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| (updated 2/21) |
(updated 2/24) |
Reporting Team Names: Your Friendly Teachers
Location: Still here.
Weather: Yes.
Temperature: hot
Precipitation: none
Humidity: not so bad today
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Feral pig |
1 |
Acuri palm |
lots |
Araça guava |
A snackable amount |
Capybaras |
2 herds |
Spiny bromeliads |
Here a bromeliad, there a bromeliad, everywhere a bromeliad… |
Roseate Spoonbills |
4 |
Wood Stork |
1 |
Peccaries |
1 |
Tarantula |
1 |
Little pimento tree |
Scads |
Tree of small black fruits |
Many |
Toco toucans |
6 |
Hyacinth macaws |
Several pairs |
Ferral pig |
1 that Don almost hit |
Preying mantis |
1 |
Water grasshopper |
Lots. These guys can walk under water. |
Nightjars |
Lots in the headlights as we headed home. |
Tadpoles |
All sorts |
Water boatmen |
Oh Oh |
Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
Wetlands |
Team Leader: Don Volunteers Martha, Donna, Tom
|
We got to the salina and Donna volunteered to walk into the water. Don explained that we would be in water up to our waist, but it was closer to armpit depth! We checked several salinas and baias for depth and temperature at monitoring stations. We also did some water chemistry at Salina Brunet and Salina Brunetzinha (Little Salina Brunet) because the water level is so high the two are connected. Don explained that this is a rare event. Salina Brunet is named after Luisa Brunet, a beautiful Brazillian actress who once went for a swim there.
In the afternoon, we had the pleasure of releasing the tortoise we found yesterday on our way to wade into some other salinas and baias to check their depth, chemistry, and temperature. We also collected some tadpoles, backswimmers, and a freshwater sponge from a temporary baia. This is something like our vernal pools.
We were treated to some wonderful wildlife, included a brocket deer, nightjars, and a feral pig which we almost ran over. |
Peccaries |
Alexine – Team leader Baiano – Special Agent, Peccary Project Daiane, Tabby |
We checked a few traps this morning and re-baited them. All were empty except for one containing a feral pig. This is the same pig that Alexine catches every day in that same trap. We followed a peccary trail through the woods, making notes of every fruiting tree we passed (peccaries eat the fruit). Baiano found a feral pig skull that we brought back to the lab. In the afternoon, we followed another peccary trail, then got a radio call that a herd of white-lipped peccaries had been spotted elsewhere. So we loaded into the jeep and raced away to the spotting site. We followed the new trail and used the telemetry equipment, eventually getting close enough to hear (and smell!) them, but not quite close enough to see them. |
Frugivores |
Richard and Martha Ducca was team lead |
Today Martha and I finished cleaning up Trail 2. This involved some bushwhacking, wading through water up to our waist and, tracking peccaries. We also had to finish marking the trail. We measure the trail every 25 meters and then mark the trail with pink ribbon. |
Small Mammals |
Team Leaders: Vitor and Cecilia Teachers: Kleiton and Michelle |
We went to where Vitor has his traps and we checked to see if there were any animals inside them. If there was, Vitor and Cecilia weighed and measured the animals (small marsupials and rats—cute rats!), as well as looked the animals over for any identifying marks or injuries. Also we took notes on the sex of the animal as well as clipped their ears with a metal tag to be able to track them in the future. It was a very fun day where we learned a lot and got see a small species of anteater who was yellow. He was so close, it was very cool! It was a great day! |
Frogs And Frugivores |
Frogs Team leader: Ellen Volunteers: Patricia, Richard
Frugivoires Team Leadesr: Ducca and Paul Volunteers: Elisangela, John
|
AM: The groups went to release a peccary, then cleared and marked the trail on Vazante Road #1. We returned to the farm and went exploring with canoes. John and Patricia observed four beautiful Roseate Spoonbills on the river's edge and watched as they flew over our heads. Jeff and Richard went and picked flowers from some lillypads and then fed a caiman some tetras (fish).
PM: Kleiton, Neuci and Patricia went fishing with Lico. No luck at the bridge, so we went to another part of the river, near a group of capybara. Patricia caught the first fish, called a pacu. We weighed and measured the pacu, and kept it in a holding net. Lico caught the second pacu, which was also documented.
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Now that it is almost time to leave, we have started to settle into a daily routine
Reporting Team Names: You know us by now
Location: Right where you left us
Weather:
Temperature: warm
Precipitation: not yet, but the clouds say maybe in a few hours
Humidity: not so much
Notes: Pleasant and breezy. We´ll take it!
