, we found out that everyone who posted a Chavez sign for the referendum was paid. The referendum was a vote to allow Chavez to run for unlimited terms. In the big cities, where people have greater exposure to the outside world, the referendum was defeated. But, in the small villages, where people live on bare subsistence income, it was overwhelmingly passed. With all the wealth from oil, every Venezuelan citizen received a certain amount of money. Local industries closed and almost all goods were imported. Rural people view Chavez as the great patron of the country. Now, with the diminished oil prices, there is little money, but still no industry, and country-wide shortages of many basic items, such as sugar, which is produced in Venezuela.
Fruit for sale everywhere, especially bananas. Many of the fruit-loving birds, such as the tanagers also hung out at the fruit stands, eating their fill.

Bananas for sale.

Pink Houses

It's a Jungle Out There!

The Guayana Trail. If it looks hot and steamy, that's because it is, along with a bumper crop of chiggers! We quickly learned about protective measures when one of the guys showed up the first day with bites over all of the lower parts of his legs. This particular location is a footpath that leads from Venezuela to neighboring Guayana, within walking distance. The land belongs to the indigenous people, but we were assured it was fine for us to be here.
They grow big spiders and webs in the rainforest.
Epiphytes cover nearly every surface. In some areas, these hardy little plants even grew on the utility lines.

Photograph by Mark Watson.

As I thought about all the marvelous birds we saw on this trip, there is one that brings a smile to my face each time: the Scarlet-horned Manakin. We watched the male perform his unique courtship moonwalk dance in the style of Michael Jackson deep in the tropical forest. I’ll never forget the abandon with which he danced – as if no one were watching. Check out another manakin species dancing and then check out the shorter clip of this little fellow.