Amazon Birds, 2025
We logged 195 species of birds - seen and/or heard - on our trip to the Peruvian Amazon in April of 2025. I had the number 221 vaguely swirling in my head, as this would park 1,000 world life birds for me, but silly numbers are just that, and 195 was still fantastic!
We would not have even close to this number without the incredible guides of Amazonia Expeditions with us every day. Leyner and Nixon, both born and raised in the Loreto region of Peru, are master naturalists. Their ability to perceive, locate, and identify wildlife species is nothing short of magnificent. Both of them were able to identify 90%+ of the bird species by ear alone, with the exception being some of the difficult families and genera: flycatchers, woodcreepers, etc.
Our birding was done almost entirely by canoe; unfortunately I don’t have any photos of the group setup, as I was either shooting video or wildlife, i.e. no ‘setting’ shots.
Amazon river birding - and photography - is HARD. First, jungle. Thick, dark obscure, and hostile. Whether you are on foot or by canoe, nothing is convenient or comfortable. By canoe, there is always movement. Then, you are quite limited in your positioning, so finding proper photo angles is often difficult or impossible. If you do have some stability and decent views or shooting angles, there are branches and leaves everywhere, blocking everything, and cameras love to focus on the foliage rather than the subject. On top of all of this, it seems the lighting is either too dark under the canopy, or harsh from the day’s sun. I’m being dramatic of course, we did have a few nice golden hours, and some non-rainy overcast days with great light!
Challenges aside, I don’t know if there is anywhere else I’d rather bird and explore. I’d go back every month if life allowed, and can’t wait to get back again soon. There are literally hundreds of more birds to see and hear, new tributaries to explore, better and different photos to shoot, and so much more. Bird gallery below!
Note, these aren’t all intended to be wall-hangers, rather, document shots + some good ones. See my ‘Best of Peru’ album for the keepers!