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Ants |
hills |
Orange daisylike grassland flower |
10? |
Stalk of big white grassland flowers |
2 |
Tiny white and pink grassland flowers |
3 |
8 or 10 different species of grass |
14,312,316,207 not counting the ones behind the other ones that we couldn´t really see |
Birds |
None (see frugivore study below) |
Collared peccaries |
2 herds |
Palmetto |
several |
Hawk |
1 – Bobbie and Donna saw this guy chasing away all the birds we were supposed to be observing today. Hmmm, is there a connection? |
Teeny red ants |
Hundreds in Donna's fanny pack, quickly shown their way out. |
Blue and yellow macaw |
4 |
Scarlet macaw |
2 |
Red-capped cardinal |
1 (by many people! – frugivores) |
Marsh deer |
1 |
1 BIG turtle |
|
Honeybees |
lots |
Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
Wetlands |
Team Leader: Don Teachers: Elisangela, Daiane, and Michelle |
During the morning we stayed in the laboratory separating and counting insects that had been found the previous day in the baias and salinas. We separated insects which were in different stages of development. We took them out of a container of water and placed them on a paper similar to a coffee filter so that the water would dry quickly, and then we weighed the paper with the insects on it. Afterwards, the insects were removed from the paper and the paper itself was weighed. In doing this, we were able to determine the weight of the insects themselves. The insects were then placed in 70% alcohol in order to preserve them for future research. In the afternoon, we went to three baias and two Salinas to test water chemistry and collect more water samples. Don also took us to a climate station where he connected a laptop and downloaded information such as the quantity of rain that has fallen, temperature of the soil and the air, and the direction and strength of the wind. It was a day in which we did not participate in too much physical activity, however we did wade through a lot of water and learned a lot of interesting things. On the way home, we drove in the dark and it was so beautiful! There were thousands of lightning bugs and millions of stars! We saw Orion's belt, the Southern Cross, and a belt of the Milky Way is very clear here. It was SO MAGICAL driving around at night!! It was a great day. |
Peccaries |
Alexine team lead John, Neueci |
Caught a large peccarie in a trap and then weighed him. He weighed about 40 kilos. How much is that in pounds? He was given some fruit and the cage covered for release on Sunday (Domingo in Portuguese). A great day. |
Frugivores |
Ellen – team leader, Tabby, Donna, Bobbi Paul – team leader, Tom, Kleiton |
This morning both groups went to survey birds. We each sat by a tree that had fruit, in order to observe what species of birds came to eat the fruit, how long they stayed, how much fruit they ate, how much fruit they dropped, how much fruit they carried away, what else the birds did while in the tree, and where the birds headed next. This would undoubtedly have worked better if some birds had actually showed up at any of the 6 trees we were observing. Tabby actually did some great grass weaving while watching for birds and now has woven an immunity hat from palm leaves. Quite a fantastic hat it is. Tabby has definitely strengthened her place in the tribe by being the one to make the immunity hat, it seems at this point she is beginning to control the game. However, Jeff and Richard will not let any of us near the camera anymore. A red-capped cardinal did spend 5 minutes in a couple of trees, but was well hidden.
In the afternoon, Paul's team went tracking peccaries on horseback. The radio receiver didn't actually pick up any peccaries, but this was more than made up for by the huge red-footed tortoise we found at the edge of the salina. Rocky picked it up and carried it on his saddle until Ellen met us in the jeep and took the turtle in to measure before returning it to the salina. Meanwhile, Ellen´s team went fishing as part of the wetlands survey project. Bobbi caught two beautiful fish. Richard and Tabby caught some bark and logs. Richard´s log that he caught was definitely the biggest. |
Frugivores 2 |
Duca- team leader Richard and Martha |
Today Martha and I finished cleaning up Trail 2. This involved some bushwhacking, wading through water up to our waist and, tracking peccaries. We also had to finish marking the trail. We measure the trail every 25 meters and then mark the trail with pink ribbon. The cool part about this was that as we were tracking peccaries we actually got to see two of them running through the woods. Boy, you sure can smell those guys! Richard also located three peccaries with radio signals, one which had not been found for awhile, further strengthening his place in the tribe. After doing this and jumping out of the tractor trailer last night to open all the gates in the dark it is unlikely that he will be voted off. With Jeff catching fish to provide for the tribe and Richard being the communicator, their alliance seems strong.
|
Small Mammals |
Vitor- PI, Patricia, Cecilia, Saulo, Jeff |
AM: We checked traps in Plots 1 and 2, and rebaited the empty ones. When we found small mammals in the traps, we put on masks and gloves and weighed and measured the rodents. Vitor checked for parasites, ear tags, and any unusual markings or wounds.Jeff and Patrica shared tasks of recording information and collecting feces. PM: Vitor, Cecelia, Jeff and Patricia set off to check traps at the Salina Brunet. We were almost there when the jeep went too deep into the mud and got stuck! We tried pushing (Cecelia got splattered with mud), and then we tried to pull it out with another jeep. The tow rope broke, and we waited for help from 'Japao' on the tractor. We were rescued after dark, and almost made it back, when we found Don's jeep stopped on the road. No one knew why. Vitor then tried to start up his jeep, and it wouldn't start! No explanation. Both groups were finally rescued by Ellen in a larger truck. |
Frogs |
|
|
Alexine gave a talk this evening about her peccary research. All that tracking and trapping we do is helping her find out where the two species of peccary and one species of feral pig go, and how big their home ranges are. She can also compare peccary home ranges here with their home ranges in other places, in order to tell if the presence of feral pigs (introduced by people) are affecting the peccary species.
February 21, 2004, 9:14 AM PST (No official journal yet.)
Sabada Manana:
This morning a group of us went to watch birds. One focus of the bird project
is to find out how birds impact fruit trees by eating seeds. Do the seeds
survive and spread? How much of what fruit do the birds eat?
