BIRDING TOURS
The Best of the Pantanal: Birds & Jaguars,
7 days / 6 nights,
July to October
Great birds and amazing mammals in an easy way: the "Safari Style". Our safari to the Pantanal will cover the area dramatically using the Transpantaneira road to penetrate deep into the Pantanal, crossing a wide range of habitats: dry grasslands and open scrub in the north gradually give way to large semi-deciduous forests and extensive swamps. This tour is a perfect combination of bird and mammal watching providing an exciting selection of birds plus the thrill of searching for the majestic Jaguar. No other tour operator offers a proper open safari vehicle in the pantanal, this is not a low budget, low level tour - its simply The Best of the Pantanal in Safari Style!.
Cerrado Specialties: Emas NP & Chapada NP
7 days / 6 nights
July to October
South of the Amazon Basin lies a series of high plateaux where you can see for ever. The ground is carpeted in grasses and shrubs, and there are small, gnarled trees with fire-resistant thick, corky bark. This vast area of grassland and scrub is known as Cerrado and it is far more endangered than the Amazon rainforest. Today, less than half of the original cerrado remains but only 2% of this is protected. It is in these remnant areas that you can get a glimpse of what the cerrado was like decades ago, oases for wildlife and wildlife watchers alike. Our itinerary will focus on Emas NP and Chapada dos Guimarães NP.
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Chapada, Pantanal & Guaporé river
12 days / 11 nights
Anytime of the year
This is a tour that covers the western part of Brazil dramatically, from the cliffs and Cerrado of Chapada dos Guimarães NP, to the flooded lowlands of the Pantanal and then to the amazing Guaporé river with its Amazonian influence and the Cerrado near the Bolivian border full of rare species in Brazil. The bird list is huge and fulfilled with beautiful and iconic birds, from hyacinth macaw, greater rhea, jabiru, hoatzin, horned and southern screamers sharing the same ponds, two species of crescentchest and several other rare birds such as black-and-tawny seedeater and great-billed seed-finch.
Minas Gerais: Blue-eyed Ground-Dove
9 days / 8 nights
Anytime of the year
The Blue-eyed Ground-Dove is one of the rarest birds in the world and has been missing for 75 years until a population was rediscovered in 2015. Apart from the rare Blue-eyed Ground-dove, this tour concentrates on the dry (deciduous) forests of northern Minas Gerais, that have received little attention from biologists or birders compared to the more glamorous rainforests of the Amazon basin, but they have a higher degree of endemism, and are considered to be more at risk.
Atlantic Rainforest: Southeastern Brazil
12 days / 11 nights
April to November
With more than 170 species of endemics this truly is a must destination for birders. The Serra do Mar, with its steep, forest-cloaked mountains, offers some of the most pristine montane forest left in Brazil. Seeking to avoid the rush of too many localities, we have settled on just three main stops, all offering world-class birding and with good accommodations in close proximity to the best birding spots. All three spots are well-known for its avian riches and for sheltering a large number of endemics and endangered species of the Atlantic Forest biome.
Northeastern Brazil: Caatinga endemics
14 days / 13 nights
December to March
Northeastern Brazil is a land of stark contrast. Its immense, arid interior is dominated by a unique habitat known as caatinga, an association of thorn scrub, columnar cacti, and huge terrestrial bromeliads. This region harbors an endemic avifauna that includes some of the least known and most endangered species of birds on the South American continent. Although the chance to bird the caatinga would alone be worth the trip, it is only half the attraction of our tour. It includes also the last remants of the highly fragmented Atlantic coastal forests, home to numerous endangered endemics and which arguably rank as the most critically endangered area of biodiversity in South America.
Southern Brazil: Three States and hundreds of birds
14 days / 13 nights
April to November
Exploring the southern Atlantic rainforest habitats, strange araucaria forests, high plateau grasslands and small marshes, scenically spectacular canyons and enormous lakes and wetlands hosting a spectacular number of birds, resident and migratory, most of them common to southern South America but very localized and rare in Brazil. A variety of habitats encompassing some spectacular scenery, a pleasant, largely temperate climate, good food and accommodations throughout, and one of the world’s most unique and endangered avifaunas combine to make southern Brazil an unforgettable birding experience.
Southern Amazonia: Alta Floresta & rio Cristalino
05 days / 04 nights
Anytime of the year
At north of Mato Grosso State in the southern Amazonia, lies the region of Alta Floresta, an example of pristine Terra Firme forest. The Cristalino Reserve is one of the highlights birding spots of Brazil and South America. The geographic location in the headwaters of the Tapajós river contributes greatly to its ornithological importance because the river separates different populations of many forest birds. There are few places, even in the deepest recesses of Amazonia, where one can experience such undisturbed wilderness. The built of towers allow spectacular views of canopy species, these are the only towers in southern Brazilian Amazonia.
Manaus and the heart of the Amazon
09 days / 08 nights
Anytime of the year
Right at the city of Manaus, the world’s largest river, the Amazon, meets its largest tributary, the Rio Negro. During this natural adventure, we’ll explore the unique ecologies of these two rivers and learn about their important roles in shaping the evolutionary history and biogeography of the region. The extensive tracts of undisturbed habitat in the area harbor a unique variety of distinct ecosystems, and on this trip we’ll spend time in igapo, terra firme, white sand forest, the rainforest canopy, and the Amazon's unique and dynamic river islands.
Iguassu Falls: Waterfalls and birds in two National Parks
04 days / 03 nights
Anytime of the year
The biggest waterfalls in the world, are surrounded by subtropical Atlantic rainforest which supports some restricted rare birds.This birding tour will visit both sides of the falls and also a day trip to Urugua-i State Park in the Argentinian side, with less visitors that the famous falls but equal impressive avifauna.
Southern Amazonia: Cunhatai-Porá Reserve
05 days / 04 nights
Anytime of the year
Just 250km from Cuiabá a reminiscent patch of Amazonian rainforest and Campinarana dry forest (white sandy soil) is home to a variety of species not found in the Pantanal or Chapada dos Guimarães, making it perfect for an extension tour to your visit to the Pantanal. The reserve has six thousands acres and is home of some rarities with very patchly distribution such as Pará Gnatcatcher, Dot-eared Coquette, Cone-billed Tanager, and other more distribuited Amazonian species such as Spotted Puffbird, Pale-bellied Mourner, Gould´s Toucanet, Rufous-capped Nunlet, Common Scale-backed Antbird, Paradise Tanager and many more. And it is the best place to see the rare Mittermeier´s Saki Monkey!
Minas Gerais Jewels: Serra da Canastra, Caraça and Serra do Cipó
10 days / 09 nights
June to October
Toward the southeastern corner of the Brazilian Plateau are some discrete mountain ranges (serras) uplifted above the level of the Planalto Central. Their upper reaches are comprised of rocky outcrops full of strange xeric plants and surrounded by grass fields. In addition to a number of unique plant species (which are responsible for the designation of Cipo as a national park), these rocky grass fields support a handful of endemic birds as well: Hyacinth Visorbearer, Cipo Canastero (Asthenes luizae, discovered in 1985 at Cipo, 1400 kilometers from its geographically nearest congener!), Gray-backed Tachuri, and Pale-throated Pampa-Finch. We’ll seek these specialties in the upper reaches of Serra do Cipo and Serra do Caraca parks.