Peru

Manu

Information

SITE RANK

3

HABITAT Various forest types including humid tropical, humid upper tropical, humid subtropical and humid temperate forest; river, lakes, varzea woodland

KEY SPECIES Antbirds, hummingbirds, tanagers, Andean Cock-of-the-rock, macaws and other parrots, Manu Antbird

TIME OF YEAR All year round

In the lower level terra firme forest, the gaudy Paradise Tanager is a common component of mixed flocks.

If you were ever curious as to which is the richest birding locality on earth, this is it. The bird list for Manu National Park stands at around the 1,000 species mark. Such is its sumptuous richness that about one-third of all South America’s superabundant avifauna has been recorded here, and no less than one-tenth of all the bird species in the world, all within a single, albeit large, protected area in a single country.

Manu lies in the south-eastern part of Peru, to the north-east of the famous tourist hot-spots of Cuzco and Machu Picchu and west of the bustling frontier town of Puerto Maldonado. Its species richness stems partly from the fact that its area encompasses the complete altitudinal range of moist east Andean slopes, from 4,000 m altitude down to 365 m, with all their varied birdlife; and partly from its biogeographical position, where three endemic bird areas meet: the south-eastern Peruvian lowlands, the eastern Andes of Peru and the western Andes of Peru, with their combined list of more than 50 restricted range species. Of course, the national park is also rather large, encompassing 15,000 sq km of core area, together with a ‘Reserved Zone’ of 2,570 sq km and an outer ‘Cultural Zone’ of 9,129 sq km. This is enough to hold almost the entire watershed of the Manu River and most of the tributaries of the Alto Madre de Dios. Nevertheless, many other parks of comparable size elsewhere in the tropics would struggle to reach even half the number of bird species recorded here. Incidentally, it is also the site where two great ornithologists, Scott Robinson and the late Ted Parker, managed to record 331 species in 24 hours in September 1986.

With such an amazing diversity of birds, there are obviously plenty of highlights. Perhaps, though, the Manu Lodge and Manu Wildlife Centre, which are in the Reserved Zone to the east of the park proper, offer the best introduction to pure biodiversity. Located on the Rio Alto Madre de Dios, within a huge area of pristine terra firme forest, with scatterings of varzea (seasonally flooded) forest and transition floodplain forest, the immediate area of the wildlife centre had a bird-list of 556 to the end of 2006, with a great number still to come. It is the sort of place you could stay for months and still see new species almost every day. Kitted out for surprisingly comfortable birding, this lodge is to wildlife watchers what an amusement park is to a child: packed with an array of thrilling treats. One of the most famous is the Blanquillo clay lick, where simply hundreds of parrots visit every day to eat the mineral-rich clay on the exposed bank. The most prominent visitors are the spectacular Red-and-green Macaws, of which there may be up to 100 or so, while a procession of smaller species are regular visitors: Blue-headed Parrot, Mealy and Yellow-crowned Amazon, the splendid Orange-cheeked Parrot and White-eyed and Cobalt-winged Parakeets. Nobody is entirely sure why these birds risk their lives to visit the lick (which is exposed to the view of predators), since they are all primarily herbivores, subsisting on fruit and seeds. It has been suggested that the minerals may help to ameliorate the effects of plant toxins contained within their food. Whatever the reason, just watching these spectacular gatherings from floating blinds on the river would alone be quite enough reason to visit Manu. Yet the Blanquillo lick is not the only one hereabouts. Another area of clay deep in the forest is a favourite spot for large mammals, including tapirs and peccaries. It is also good for the larger forest birds, especially cracids and yet more parrots.

A good way to appreciate the forest around Manu Wildlife Centre is to climb the lodge’s own canopy tower, which is built into a giant Ceiba tree. Here, a few hours at dawn will reveal a procession of forest canopy jewels, often with 70 or more species in a single mixed flock, notably those absurdly colourful tanagers, such as the almost too opulent Paradise and Opal-rumped Tanagers. A completely different experience would be to venture into the Guadua bamboo thickets, that shady world where the forest harbours its inner secrets. Here the specialists include the recently described Manu Antbird, the White-cheeked Tody-Flycatcher and the curious, if frustrating, Peruvian Recurvebill. The trip to the different sites along the river is a wonder in itself, encountering large numbers of equally specialized birds, such as Yellow-billed and Large-billed Terns, Orinoco Goose and Sand-coloured Nighthawk, the world’s most diurnal nightjar.

All these birds are found only in a small part of Manu National Park. Chief among the other attractions are the transitional forests at Amazonia Lodge at an elevation of 500 m, and Cock-of-the-rock Lodge, in the south-west of the park, at 1,600 m. The former site, in the zone between tropical and subtropical forest, has a bird-list of about 550 species, including many species characteristic of slightly higher elevations, such as Blue-headed and Military Macaws, Koepcke’s Hermit and Gould’s Jewelfront. The diversity of antbirds here could possibly be one of the highest in the world, with Great Antshrike and such gems as Spot-backed Antbird and Stripe-chested Antwren among the dozens of species. Amazonia Lodge is, of course, famous for its lek of Andean Cock-of-the-rocks, near the accommodation, which can be seen from permanent blinds and watched at leisure. The many highland birds here include Booted Racket-tail, a spectacular hummingbird, plus both Golden-headed and Crested Quetzals and such delightful Andean staples as Streaked Tuftedcheek, Pearled Treerunner, Hooded Mountain Tanager and Capped Conebill.

There is yet more to be seen at the highest elevations, where the elfin forest grows and there are open areas of paramo. Birds here include various tinamous and specialized high-altitude species such as Puna Thistletail, Tit-like Dacnis and Moustached Flowerpiercer. As yet, there has been little ornithological exploration in this inaccessible part of the park. Most likely it will be here that the species-counter will click on into the 1,000s, cementing Manu’s position as the indisputable top place in the world for bird species.

A male Andean Cock-of-the-rock bows in display. A well-watched lek of these birds is situated close to the lodge of that name, although the species is fairly common in suitable habitat at Manu.

Up to 100 Red-and green Macaws may gather at the Branquillo clay lick.

Manu’s forests are the richest on earth for bird species.

The forest near Amazonia Lodge is a hot-spot for antbirds – this is a Great Antshrike, which is one of the easiest species to see.