We were each stationed at a different location and assigned to watch a tree.
We were to record the number and species of birds that visit the tree. We
also had to watch if the bird ate fruit, carried it away, or dropped it on
the ground. We saw some beautiful macaws (4 blue-and-white macaws and a pair
of scarlet macaws) and parakeets fly by, but did not see many birds in our
tree. We did see a red-crested cardinal in a couple of the trees.
Go to the images page to see some Macaw pictures.
Pantanal Reports Date: February 20, 2004
Reporting Team Names: The usual gang
Location: The usual place
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Peccaries |
15 |
Giant Anteater |
1 |
Coati |
1 |
Fox |
2 |
Armadillo |
1 |
Ant lion |
1 |
Gray spiders |
many |
Ant-looking spiders |
A few |
Various species of grasshoppers |
Several |
Camphor – an aromatic plant |
A patch |
A tiny blue wetland flower that smells good |
A big patch |
LOTS of species of grasses |
As far as the eye could see |
A brown butterfly that looks like a leaf |
1 |
Wasp nest |
1 (plenty!) |
Gigantic but harmless young waspy things that couldn´t fly yet |
10 |
Strangler figs |
Several |
Acuri – the fruiting palm |
A bunch |
Araça – remember the yummy wild fruit tree? |
Some |
Spiny bromeliads |
More than we really wanted to see! |
Dragonflies, many species |
Clouds |
Cat claw – a thorny but pretty and lacy shrub |
Several |
Biting ants |
Too many! |
Cork-barked tree |
2 |
Caiman |
1 |
Tree frogs |
Herds |
A white grub inside some fruit |
1 |
Bamboo |
1 grove |
Cactus |
Surprisingly, several! |
Brackettes deer |
1 |
Pampas deer |
5 |
Bats |
A few |
Lightning bugs |
1 meadow´s worth |
Tarantula |
1 |
Caspar the caiman |
Paul says he fed him the other day |
Caiman |
herds |
Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
Wetlands |
Team leader: Don John, Tom and Richard |
AM: We processed 10 sample bags from the first Salina north of the Fazenda. Sorting, counting and weighing each species. The most common species was the damsel fly nymphs at shallow depths and dragon fly nymphs at deeper depths. PM: Our water group went by tractor to the neighboring Fazenda Diacui (19° 33' 31” S 56° 10' 51.2” W). We stopped at a workers quarters where we conducted water temperature, oxygen and ph tests. As we rode to our second site we came upon a blue jeep stranded in the mud which we pulled out using a cable. Two minutes later we came upon four Vaqueiros on horseback in a corral separating cattle by age. After leaving the roundup we saw two hyacinth macaws making a sweeping turn around us in a field. The water team conducted a ten part test on a salina finishing the last core sample as it was getting dark. Venus could be seen as we were drilling the last core in the salina. |
Peccaries |
Team leader: Alexine, Assistants: Baiano, Piccole Teachers: Bobbie, Patricia |
AM: We checked the peccary traps and released 2, 2, and 1. One trap had to be repaired, and the other ones were set with new bait. Bobbie and Patricia both had turns fitting into the cages to set the traps. One peccary (named Orlando) came back looking for lunch. We followed a short peccary trail but no luck. PM: We went by tractor and wagon to another Fazenda on the northern part of the Pantanal. The Fazenda was a cattle farm that was dividing the cows into older and younger groups. It was amazing watching the Pantaneiros riding their horses. They seemed to be one with the horses. We acted as good neighbors would and assisted the owner of the farm and pulled his jeep out of the mud. While Paul and his wetland group conducted tests on a salina we traveled a little farther north to follow some peccaries. On the way home it became very dark and we were able to see the stars (all of them, it seemed) and then the lightning bugs came out. It was amazing! We even saw the Southern Cross. The thousands of lightening bugs looked like sparklers everywhere. |
Frugivores |
Duca (Team leader), Jeff, Tabby
Paul (team leader) Martha, Michelle |
AM: Duca´s group did some fruit sampling along Trail #1. We chose two sites at random near a baia, two at random near a salina, and two at random in the forest. We checked 50 square meters at each site, and if we found any good fruit lying on the ground in that space, we collected it to bring back to the lab to identify and mass. Paul´s group did some trail clearing and marking on Trail #1. PM: Duca´s group did some computer work in the classroom. Paul´s group headed out on horseback to track peccaries with the radio telemetry equipment. |
Small Mammals |
Team Leader – Vitor, Cecilia, Kleighton, Donna |
This morning Vitor made us leave very early in the morning: around 5ish. We set out to bait and check traps, and found 1 opossum and several Oecomys which are like field mice. One area had roads that were under too much water so the big tractor had to pull us. Vitor got bitten twice. He almost hit an armadillo! In the afternoon we went to the far north of the Fazenda and set two more trails, but didn~~t bait the traps. Then for a surprise he took us to an observatory above a salina, we sat and had cold tea while all the parrots came to the trees where we were sitting. The day was wonderful and incredible! |
Frogs |
|
Went bushwhacking today, no frogs. |
Pantanal Reports Date: 2-19-04
Reporting Team Names: The Group!
