Back to Ecuador

I'm just starting to look through my images taken in Ecuador over the past two weeks. The main stop on this trip was the Napo Wildlife Centre, located in Yasuni National Park about 50 km east of the town of Coca. Getting there involved a 3 hour trip by motor launch down the Nap River and a two hour paddle up a small blackwater creek to the lodge.

One of the most conspicuous birds along the creek and the small lake were the lodge is located is the Hoatzin. These birds uttered unbird-like grunts and hisses and flopped from branch to branch as the canoes passed by. The fermentation of leaves in their crops produces an unpleasant odour which permeates their flesh. Their local name translates as "stinky turkey" and they are seldom hunted. Hoatzins are not closely related to any other group of living birds.

Napo Wildlife Center