Day 27: 13 September 2017 – Laguna Capitán and environs
Chaco Chachalaca (Ortalis canicollis) – a somewhat noisy bird
Woken very early by something cackling horrendously outside my window. Turned out to be a Chaco Chachalaca (Ortalis canicollis, a very noisy bird: you can listen to one here), and we were to see (and hear) quite a few more of them.
As we were up we had an early breakfast followed by a walk around a. nearby lake. We saw a few waders around the shore and with the bins we could see a small group of peccaries in the distance.
Oven bird getting started on the nest …
Oscar has an encyclopaedic knowledge of species names in three languages and an impressive ability to identify them at a distance by their calls. Caroline particularly enjoyed looking at all the different nest structures – so fantastically varied and truly astonishing constructions, e.g. the oven birds and the thornbirds.
… and a little bit later
By 11.00 it was simply too hot to continue walking so we went back to the ranch for beers, an early lunch and a welcome siesta.
Birds were everywhere – these around the place where we were staying
After the snooze I went with Oscar to walk around another lake – to get there we walked across a desolate landscape of dead trees and salt pans – with very dense brush/shrub on either side. It was really quite frightening, very far from anywhere.
We walked a few kilometres around the almost dry lake; we saw lots of birds, and the footprints of various animals crossing the salt flats to get to the water. Oscar diagnosed these tracks as those of tapir, collared and white lipped peccaries, deer, and others but we only saw distant peccaries.
A thorn tree …
The Chaco is noted for it’s thorns and not without justification. We saw many examples – the longest some 6 inches and apparently poison tipped. Oscar told us that the soldiers in the Paraguayan army use them in a very nasty way as a poisonous dagger. As a birder it is easy to spike youself whilst looking elsewhere and Oscar showed us the scar on his forehead!
… and a thorn (which caused a puncture earlier in my trip)
Back to the ranch for shower and another very substantial dinner of stuffed cabbage leaves, rice and salad. It is amazing what Ulf produces from a primus stove – each bit cooked individually and assembled in a glorious final plateful.
Ulf, entomologist and chef …
We then drove and walked around the local lanes and lakes with a flashlight looking for wild life (or at least the eyes of). Saw three opossums, a Geoffroy’s cat (Leopardus geoffroyi) and a small armadillo.
Geoffrey’s Cat – stock photo (from https://www.deviantart.com/snowporing/art/Geoffroy-s-Cat-213095864)
Back for a bit of a drinking session, joined by a rather enigmatic German who claims he has sold up ‘everything’ and is ‘driving around the world’. Pleasant enough company, and the beer as usual good.