Location: Fazenda Rio Negro
Weather: Hot
Temperature: you guessed it - hot
Precipitation: nope
Humidity: stickier
Notes:
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Peccaries – white lipped |
6 caught in pig pen, 2 in another trap and 4 free pigs |
Capybaras |
12ish |
2 foot lizard – Dracaena paraguaensys |
1 |
Agouti - rodent |
3 |
Tapir |
1 |
Coati- in the trap |
1 |
Various rodents, rats, opossums, mice |
20 |
Dragonflies – assorted colors |
gobs |
Yellow butterflies |
6 |
Orange butterflies |
2 |
A cool bug on Bobbie's arm, kind of a walking stick thing |
1 |
Wall frogs Hyla spp a type of tree frog |
Lots – 14 above the kitchen |
Caspar the caiman |
1 |
Leaf cutter ants |
Several |
Forest type frogs – Physalaemus albonotatus |
Several |
Big brown toad – Bufo paracnemis |
1 |
Feral pigs |
4 |
Yellow wetland flower |
|
Pink wetland flower |
|
Purple wetland flower |
|
Pale orange wetland flower |
|
Palm trees – 3 types, |
|
Spiky bromeliads with flowers inside |
Bazillions all out to get us |
Water lilies |
Rafts |
Cattails |
Lots |
Jabiru – typical stork |
1 |
Red-legged seriema – wading bird |
2 |
River otter |
1 |
Wood stork |
4 |
Southern screamer – huge bird, like a turkey |
2 |
Chaco Chachalaca – bird, loud noisy ones |
A bunch – 2 groups arguing |
Araça – tree of yummy guava fruit |
Several |
Toucans |
3 |
Acuri – a type of palm tree with lots of fruit Scheelea phalerate |
Many |
Wasps |
Too many – one stung Saulo |
Kingfishers |
12 |
Caimans |
At least 4, 2 on a personal level! |
Pacu – type of fruit-eating fish |
1 |
Piranha |
1 |
Mosquitoes |
82 kajillion |
Brazilian ducks |
2 |
Morpho butterfly – blue |
1 |
Muscovy Duck |
4 |
Large billed tern |
Lots |
All sorts of egrets |
|
Cocoi herons |
|
Whistling herons |
6 |
Ibises |
Uncountable |
Roseate spoonbills |
2 |
Fan palms |
Tons |
Black neck stilt |
Uncountable |
Southern lapwing |
Uncountable |
Black vultures and turkey vultures |
|
Great black hawk |
1 |
Crested Caracara |
Several |
Guria Cuckoo |
Flock |
Figueira (Ficus) |
6 |
Crab Eating Fox |
3 |
Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
Wetlands |
Don Eaton – PI Patricia, Neuci, Jeff |
Worked all day in a salina (salty pond) capturing invertebrates and taking water quality readings (pH, conductivity, salinity, alkalinity, temperature and depth). Set up random sample areas and worked to deplete them of all living animals. It was wonderful to sit in the very warm salina listening to Howler Monkeys in the woods, watching Macaws fly over head as the sun set. These lakes are considered soda lakes because of their salt content. On the way home we encountered several crab-eating foxes along the darkened road. |
Peccaries |
Alexine – team leader Baiano – Pantaneiro Saulo - Pantaneiro Kleiton, Tom
|
We experienced Murphy's Law as it applies to field research. We found a mother and baby in a trap to the north and 6 peccaries in a large trap in the south. When we tranquilized the six, a little one ended up under some larger ones and suffocated. This was the first time one of the hundreds of peccaries Alexine has worked with has died as a result of the research, so it was very sad. We also discovered that the scanner which reads the microchips which Alexine injects into the peccaries was broken. When we worked with the mother and child peccary in the north, we discovered that some of the equipment had been left at the lab. Also, Alexine suffered food poisoning. Despite these setbacks, the work continued to completion. The highlight was definitely watching Saulo and Baiano lasso the peccaries. |
Frugivores |
Paul – team leader, Daiane, Tabby Duca – team leader, Bobbi, Michelle |
In the morning, both teams worked on clearing and tagging Trail #4. In the afternoon, Paul´s group cruised up and down the river with the radio telemetry equipment to seek peccaries. |
Small Mammals |
Vitor – Team Leader Martha, Elisangela, Cecilia |
In the morning we checked the traps. We found a total of five animals. Some we released with out analysis, others we collected data on. Vitor caught a naughty coati who was not supposed to be in the trap. In the afternoon we learned how to make rat bait. |
Frogs |
Ellen – team leader, John, Richard and Donna |
Today we dug big garbage can sized holes, or rather Richard and John did, then Ellen and I filled in the gaps, eventually they will put up a plastic tarp fence so that frogs will fall into the traps for her to study. We found out she marks them by cutting off their toes in an identifiable sequence. Then Richard, Bobbie and John went fishing in the afternoon where they were pestered by a caiman in the hot, hot sun. They also got the chance to see a river otter. |
Highlight of the Day: Catching peccaries!
Portuguese Words of the Day: Me escuta? Which means do you read me ? The PI´s all have radios to keep in contact with each other.
Data Collecting relating to the Big Picture:
Something that surprised you: The damsel flies today were in the shallow grassy areas, as opposed to the deeper water.
