Bird Sanctuary

I am no wildlife photographer; I lack the lenses the patience the aptitude or the desire to collect things. 

No idea what it’s called but it is an inhabitant, most likely endangered of the rapidly shrinking rainforest (“Mato” in Portuguese) of southeast Brazil. This sanctuary blew my socks off.

Some of these birds were saved from a life of torture in a cage, others are kept to enable populations to grow and a few are the last survivors of a breed now extinct in the wild. The organizers estimate more than 120 known species have been wiped out already so what you are seeing here are the lucky ones even though they are in fact caged. Cora was rescued from a cage so foul she lost the ability to fly. She’s safe in retirement in an open cage and platform and with her buddy. 

The sanctuary was founded by a man who “lived in Africa” they say and came to Brazil. He has a distinctive last name and by some astounding coincidence I am reading a book about the Rhodesian bush war of the 1970s that features his photography.

Dennis Croukamp was a member of the Rhodesian Light Infantry and the famous Selous Scouts but apparently ended up with his wife Anna in Brazil. He died in 2021 two years after opening the bird sanctuary. 

How I happened to be reading about his early life and then found the end of his story here defies belief. 

Anyway entry cost us just ten dollars each plus ten bucks for GANNET2 where we house Rusty in comfort while we took a two hour walk among the birds. They use double gates to prevent the inmates from switching cages. 

They are caged but they have room to fly. 

And live relatively normal lives. 

I couldn’t get over the fact that we drove thousands of miles through the Amazon and saw nothing but dirt dust and trucks. 

We should have come straight here.

A flamingo fight, over almost before it began:

Indeed your eyes do not deceive you as there is more than birds here unless you think these short stubby caymans are birdlike. Take me back to Florida…

A fearless turtle paddled by: 

And a boa constructor may be visible here, below the adorable stacked turtles. 

Lurking in its own private nest. 

And who doesn’t love a goofy looking toucan?

Our Atlantic Rainforest.

We wrapped our two hour walk up with lunch, an empanada and a fruit tart after we blew through the butterfly section, though Layne did get us some cool shot glasses at the dustcatcher shop. 

Time to get on the road and go east old man to seek out an Atlantic Beach.