Jeannie said:
Thank you for your thoughtful replies! Your second post answered my next question- what about Ecuador? I read the earlier thread on Ecuador and it sounds like that could be an excellent trip as well. I will do a search for trip reports from independent travelers. I'd heard mixed reviews from former Peace Corps volunteers (non-birders) about the amount of habitat destruction there. Are most of the prime sites on private land, or is there good birding in national parks/ reserves?
To add a bit on the info in the previous post;
The Pantanal is rather like a Brazilian version of the Venezuelan Llanos. The birding is quite similar and in both cases, may I add,
world-class & great. Still, for a first-time & "self-guided" visit to South America I would repeat my recommendations for Ecuador & Venezuela. By shere coincidense I wrote a post on the Pantanal (in Brazil) a few days ago. Here it is in case you're interested:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=16102
- post #6
I'd also like to add a final comment on security in Brazil. Brazil is way safer than the media claims. Don't misunderstand me, there certainly are places where you should NOT go, especially after dark. But, as long as you use common sense and ask around, I consider Brazil as safe as LA or NY in the USA. The same can be said about Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela... and so on. - It should be mentioned that my hair is blond as blond gets, so I am easy to pick out as being a "gringo"
Regarding habitat destruction in Ecuador. Yes, it is
bad, but no worse than in any other country in South America; be that Venezuela, Peru or Bolivia. Luckily, a few individuals have been (and still is) doing a massive task in recent years and the effect is slowly starting to appear. Also, a few lodges have started to become "good business", thereby removing the immediate threat to these areas. Still, the situation is far from resolved, but there are clear indications that most important areas can be saved - at least to some extent. So, in this context, the situation in Venezuela and Ecuador are quite similar. My knowledge on the various programs by the Peace Corps projects in South America is rather limited. I am aware that a few programs for volunteers have become money-making machines. Note that I am not aware of the exact companies behind these, this is
not in relation to the Peace Corps projects. An example of what I would consider cheating is a (apparently) British company that charged a rather hefty sum, so people could become volunteers at some of the Jatun Sacha reserves (in Ecuador). The company claimed that they passed on the money to the Jatun Sacha foundation and their conservation efforts. Later I was told by officials in the Jatun Sacha organisation that they never received a single $. It should be mentioned that the Jatun Sacha foundation has - without doubt - proven to be one of the most efficient conservation organisations in Ecuador. They got caught in this mess by accident, and were not in any way involved in the cheating. If someone should wish to become a volunteer at one of their reserves they should contact them directly,
not via another company:
http://www.jatunsacha.org/
It is possible to volunteer for several of their projects. They do take a small fee for this experiance, but way less than the cheating company mentioned earlier (that apparently took several thousand US$ per month). Also, if you pay the foundation directly,
all the money go to conservation. If I remember correctly, you have to volunteer for a one month period minimum. I visited several of their stations and several of them were quite amazing experiances. It should be mentioned that I didn't volunteer due to a the time I had available. They can also be contacted (via the above URL) and then visited for a shorter period w/o the work. This is cheap, but obviously still more expensive than volunteering. If I remember correctly I paid 25 US$ per day (incl. three meals & unlimited purified water for drinking) for a visit to Bilsa. As said, I visited several of their reserves but Bilsa will forever stand back as something unique. Access alone is an experiance. First part is relatively easy and includes getting on a truck with a bunch of locals for transportation to a small village. You spend a night there, and the following day the fun begins: 5+ hours on a horse. Not just any trip, but along what may be the most muddy trail you will ever see! I have seen
a lot of mud. But never anything remotely similar to this! There were several places where the mud was a meter (3 feet) thick! I remember reading a trip-report that stated "Bilsa aka Muds Revenge". - And that is a fitting name! It should be mentioned that this is rather seasonal. This is one of the localities in the world that gets the largest amount of rain. Still, even in the dry season it is apparently rather muddy. Well, some may call me crazy, but I actually found it rather fun! I assume you wouldn't visit this locality for this reason, though. However, the birding is amazing. I still remember standing below booming male Long-wattled Umbrellabird on the early mornings! They have several leeks here and this is probably the only place in the world where this species can be virtually guaranteed (or even expected). Their list is filled with amazing species. Just to mention a few of my highlights I saw Plumbeous Forest-falcon, Rose-faced Parrot, Tooth-billed Hummingbird, Lita Woodpecker, Black-striped Woodcreeper, Black-tipped Cotinga, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis... and much, much more! If you're very lucky you may even see the Banded Ground-cuckoo. This is one of the very few localities where it has been seen in recent years. They have also have two towers. It should mentioned that these towers are safe (you put on a harness before climbing the ladder), but certainly not for people who are affright of heights! Anyway, as said, without doubt one of the most amazing birding experiances I have ever had! Getting there is quite an experiance, but they arrange everything (horses etc.) and it really isn't too hard. Just remember that this isn't a lodge. It's primarily a fieldstation so they can show you where the trails start and give hints, but they are
not going to act as guides. The other fieldstations they have are nice aswell, though much easier to access. They are found in various habitats with Bilsa being in the Choco, Jatuna Sacha (the station they started with) in the Amazon, Congal being in the dry forest/mangroves region etc. etc. (check their website for full info on the various localities). Do note that volunteers are expected to work. It is not a holiday but rather a full-time job. It can be hard to work in the jungle and sometimes rather frustrating - certainly not for everybody. You should expect to work monday to friday from 8 AM to 3-4 PM, meaning that birding can be relatively limited and mostly done in weekends. Also note that several of these localities are away from shops etc. Everything you need you bring along yourself. Food is there and so is drinking water. But if you like chocolate or similar, bring it along yourself! I am not aware of other programs for volunteers in regards of the nature even though I am sure there are others. There are always plenty of people wanted for projects to help in poor regions or help teach English. I don't have the details available, though.
Anyway, back to the initial question; yes, many of the protected areas are private. However, most of them allow visitors for a small fee. There are also several areas that are protected by the Ecuadorian Government and they also require (very fairly may I add!) an entrance fee. Here are two posts I wrote recently, both being on various localities in southern Ecuador:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=162568#post162568
- post #6 & 11
For "self-guided" birding in Ecuador this report is comprehensive and very good:
http://www.surfbirds.com/mb/trips/ecuador-fr-0501.html
Sadly, I have not been able to locate any significant reports on birding on your own in Venezuela (perhaps I'll end up writing one). However, as mentioned earlier, birding in Venezuela is generally fairly easy and shouldn't present a problem. Just get the guide by Mary L. Goodwin mentioned in post #3.
As always, check Eurobirding for reports (they have plenty for both Ecuador & Venezuela):
http://www.eurobirding.com/