Pantanal Report Date: February 18, 2004
Reporting Team Names: The whole Team
Location: Fazenda in Rio Negro
Weather: Beautiful and clear
Temperature: warm
Precipitation: none
Humidity: plenty
Notes:
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Capybaras |
10ish including 4 babies |
Caiman |
lots |
Tiny red and white striped mushrooms |
2 |
Turkey tail fungus |
A mass |
Opalescent white mushrooms |
A group |
A tree with huge purple flowers |
1 |
Raccoon |
1 |
Crab-eating foxes |
2 |
Another kind of fox that wasn´t the crab eating fox |
1 |
Rice rats in the traps |
Lots |
Tiny opossum in the trap |
1 |
| Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
| Wetlands |
Team leader; Don Daiane, Kleiton, Patricia (am), Bobbie (pm) |
AM: We went to measure water levels at the bridge and another section of the river. Don taught us to throw the fishnet and we all tried to catch fish suitable for measuring mercury levels. No luck, but lots of piranha. We went to another location to measure temperatures, ph levels, alkalinity, and salinity. |
| Peccaries |
Team leaders: Alexine and Ellen Bobbie, Donna, Sao (pilot: Pita)
Martha, Richard, Paul, Elisangela joined the group after a morning of bushwhacking. |
The most awesome adventure! We tracked the peccaries from the SKY!!!! We had to run the rheas off of the flight line before we were able to fly. It was like they were playing with the plane. Banking right and left when Ellen would let us know she heard a beep on the tracking device. Donna would let us know the GPS reading, Alexine would relay the info to Bobbie (who couldn´t hear a thing) and she would write the time, way point and the collar number. Bobbie took over 100 pictures of the Pantanal from the air. (in just about 40 minutes) In the afternoon, we followed peccary trails, note that these are trails made by peccaries so it´s kind of like crawling through the forest. We heard a few near us clacking their teeth and making a ruckus. There were no peccaries in the pen. In addition to the peccary team tracking via the air, Michelle joined Baiano and Picole in the jeep and went and checked on previously baited traps. Unfortunately, there were no animals in the traps, but we did manage to see some howler monkeys as well as other wildlife.
|
| Frugivores |
|
The team covered trail two doing four fruit sample plots (five meters by ten meters.) They are selected randomly and we counted only fruit found on the forest floor. The first three sites were empty, and the fourth site included ten fig seeds and one acuri seed in ten percent of the sample area. We did one site in a forest setting, one site along a salina, and two sites along a baia. In the afternoon we entered data in the computer and worked on journals.
The other group who was working with the frugivore team went bushwhacking. They went about cleaning-up the trails with machetes and at the same time measuring and marking the trails every 25 meters with bright pink tape. During the afternoon they tracked peccaries and actually got so close that they could even smell them! Some feral pigs ran across the trail in front of the group. |
| Small Mammals |
Vitor – team leader, Cecelia, Tom, Tabby |
In the morning we checked traps. Captured mammals were massed, tagged and released. In the afternoon, we brought some more traps out to a new transect that Vitor is setting up.
|
| Frogs |
|
Jeff, Patricia, and Michelle joined Lico in the afternoon for a fishing trip on the Rio Negro. Jeff turned out to be the “King Fisher” (get it?) who was catching fish right and left. Patricia was at first just feeding the fish all of her bait, but soon caught-up with a few catches of her own. Michelle, however, only managed to catch two fish, but one got away. |
February 17, 2004 6:45 PM PST: Finally word from the Fazenda. Today we received messages fromt he team and official field reports that are a must read. Tom Light explained about the lack of communication: "We have been without internet connection since we got here. A technician flew in and fixed the server today!! I am attaching a web page on the history of the Fazenda Rio Negro where we are staying. It is incredible and I am exhausted!! I spent this morning swinging a machette in the heat. Yesterday I did machette work and dug big holes to trap snakes and frogs. I’ll tell more later."
We have official field reports (Feb 14, Feb 15, Feb 16) and a journal from Tom Light.
Pantanal Reports Date: 2-14-04 Happy Valentine´s Day
Reporting Team Names: Whole team
Location:
Weather:
Temperature: Hot
Precipitation: yep
Humidity: sticky
Notes: hot and sticky, quick, heavy rains
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Frog |
In the pipe, and heard the race car frogs |
Lightning bugs |
|
Bats |
|
Capybara |
|
Caiman |
|
Tetra fish |
|
Daily Routine: Today we were taken by van from the hotel in Campo Grande to Aquiaduana. On our way we stopped at a Ranchero to wait for the arrival of the planes at their airport and to have lunch. We heard the first chorus from frogs, found one frog in an old pipe, saw oven-nest bird nests, and termite hills. The houses along the way were of two kinds, either very nice and middle-high class looking, or shacks built of brick or just tarps and canvas. The planes were delayed because of bad weather meaning lots of rain. Finally, Duca got the call to bring us to the airport. When we first saw the planes that were many phrases of surprise spoken. I think Michelle said it best, ´´OK, my blood pressure just went way up!´´
The planes are Cessna´s and seat five people plus the pilot. It took 3 planes to get all of us and our luggage here. All our gear was supposed to be under 40 pounds, but when we loaded our plane the back end fell to the ground. After much laughter, some of the other people at the airport came over to pick up the back end to enable us to get off the ground. I think I started to hyperventilate at this point, but off we went and the view was spectacular! Richard yelled at me because I fell asleep for a few minutes on the trip – but I was tired and stressed! So I stayed awake the rest of the trip. We landed on a grass strip next to the Fazenda and once again the tail fell onto the ground once we landed. Again, much laughter from the plane that had arrived just before us, but this time no one helped us – we just bailed out.
