Tapiche Reserve

We went to visit our chicks in the nearby Agami Heron colony yesterday.
We visit the colony every two weeks and try to keep the time spent to a bare minimum, to prevent disrupting the breeding herons and little fledglings (even though they're getting quite big now!).
So we took a few quick measurements, counted our 10 marked nests to assess productivity success and looked for signs of poaching, before we headed out again.
It's always impressive to be surrounded by so many animals, the sounds (and smells) are overwhelming and you can definitely hear them from a distance, so you always know when you're getting close!

Photos and video by

How great would it be to get more shots like these?
Up until recently, we had a drone at our disposal, but now it's on permanent vacation in the forest 💥 ... Apart from great shots, having a drone would assist us in:
-monitoring our Heron population (making it much easier to count the nests and map the area)
-exploring new areas of interest (instead of us having to tediously free the way through the forest - disrupting local wildlife on the way). Especially during the wet season, it would be invaluable to find patches of dry land, where land animals tend to congregate.
-Locating poaching activities quickly and being able to get footage of trespassers to build cases against them.

We're trying to save up funds to buy a new drone, but with rising petrol prices and it being low season for tourists, it's not going very fast.
If you could spare a penny or know of a way to secure funding for this kind of equipment, please reach out or donate through the link in our bio.

Need a way to cool down? 🫠 This Anhinga understands how you feel! The Anhinga – or snake bird – is a whacky water bird found all over the reserve. While it often fishes under water, it doesn’t have the waterproof oils needed to prevent its feathers from getting wet. So you often find Anhinga drying off in the hot sun with their wings extended. Here, you see a young Anhinga cooling off by rapidly vibrating its throat pouch to dissipate heat.