Araras Day Two - Bridge 3, Armadillos, night safari

It's a very early start this morning – we are up at 04:15, and leave the lodge at 05:00. Roberto wants to catch the sunrise!

The sky takes on a fiery red this morning, painting everything with a surreal warm glow.

Capybara crossing the road

Dust on the bushes along the side of the road

It hasn't rained for well over three weeks here

While getting up so early for the beautiful sunrise and the flaming red in the sky is tremendous, it does mean that there is still not much light for bird photography by the time we reach the pond at Bridge Number Three (which goes on to become my favourite spot in the area). While the colour in the sky – reflected on the ground – is sensational, the quality and detail of the images are anything but.

A number of birds fly over us, heading to a spot to chill for the day.

Black Bellied Whistling Ducks

Snail Kite

Jabiru

Black Skimmer
These birds fascinate me – their lower mandible is larger than the top one, allowing them to skim the surface of the water for small fish or insects.

I am captivated by this, and watch them for ages, just whooshing from one side to the other, around and around.

As the sun gets higher on the horizon, the light gets brighter, and the deep colours fade, making it easier for photography as the day goes on.

Caiman

Little Blue Heron

Wood Stork and Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Black Bellied Whistling Ducks

Lesser Yellow Hooded Vulture

Boat Billed Heron

Anhinga

Greater Kiskadee

Black Collared Hawk

Immature Rufescent Tiger Heron

Adult Rufescent Tiger Heron

Roadside Hawk

Black Collared Hawk

Capybara

Wattled Jacana

Guira Cuckoo

Black Capped Donacobius

Black Howler Monkeys. Only the males are black, the females are golden brown.

Rhea

Muscovy Duck - the oldest domesticated duck in the world (although this one is wild)

Great Egret

Brazilian Teal

Cocoi Heron

Snail Kite

She's got a snail!

Monk Parakeet nest

They are everywhere on the trees and the ground around here

Roadside Hawk

Savanna Hawk

And a nearby juvenile

Maguari Stork

Limpkin

Blue Fronted Piping Guan

Rufescent Tiger Heron

Black Tailed Marmoset

Chaco Chachalaca

The Chachalaca are such noisy birds, we hear them in the morning at the resort.

Neotropic Cormorant drying his wings, his wet feathers glistening in the sun

We return to the lodge for breakfast, I can't believe it is only 9 o'clock, considering the number of birds and animals we've seen already.

Later this morning I take a walk around the grounds to see what birds are around.

Chaco Chachalaca

Yellow Billed Cardinal

Greater Kiskadee

Saffron Finch

I join Tina, a German lady, and Alexandria, her local guide, for a cool drink in the shade. Tina, in her own words, is on a “one-woman mission to show the world that Germans do have a sense of humour”. By sheer coincidence, Alexandria is the sister of Julinha, the pilot who flew us here. It's a small world.

Lunch
The barman has got the message that we like to sit out on the patio rather than under the straw roof for lunch. It is less to do with the roof keeping the heat in and that area being crowded, and more to do with the fact that the tables on the patio have proper chairs with backrests rather than the picnic-style benches.

Jeep Safari
For our afternoon excursion today, we head off-road opposite the lodge rather than along the Transpantaneira. Initially, there is not much to see, but then Roberto spots something in the dry grass.

Armadillo
We follow this little guy for quite some time as he munches his way across the field.

He rarely looks up from his food.

Red Legged Siema

Crab-Eating Fox
We see a couple of foxes lurking around the edge of the field.

Stopping to photograph the sunset, we make our way back to the lodge as the light fades fast.

Rufescent Tiger Heron

Capybara

Dinner
It's the job of our favourite barman to decide who sits where at meal times, and this evening he has placed us with a lovely Brazilian couple from São Paulo and their two young children.

While the buffet dinner is nothing special, the milk pudding with a fruit (plum?) sauce is delicious.

Night Safari
At 20:00, we go out for a night safari to get a different perspective of the Pantanal wildlife. To be honest, the trip is probably not worth it. The only wildlife we see is two rabbits and a rhea, plus domesticated buffalo and zebu cows.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this trip.