We were shown to our rooms which sleep four people each. The rooms are very similar to camp. Four cots, screened window, ceiling fans, and thank goodness, air conditioning! The bathroom has a toilet and shower, but the sewer system here is quite primitive so you can not put tissue or anything in the toilet. There is a small garbage can next to each toilet for tissue waste. A very nice maid cleans our rooms and bathrooms each day, and there is a woman here who will do your laundry for a fee, or you can wash your own. The Brazilians do not like to do their clothes in the machines. All clothes are dried on numerous clotheslines in the back.
Meals are served in a common room and consists of Brazilian main dishes such as chicken (best chicken you will ever have!) pork, beef and various side dishes and for each lunch and dinner there is beans and rice. Breakfasts are bread, ham and cheese, rolls, sweet cakes and passion fruit juice. Very strong coffee with warm milk is also served. This morning we saw the cowboys capture one of the cattle for a future dinner, while the dachsund puppy chased a Rea, and then the Rea chased the puppy.
There is a classroom area for meetings, a very well stocked lab, a screened living room area to sit out away from the bugs, a TV room upstairs, and an outside gathering place where they keep water and other drinks. The classroom is where the computers are for using the internet. However, after the heavy rains earlier the satellite connection is broken and a technician is being flown in on Monday to try and fix it. So, we may not be able to upload our reports, but like good students we still do our homework!
Each teacher is also keeping a daily journal of our trip, which was not required. Some teachers are writing in small notebooks, and others are typing their journals either into their own personal computers or borrowing someone else`s. This is an adventure we do not want to forget.
Our team seems to have 400 cameras of various types and capabilities. We have at least 3 that can take video and 4-7 that take digital pictures, and I think there are some just old-fashioned cameras that just take pictures. Our plan is to send each other a CD of everyone´s pictures when we return to the States. Four hundred is an exaggeration, but it is a lot for so few people.
After a brief orientation we were free to rest or look around the grounds or do both. I, of course, slept. I am getting very good at taking afternoon naps. After my rest Richard took Michelle and I to show us the caiman. We saw a caiman right near the area where the boats are kept and a capybara in the water! As we walked towards the caiman, he did not back up. He actually snorted at us, but did not move. The capybara sunk under the water. We watched the caiman for a bit, and looked at all the tetra´s in the water, and walked past the rubber tree to see what else we could see. The capybara had snuck up on the beach and was in the orchard eating fruit that had fallen on the ground. We tried to get as close as possible to take lots of pictures, but he was not into being photographed. Meanwhile, the caiman, we´ll call Caspar for now, followed us in the water as we walked to the orchard. He kept looking at us.
The Fazenda is pretty self-sustaining and has cattle for beef and milk, domestic pigs, chickens and the fruits and vegetables. There are many types of fruit trees, different kinds of limes, star fruit, avocado, guava, mangoes, grapefruit (grown into a tree from a small plant that someone brought in ) oranges, ata, caju, passion fruit. Vegetables include peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, None of the plants in the garden are exotics, they are domestics brought in for the Fazenda. Food items that are flown in are the dry goods, salt, sugar, flour, tapioca, rice, beans, some fruits, some vegetables like potatoes and cucumber. The cook and the main man of the Fazenda tend to the gardens and it seems the cook just grabs someone and sends them out to gather what she needs for meals. Duca is collecting limes for her right now.
Don and Alexine have two children, Shawn who is 11 and Clara who is 3. Shawn´s birthday is in two days so we may get to see a birthday party. The children are very comfortable with everyone and the adults take turns watching Clara. Shawn can speak both English and Portuguese, and attends school in Campo Grande. He is missing a few days of school this week because his parents are out at the Fazenda – but oh, what an education he is getting here! Clara is very sweet and talkative, and very attached to many adults here.
The Fazenda has a large covered porch where there are three hammocks that we tend to fight over unless it´s buggy out. Late in the evening we saw lightning bugs and looked for the Southern Cross. We didn´t see that, but we did find Orion who is upside down! Duca told us that the moon will also look upside down to us. In the states, the moon is a backwards C when it is a crescent, here it is a C. The Fazenda basically follows the sun, so many of us headed off to bed, while Jeff and Richard plotted.
Highlight of the Day: The airplane ride!
Portuguese Words of the Day: Eu nao falo Portuguese. This means I don't speak Portuguese. Eu nao falo ingles. I don't speak English.
Data Collecting relating to the Big Picture: None
Something that surprised you: The airplane ride!
