COLONIA CARLOS PELLEGRINI is the hub of the Iberá Wetlands. It consists of Park Headquarters, six hundred residents, a half-dozen lodges and three restaurants—only one of which is open at any given time. We knew we had arrived when we clickety-clacked across the bridge over a narrow section of Laguna Iberá, Waters that Shine in the Guarini language. We were staying at the simple but comfortable Huella Iberá Posada for three nights and two days of birding. Armed with the remainder of Connie’s target list, Diego guided us though dry fields, marshes, forest trails and, of course, Laguna Iberá.
Waters that Shine
A Bridge too Far
Home of the Strange-tailed Tyrant
Thankfully, the road dried out overnight and we headed back the way we came to find the iconic Stange-tailed Tyrant, the same one featured on the Park’s logo. The bird is unmistakeable with its two long, plush tail feathers. That out of the way we went after some other suspects. Yellow Cardinals are found only in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay and look nothing like their norteamericano cousins. Getting a good photo of the Red-billed Scythbill without encroaching on private property took a bit of luck but the Plush-crested Jay was much more cooperative.
Yellow Cardinal
Red-billed Scythebil
Plush-crested Jay
We got an early start on the lake Saturday morning but several boats of sightseers were already out. The Park is very strict about safety and we had to wear “I hope we never need these” cruise ship type PFDs. Even with the awkward life-jackets we were able to get good photos of the White-headed Marsh Tyrant and a pair of Black-capped Donacobius, not rare but very attractive. We had to chase the Scarlet-Headed Blackbirds from island to island before one posed for us and it took a stealthy approach by the boatman and some dumb luck by the photographer to get the Rufous-sided Crake.
Black-capped Donacobius
White-headed Marsh Tyrant
Scarlet-Headed Blackbird
Rufous-sided Crake
Capybara
And he flosses every day
Those other folks cruising around weren’t interested in birds, at least not the little ones. They wanted to see the Capybaras and Caiman. There are hundreds of the huge rodents swimming, taking mud baths and entire families lying in the sun. It’s hard to tell how many caiman there are—most float lazily just below the surface, only a pair of eyes showing. There were dozens sunning on shore, some showing an impressive display of teeth.
Howler Monkeys
His reach exceeds his grasp
Back on dry land we followed Diego along a forest trail. Finding birds in the thick foliage takes special skill, especially if it’s getting hot and the birds are silent. We did come upon a group of Howler Monkeys. While the male sat apart stuffing his face two females lounged on a branch while a baby tested his boundaries. It looked like the mother wasn’t paying attention as he stretched precariously for a branch. Then Connie noticed her tail was entwined with his. Mom will always be there!
Sulphur-Bearded Reedhaunter
Yellow-Rumped Marshbird
After a break for lunch and a siesta—well I siesta’d while Connie worked on photos—we went back to the reeds for a last chance for the recalcitrant ones who had eluded us. We finally got a good look at the spectrally-named Sulphur-bearded Reedhaunter and the Yellow-rumped Marshbird. We would be leaving early, early tomorrow. Diego has a long drive ahead of him.
