Lonely Planet Lists Aqua’s Home Port in “Top 10 Cities for 2011″

#6. Iquitos

After days forging by boat along rainforest-fringed rivers, Iquitos, mighty megalopolis of the Peruvian Amazon, comes as a shock to the system. Pulsating with life, the city’s latest boom is tourism: visitors may flock to reconnoitre the rainforest but taking time to imbibe Iquitos itself is imperative too. This is a sultry slice of Amazon life: Brazilian, Colombian, indigenous and expat. Clubs bounce to salsa and rock until the early hours with the vigour you’d expect of Peru’s jungle capital, but Iquitos is also a cultural hub: expect works by Peru’s top artists, opulent rubber-boom mansions and a museum on Amazon ethnography for starters. As a trading post for rainforest tribes, market mayhem and riverboat bustle are part of the package, all conspiring to fill the city with an addictive, round-the-clock energy.” (Courtesy of Lonely Planet)

The full list of destinations can be found here: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/new-york-city/travel-tips-and-articles/76165#

Travel Journalist Nicholas Gill On Watching Wildlife in the Amazon

Watching wildlife in the Amazon isn’t like it is in the Serengeti or even in the Galapagos. Those places are defined by wide-open spaces where massive piles of animals sit and run and swim and eat together.  They are mostly larger animals too, so they’re easy to find. In the Amazon, even with the primo equipment of the MV Aqua in a national park like Pacaya Samiria, things are not so easy. The wide-open spaces are replaced by dense forest. The large animals here are small in comparison and more spread out. Jaguars or tapirs do not sit in herds of 400 hundred. Even the largest troops of monkeys number just a few dozen. Some of the greatest creatures of the Amazon are smaller than a baseball. Plus many blend into their surroundings. What appears to be a stick is actually an insect.  The eyes of a Harpy Eagle are needed to spot most creatures here, but when you do find one it is an exciting occurrence. Time slows down. You become lost, even if in reality your encounter is only a few seconds. Sometimes, just for a moment, the animal stops and looks at you as you are looking at them and the two of you share some sort of connection. Both you and the animal are surprised to see the other. While a herd of wildebeests in Africa will just sit and chew their grass as a jeep full of tourists approaches as if it is not a big deal, the Amazonian creature will flee or sometimes come closer. They are as curious about you as you are about them. You are an alien to which they have never seen. Both hearts race and there is a rush of emotion for both creatures. Because your interaction with the animal is rare, you really take a good look at them. You look into their eyes as they are looking into yours. You see their soul a little. And they see yours.

To read more of Nicholas’ adventures in Latin America, visit his site: www.newworldreview.com.

Amazon Wildlife Top Ten: #7

7: Capibara. Okay, now let’s talk about rodents. More specifically, let’s talk about number seven on the Top Ten List, the largest living rodent in the world: the Capibara, which in the local Guarani language means “master of the grasses.” In Peru, we also call these critters ronsoco. They are close relatives of chinchillas and guinea pigs, as well as of agouti and coyphillas. Its scientific name, hydrochaeris, is Greek for “water hog.” If  were capybaras, we’d prefer to stick with “master of the grasses.”

Amazon Wildlife Top Ten: #8

8: The Harpy Eagle, is the second largest eagle in the world, and one of the most powerful predators in the Amazon. The female harpy eagle is larger than the male, measuring over three feet, with a wing span of six-and-a-half feet, and weighing 20 pounds. The males have a smaller wing span and weigh about 17 ½ pounds. These enormous birds have a crest of erectile feathers on their heads, powerful beaks and claws, and can live as long as 40 years. They like to dine on monkeys and sloths, as well as on green iguanas, snakes, and other birds. Despite their size, they are able to penetrate deep into the densest jungle to capture their prey and can take flight carrying three times their own weight in captured prey.

Photo: Walter Mancilla Huaman

Recent River Dolphin Census Leads to Long-Term Conservation Efforts in South America

For many travelers sailing on the M/V Aqua, the first sighting an Amazonian pink dolphin in the wild is unforgettable. Since Aqua Expeditions began operating in the Peruvian Amazon it has worked hard to conserve the habitat of these unusual dolphins. We were very glad to read a recent article on msn.com  which outlines a broad conservation effort of the fresh water dolphin by various South American countries.

Original article: http://verde.latam.msn.com/articulo_wwf.aspx?cp-documentid=25824569

Excerpt in English:

Since 2006 Fundacion Omacha scientists, with support from the World Wildlife Foundation, have traveled over 2,500 miles along 12 of the most important rivers in South America to conduct a census of the exotic river dolphin. The census was conducted over a four-year period with the 11th – and last – expedition finishing on June 2nd of this year.