Pantanal Reports Date: 2-15-04
Weather:
Temperature: Hot
Precipitation: nope
Humidity: sticky
Notes: hot and sticky
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Blue Hyacinth Macaws |
2 |
Rea |
6 |
Caiman |
5 including one juvenile |
Tetra fish |
many |
Vulture |
2 |
Kingfisher |
1 |
Capybara |
1 |
Leaf cutter ants |
Many |
Frogs |
Lots, some in our rooms and showers, but many on the walls in the evening |
Lightning bugs |
Lots |
Parakeets – yellow |
3-4 |
Bright yellow butterflies |
|
Today was an introduction to the ecology of the area. Each scientist or Primary Investigator (PI) briefly went over their studies and the methods we would be using to collect data. Vitor – the Rat Man showed us the traps for rats and how to bait and set them. Ellen the Herpetologist – reptiles and amphibians explained our role this week is to dig holes for buckets to capture animals. She also showed us her false coral snake and we got to hold her, and the grass snake she captured who the next day laid eggs! She is keeping the eggs just right hoping they will hatch. Don went over the basic ecology of the river and the various impacts, the types of water tests we will conduct, the types of water Baia – freshwater, salina – salty lakes,
Alexine showed us how to use radio telemetry to track the peccaries and feral pigs. Each peccarie she has found is wearing a collar and many have chips implanted in the back of their neck. The collar allows her to find the animals and the chip stores information about that animal. You read the chip by passing a magic wand type thing over the neck. Then the fun part began. The teachers were divided into 2 groups – those who spoke Portuguese and those who didn´t. Duca had hidden 2 collars and it was a race to see who found their collar first using radio telemetry. After a few false starts the English speaking team found theirs first out in the cattle/horse pasture. Thank goodness there were no mean cows! Bobbie and Richard raced to get the collar, Richard got their first so he won immunity for the day (think Survivor!). We yelled GOOAAALLL! to get in the Brazilian spirit. Tabby had brought down 3 additional collars for Alexine from the States so she snuck in to grab those so we actually were overachievers in finding 4 collars! The other team´s collar was way past the stables near Ellen´s house. No one will be voted off our tribe tonight!
After lunch and siesta we were treated to a boat ride up the Rio Negro river (GPS coordinates here). The river is very dark colored probably due to the color of the soil around in this area. We were in three small boats and traveled about an hour upstream to a very nice beach area even in the wet season. The beach was light brown sand, and the river was just the perfect temperature! Not too warm to not be refreshing and not too cold so you couldn´t spend your whole time in it. We did not run into any piranhas or caiman at this beach that we know of, and no one is missing any body parts.
When we were returning we saw two hyacinth macaws up in a tree near the Fazenda – they were a lot bigger than I thought they would be. We also saw some yellow parakeets. As we got closer to the Fazenda we saw a caiman with most of his back out of the water and his mouth open. Caspar the Caiman once again stayed quite close to us and kept looking at us!
Highlight of the Day: Swimming and the boat ride
Portuguese Words of the Day: Thank you – muito obrigado It was nothing – de nada
Data Collecting relating to the Big Picture: No data today.
Something that surprised you: the caiman that follows us when we are near the boat area
Pantanal Reports Date: 2-16-04
Location: Fazenda Rio Negro
Weather:
Temperature: hot
Precipitation: none
Humidity: high
Notes: tropical, tropical, tropical
Name of Species |
Total Count |
Apple Snail eggs |
2 bunches |
Blue Heron |
2 |
Blue macaws |
5 |
Caimans |
Lots |
Capped Heron |
1 |
Capybara with babies |
3 |
Cattle egrets |
2 bunches |
Cocoi Heron |
1 |
Crab eating foxes |
3 |
Damsel flies |
A few |
Dragonflies |
Hordes |
Flowering bromeliad |
many |
Golden collared macaw |
2 |
Horse – brown in the front of our door |
1 |
Jaguar Ear fern |
Tons in the water |
Jaibaru storks |
4 |
Kingfishers |
Gobs |
Kiskadee |
Let´s say 3 |
Lightning bugs |
Lots |
Marsh deer |
7 |
Minnows – various species |
Schools |
Mosquitoes |
Clouds and clouds |
Osprey |
1 |
Peccaries |
15ish |
Piranha |
2 |
Praying Mantis |
1 |
Reas |
12ish |
Red deer but not the marsh deer |
2 |
Teeny weeny yellow bitty ants in our pants |
Way too many |
True Parrots |
2 |
Walking stick |
4 |
Wall frogs |
Gobs |
Water Lilies |
carpets |
Yellow-beaked cardinal |
2 |
Name of Study |
Team Members |
Summary |
Wetlands |
Don (team leader), Michelle, Tabby, Elisangela |
• visited Salinas, bahias, and oxbows to test water chemistry including dissolved oxygen, salinity, pH and water temperature • We entered the water as deep as necessary (sometimes up to our shoulders!) with our probes and our data collection sheets. |
Peccaries |
Alexine (team leader), Richard, Jeff, Baiano |
• Morning was checking traps to see if any peccaries were in them, setting two new traps, resetting traps and baiting them with fruit from the surrounding wild fruit trees. • Afternoon, we checked traps again. The only peccaries we saw were running in the bushes. We located 3 radio-collared peccaries, then walked a peccary trail and counted fruit trees. And we got stuck in the mud! |
Frugivores |
Paul (team leader), Duca (team leader), Patricia, Bobbi, Kleiton, Donna |
• Morning, Paul´s team went to a fruit tree site, but there was no more fruit. So we observed shorter fruiting shrubs to record what birds would visit. Duca´s team worked on data entry for researchers then worked on this website. • Afternoon, both groups went bushwhacking on trail #3. We put new markers every 25 meters. Duca´s group also looked for fruit and signs of peccaries. |
Small Mammals |
Vitor (team leader), Daiane, John, Cecilia |
• Morning, we set four strings of traps, each at least ten meters apart tied to a tree. We had traps with a 15cm x 15 cm opening, and traps with a 5 x 8 cm opening. We baited the larger traps with manioc and Secret Ingredients. We baited the smaller ones with a mixture of oats, peanut butter, bacon and banana. • Afternoon, we baited four sets of traps, and saw some peccaries on the way home. |
Frogs |
Ellen (team leader), Martha, Tom, Neuci |
• Morning, we dug holes that will house traps for frogs and other small animals. • Afternoon, we went fishing as part of the wetland study. We are trying to see if catch-and-release is a useful technique, or if it´s harmful to the fish. We are also keeping our eyes out to see what kinds of fish are living in the water around here. |
Highlight of the Day: sharing tea from a cow horn with Baiano
Portuguese Words of the Day: “legal!” means “cool!” They use it a lot down here. It´s pronounced “lay- GAWL”.
