Atta Rainforest Canopy

After breakfast, we headed down the north-south road to the Atta Rainforest Lodge. Along the way I spotted a green aracari, several black curassows and a spotted sandpiper. We watched another agouti scooting down the road but still no jaguar. As we drove a bit further, an ocelot crossed our path. Not a jaguar but at least it was in the cat family!!!! There might be a chance!!!! We nearly drove over a green vine snake that was slithering on the dirt road but stopped just in time. I lept out of our vehicle as fast as I could and I managed to snap a few shots of it before it made its way into the brush. It was the most amazing vibrant green but to some of the others on the tour, it was just plain scary!!!

A few hours later, our vehicle pulled into the entrance of the Atta Lodge where we were greeted by the lodge manager and staff and had a wonderful reception of rum punch to quench our thirsts. Three red howler monkeys watched curiously from the treetops. I think they wanted to quench their thirsts as well!!!!

After settling in our rooms which were rustic and quite nice, I explored the grounds which were loaded with beautiful flowers that perfumed the air. And they obviously attracted birds with their sweet nectar as long tailed sylph hummingbirds whizzed from flower to flower. Also, in the area were a capuchin bird, white winged swallow and screaming cotinga. Of course no rainforest would be complete without little critters as I stumbled upon a millipede and a very interesting insect, the reticulate plant hopper. Well, that's enough about me playing with bugs. I joined the rest of the group and we were guided to the canopy walkway wondering about the birdlife that was in store for us. It was an easy walk along the tree lined trail, with several species of trees marked with their names. Our guide provided informative details of the uses of each tree by the local Amerindian tribe. At the end of the trail, walking up the equivalent of three to four flights of stairs, we reached the canopy walkway and looked down upon the collage of flora below. Leaves of all sizes and shapes and shades of green resulted in me capturing the beauty of nature's abstracts with my camera. After perching on one of the stands located at the end of one of the walkways, remaining quiet and patiently waiting (and reminding the others to do the same!), I was rewarded as thirteen endangered scarlet macaws buzzed the treetops about 100 yards in front of me. They flew to the other side of the valley and too far away to get a good photo though. I guess a few photos of red dots against a bright green background would be all that I would get. I waited about an hour for them to approach again but the sun was setting and the macaws didn't appear that they wanted to cooperate with me and remained distant. We returned to the lodge for an excellent meal, a few drinks and then retired for the evening.