Cristalino chronicles part 1

I finally arrived at the lodge 24 hours late due to an accident which temporarily closed Cuiaba airport, and together with my first group of eight guests so I had to start guiding straight away.  The group really got on well together so it was great to start off with such a nice, easy-going group.  We also got to see some good things including three tapirs, a Neotropical River Otter asleep on a log, and both howler and saki monkeys around the lodge itself.  I then had just one morning off before my next group and was having a lazy breakfast when I noticed a Straight-billed Hermit, a lifer, right next to the dining room!

I was a bit apprehensive about my second group as they were keen birders and I'm still struggling to remember all the calls.  They were really nice too, though, and, with the help of Francisco, the local bird guide, we found them some fantastic things.  I'd asked them what they most wanted to see, and they replied Zigzag Heron and Harpy Eagle. Well, we saw the former catching a big fish out in the open and the Harpy Eagle twice, with a supporting cast of Tapajos Hermit, Amazonian Pygmy and Mottled Owls, Razor-billed Curassow, several Gould's Toucanets, and four Bare-eyed Antbirds showing ridiculously well. They saw around 200 species during their four-night stay and I even got another lifer with them in the form of a migrant Rufous-thighed Kite.  They were already very pleased, therefore, but there was one last surprise in store as we headed down to the main river on their way out.  I had noticed something thrashing around in the water and got the boatman to stop as I guessed it was Giant Otters hunting. I then noticed some wings, however, and then more wings as the thrashing mess materialised into an adult Ornate Hawk-Eagle with a Green Ibis in its claws. The hawk-eagle was struggling to drag the ibis up the riverbank and then let go, leaving a stunned ibis and incredulous group of people behind.  Even after six years of coming here, there are still things that leave you open-mouthed and amazed at what you have just witnessed!

All change

Last week, I just did a little naturalising around Brussels, taking pictures of dragonflies such as this Black-tailed Skimmer.  My current work contract is coming to an end and I didn't really have any plans for the coming month or two until the next one starts.  On my regular patch, however, I came across this Red-crested Pochard, the first in Brussels since January, its coral-pink bill giving it away as a male in eclipse plumage.

  
This is a plumage we don't often get to see here and is also a sign of change, since the males are only in this plumage for a short while after the breeding season.  It turned out to be a good omen since I was contacted over the weekend by Cristalino Jungle Lodge, where I have spent five summer seasons guiding.  They were in desperate need of a guide at extremely short notice so, Monday evening, my flights were confirmed to depart this coming Saturday for another seven weeks in the Amazon!  I'll try to post some regular updates from there but now I need to pack!

Out with a bang

There's already a certain feel of autumn in the air as the Swifts had deserted the skies above Brussels by the end of July.  In addition, there seems to be a slight downturn in the variety and numbers of butterflies on the wing so, last week, I had one more day's butterflying in Belgian Luxembourg before it's too late and I ended up seeing no less than 24 species, the most I've seen in one day this year!  The Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries were showing well this time but I found yet another hairstreak I'd not seen before, namely Brown Hairstreak, which is our biggest one.

Yesterday, I visited one of the few Belgian colonies of Silver-spotted Skipper which is conveniently located right next to Lommel train station and they were even easier to find than to get to.  I thus added yet another species to my Belgian list, which now stands at 62 out of of the 103 recently recorded species in Belgium. The only ones left are all either rare or localised and require a species-by-species effort for me to connect with.  

July round-up

The rest of July was fairly quiet although I did get to see my first Scotch Argus butterflies near Han-sur-Lesse; within ten minutes of stepping out of the bus, I was watching several of them feeding on flowers.

Last week, I made another visit to the Tienne Breumont, hoping to see some more butterflies but it was cold and overcast so only the Six-spot Burnet moths were showing.

I did find another orchid, however, which I believe to be Fragrant Orchid, and watching this Dipper feeding was a nice way to pass the time as I waited for the bus back.