Data Collecting relating to the Big Picture:
We are discovering that not only are the six projects important for conservation, but they are also closely related to each other. When a researcher finds something that could be interesting or useful to another researcher, he or she makes a point of recording it, or lending or borrowing volunteers to get work done well.
Something that surprised you: Dragonflies are called ´´butt-washers`` in Portuguese (“lava bundas”)
From Tom Light: Friday, February 13th: Arriving in Brazil
We departed from Miami at 8:30 PM Thursday. As we neared Sao Paulo we were treated to a beautiful sunrise and saw the beautiful hills outside of the city. We landed in Sao Paulo at 7:45 on Friday, 9 hours and 15 minutes after we left. How is this possible? (8:30 to 8:30 should be 12 hours, right?)
The city of Sao Paulo is large. We flew from Sao Paulo to Campo Grande on Tam airlines. We settled into our hotel and cleaned up, then we went to explore the city. The people were very friendly and helpful. They were quite patient with my poor Portuguese. "Eu falo muy poco Portuguese!" It was interesting to see these motorcycle taxis! We also saw some beautiful flowers.
One of the more interesting sites were the street vendors I call "Rainforest Pharmacies" They sell all sorts of leaves, roots, bark, seeds, and wood from the rainforest, each of which has its own properties and cures different ailments.
We found a restaurant for lunch. The sign explains that it is 7.80 reals (How much did lunch cost us in American dollars?) The food was delicious and there was plenty of it!
From Tom Light: Sunday, February 15
This morning we learned more details about the projects we will be working on and how each project interrelates with the others.
Alexine is working with the peccaries. We will check traps in the morning and do tracking of the peccaries which have radio collars.
Vitor is leading the small mammal project. He is studying the populations and looking at diseases they carry. The government is particularly interested in learning if they are vectors of disease transmission into livestock.
Paul is a volunteer from England. He will be working with us on the frugivore project. Frugivores are important as both spreaders and predators of seeds. We will spend several hours each morning observing a tree and what animals come to feed on the fruits and how much they consume. We will also work on data logging, clearing trails, and looking at scat.
Ellen is one of the investigators
of the herpetology project. We will be setting up reptile traps. We need to
dig holes to put buckets into. We then run fabric fences along the line of
buckets. Frogs, snakes, and other small animals reach the fence, move along
it until the reach a bucket, and fall in. Once these traps are set up, we
will monitor the traps.
Lico will work with us on the sport fishing project. He has lived on the Fazenda for years and he will be our guide. We will go fishing. When we catch fish, we will measure them, and leave them inside an enclosure for a couple of hours. The intent is to see if the catch and release practice harms the fish. We will also try to bring some fish back to the kitchen for our meals.
Don is the wetlands project. We will be monitoring the chemistry, physical properties, and biology of the various salinas, baias, oxbow lakes, and river. We will also do a flow measurement of the Rio Negro during our time here.I will be fishing tomorrow. I expect to catch some awesome fish. I am not a true fisherman, but hope to bring home some great stories, and perhaps some proof along with the stories.
I am also excited to work on the freshwater ecology. This was my focus in my undergraduate education, so I am looking forward to learning more from Don.
I am hoping to see some Peccaries when I work with Alexine and am happy to be ab le to spend a relaxed morning sitting and watching the wildlife around one tree. This is certainly something I or my students at home could do!
The small mammal project sounds interesting, but less engaging than some of the other projects. The excitement will be in checking the traps.
I really like the idea of the reptile traps. This system is certainly something that could be replicated anywhere. It could produce some very valuable data about our home amphibian populations!
February 17, 2004 9:46 AM PST: The server has been down at the Fazenda since Saturday morning. Someone is working on it now and we hope to receive a report from the team this evening. We have been told that there has been lots of rain so far, and they have seen some of the giant river otters.
February 13, 2004 6:50 PM PST: We have received notice that the team arrived safely this morning in Campo Grande where they are spending the night before heading to the Fazenda early tomorrow morning (Saturday). Stay tuned for daily updates from the field.