Today was moving day. We moved from the Tahuayo Lodge deeper into the jungle to the Amazonia Expeditions research center. Before moving we had one more adventure in store before heading out.
We were going to hike into the jungle in search of the elusive Poisonous Tree Frog that live exclusively in this area of the rainforest. They're rare, very small (about the size of a dime) and well camouflaged so the little guys are hard to find. Searching for them in the forest would be about like trying to find the proverbial needle in a haystack. Their skin is poisonous and serves to protect them from most predators. According to Nixon, if they got on your skin it would cause a rash. We completely trust Nixon so we weren't going to rub one on our skin to find out.
Several biologist have been studying these frogs so they had set up several small cut off plastic coke bottles in hopes of attracting them. We found several tadpoles in a couple of the bottles so we were thinking we'd have to come back in a month or so. However, we finally found one. As advertised it was small and blended right in with it's surroundings. There was a degree of satisfaction knowing that with Nixon's help we had found the Peruvian Frog equilvent to a needle in the haystack.
The very elusive and very small poisonous tree frog
Along the trail we also came across what is known as the "bat tree". It was a large tree that according to Nixon fell around 300 years ago. The inside of the tree has completely decomposed. It's turned into a home for four different species of bats. The tree was big enough that you could actually walk through it (about forty feet long). We opted to take pictures from the large opening. However, Nixon took the camera and walked the entire length while making an amazing video for us.
The "bat tree". It was large enough that if you squatted you could walk the entire length. It was full of four species of bats, including large vampire bats so we opted not to make the trek.
At the entrance to the Bat Tree
Vampire Bat.........Big and Scary
This was a small one but he wasn't really welcoming looking
A lunch of Chicken and Rice along with fresh fruits and vegetables had been prepared. We enjoyed eating it where the trailhead met the river before heading back to the lodge to get our bags. We were in a small boat for another hour and a half trip to the research center. Again, the journey was a treat unto itself, especially when the driver would skillfully take a "shortcut" through a small stream that to most of us wouldn't be recognized.
Copper Faced Monkey
The Research Center
The Research Center is also built on stilts. It's smaller than the main lodge although it is still surprisingly large. It's a little more rustic in that there are no bathrooms or showers in the individual lodges. Right now it's not very crowded. We are now sharing the entire center with just two other "guests" . A young man from BYU and a young lady from the University of Vermont. They are both doing internship programs here. There was a third student but he left this morning. They're nice young people who are having an amazing internship experience deep in the jungle.