The purpose of the project is to take a proactive stance to prevent the dolphin population from becoming endangered – as it has become recently in China. Although South American river dolphins are not particularly endangered, mercury contamination from mining activity, the use of dolphins as bait, overfishing and infrastructure projects are becoming threats to the stable population.

Under the leadership of Fernando Trujillo, the census took scientists to Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Brazil, where pink, grey and endemic populations of dolphins can be seen today. The results of the survey suggest there are over 40,000 fresh water dolphins currently swimming in South American rivers and lakes – an indication of a healthy population. Nonetheless countries like Bolivia and Colombia to make are taking immediate action to put long-term conservation programs in effect for the playful river creatures.

For more information on pink dolphins or to explore ways to view them in the wild, visit www.aquaepeditions.com and start planning your journey!

Spotted: 30-pound Amazonian Catfish!

Last week while on an excursion, Aqua Expeditions passengers had the opportunity to see first-hand a 30-pound Amazonica catfish. The fish was caught by local fishermen who then shared their catch with Aqua’s group.

Amazon Wildlife Top Ten: #9

9: The Pygmy Marmoset. They are smallest of all the monkeys in the Amazon region. These ingenious little monkeys dig a small hole in a tree’s bark, where they feed on sap and resins, returning to the same “lunch counter,” every day. These are New World monkeys, native to the rainforest canopies of eastern Peru. They are among the world’s smallest primates, and are actually the smallest true monkeys, being only between 5.5 to 6.3 inches long (not counting their very long tails). Females weigh a mere 4.2 ounces, while males can go as high as 4.9 ounces.

Photo by Malene Thyssen

Amazon Wildlife Top Ten: #10

1O: The Night Monkey. These small jungle animals sleep all day, hidden in hollow trees, and come out and roam, looking for food – typically insects and fruit – under cover of darkness. They are actually the only nocturnal monkeys in the Amazon, with large brown eyes that enable them to see well at night. You can hear their grunts and screams and trills when you are out on the Aqua Expeditions skiffs after dark. The night monkeys live in family groups: mom, dad, and young ones.

Photograph courtesy of The Wildlife Conservation Society

Amazon Wildlife “Top Ten”

This past week The New York Times featured a super article on one of the most popular pastimes in the world: birding (in Peru)!  

The piece, written by Dave Sherwood, was all about ‘Birding Along the Cloud Forests’ and spoke about the hundreds – and even thousands – of birds visible in Peru. The article mostly speaks of avian life outside the Amazon…so what about the rest?!

To share some of the birds they missed, we decided to ask our guide Juan Tejanda, born and raised in Iquitos, to give us his “Top Ten” of the Amazon; but we made it a little harder for him and asked him to include ALL the wildlife in the Amazon and not just birds!Over the next couple of weeks we will be sharing his answers. Simply visit us here and be prepared to add a thing or two to your “bucket list.”

Aqua Expeditions Offers Guests More than Just Memories

Aqua Expeditions understands that the best souvenirs are the ones you can’t wait to share with friends and family; the keepsakes that are saturated with memories and can sum up an entire trip or voyage on their own. Following this idea, Aqua Expeditions and its vessel, the M/V Aqua, offer guests sophisticated alternatives to the cliché souvenir. 

Committed to providing an authentic wildlife and cultural experience to its guests, Aqua Expeditions has released a music CD for guests to relive their Amazonian voyage on dry land. The CD is a musical compilation performed by Aqua Expeditions’ “house band” – made up of M/V Aqua’s crew – and was recorded in Iquitos, Peru, its vessel’s home port.

The CD contains a collection of 12 tracks of instrumental and lyrical favorites that include Peruvian classics like “El Condor Pasa”  and internationally known pieces like “”Besame Mucho.” The album cover boasts artwork by famous Peruvian artist Christian Bendayán and can be purchased onboard in the M/V Aqua’s boutique.

In addition to this, Aqua Expeditions’ Wildlife Checklist, used during excursions into Pacaya Samiria Reserve, can also be transformed into a stylish keepsake. Listing dozens of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles, insects and common plants and trees, the guide keeps track of the many wildlife sightings while exploring the Amazon. It reads like a ‘wish list’ of the most exotic living things on Earth and includes the elusive Pink Dolphin and the endangered Amazonian Manatee; enough to elicit a little jealousy from even the most seasoned adventurer.