The Mighty Jungle Part 2

 The upside of not escaping Panama has been the chance for more jungle walks. 

So join me on my walks and I will share some of the things I have seen.

The monkeys have definitely been one of the highlights, listening to the Howlers howl and the Capuchins chatter.

Howler monkeys crossing overhead

Capuchin staring me down

I particularly enjoyed watching the mammas and the babies

When I first saw these spikey, knobby trees I thought they would be a deterrent to animals climbing them. This Howler Monkey had no difficulty at all.

We are checking each other out.

In the video above you can see several monkeys. The first monkey fearlessly leaped from on tree to the next. The second monkey followed cautiously behind, and then sat and contemplated the other tree.

And then decided on a different way to get across.

Walking through the jungle in a rainstorm is a unique experience. The barometer drops sending the signal that the rain is coming. We take cover under the trees and can hear the raindrops hitting the top of the canopy, but it takes quite a while for the wetness to make it down to the ground. Usually we only get wet when the shower is over and the leaves are drip the water down on us. 

Afterwards the air is thick with water droplets and the sun shining through the trees cuts a beautiful path.

Springtime and the birds are beginning to nest.

This is a Southern Lapwing just beginning to make a nest. She is testing it out here, her mate is close by, bringing twigs. Unfortunately the spot they chose was just on the edge of the road.

 

They soon saw the error of their ways and abandoned the nest. We hope they were more successful with their next try.

Here is a Caracara working very hard to get a twig for its nest.

This is the nest of a Collared Aracari, in the Toucan family. Everyday we could walk past this tree and call for it. It would poke its head out, watch us for a few minutes, and then fly off into the jungle. Every day!

Then evening comes and the animals start to settle in for the night.

Some sort of butterfly sitting on the wall of the marina.

Whatever this fuzzy thing was on the palm tree, it was only there for a day or two, and then it just looked like a bunch of delicate dried twigs.

We could often see the parakeets flying over us, and hear them quite clearly. Getting to see them perched in a tree was a rare occasion.

This bridge made a particularly good vantage point. Crocodiles down in the river, monkeys and parakeets in the trees, and I even surprised a jaguarundi creeping up the tree toward some monkeys. The encounter was so brief and so surprising I was not able to get a picture.

The moon rising as we say goodbye to all the wonderful sights and sounds of the jungle. On to explore different landscapes and seascapes, animals and plants. Variety is the spice of life!