CLAY LICKS are more than Macaws

Stories

One animal that licks clay and it’s not a Macaw

Here in the Amazon rainforest we can find a huge diversity of animals and plants, and each one has a strategy to survive and avoid predators. Some plants can produce toxins to try not to be eaten by the herbivorous such as parakeets, macaws, tapirs, squirrels, monkeys, and sloths. These animals need other strategies to neutralize the toxins from these plants, and one way to do that is by consuming clay. Here is a story about one animal that licks clay and it’s not a macaw.

Macaws Chuncho Clay lick

Macaws (Ara Macao) Photo by Paul Bertner

 

One popular tour in Tambopata is the visit to Chuncho, where it’s easy to see hundreds of macaws, parrots, and parakeets eating clay. It is an amazing experience that you cannot miss when you visit the Peruvian Amazon jungle.

 

Besides macaws, a lot of species of mammals can visit clay licks too. Clay licks are more than Macaws,  this clay helps them to remove toxins from seeds, fruits, and leaves that they get on their usual diet. Also is an extra source of salts and minerals; this activity it’s called geophagia.

 

But in this blog, I want to tell you about one species of animals that I saw twice clay licking on the trails at Refugio Amazonas lodge (sloths).

 

After a few rainy days, we found a Two-toed Sloth mom and her baby, on a side of the trail, on the ground consuming clay. It was an amazing experience to see this charismatic species with a cute baby.

 

The Sloths spend almost all the time hanging upside down in the branches of trees, they climb down just to excrete (about once each week) and clay lick. Is their most vulnerable moment, and for this mom and her baby it will be a risk, but the mom needs to do it.

Sloth

So… the sloths do everything from the trees?

 

Well, if you have ever asked this question, the answer is yes…

Sloth on a tree

Sloths can sleep, mate, and give birth on trees, and the mom can travel on the trees carrying her baby for the first five weeks. The youngster can stay with the mom for between six to almost two years. After that, they reach sexual maturity at the age of three years for females and four years for males. It sounds like a lot of time to get to mature, but that’s typically for big mammals that can live many years.

 

The second time was a few weeks ago, walking to the light trap at night with the low battery from my headlight. After a micro heart attack, I stayed there watching it closely. I guess he did not even realize that I observed him… it stayed there clay-licking for at least 8 minutes, and then it starts to move slowly to a tree; once it held the trunk, it climbs up very fast, at that time, I saw that the sloths are not so slow; in fact, they are quite fast climbing trees, and very good swimmers.

Sloth facing

 

Sloth climbing

Before moving to the southeast jungle of Peru, I did not imagine that everyday living here, would be a new lesson, a very fun way to discover an immense amount of things, this type of experience makes me learn more about its greatest biodiversity. This time I have learned a lot about sloths, and I’ve enjoyed the incredible experiences that I will remember for the rest of my life, I’m sure this Amazon jungle will continue surprising me. Clay licks are more than Macaws!

 

Discover more about the Amazon wildlife at our special section or chat with one of our Rainforest Specialists.

By Adela Indriago

 

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This trip was the highlight of our travels through peru. The lodge was absolutely 5 stars for everything. The room, food, people. We had a private guide, Allen, who grew up locally and really had deep knowledge of the land, the history, and the variety of plant and animal species in the jungle. His knowledge and passion were invaluable to our experience. There are a variety of tour companies and lodges you can book to visit the Amazon, however, I would only recommend Rainforest Expeditions as they are truly connected to the community and offer high quality first class amazon experience! Read all

We had a truly wonderful stay with Rainforest Expeditions. Everyone was incredibly kind and welcoming, and our guide was fantastic — very knowledgeable and passionate about the rainforest. We saw many animals, even from the boat, which made the experience unforgettable. Read all

I just spent 3 days here with my family. The research center surpassed all our expectations. I want to give a special shout out to Carlos who took such good care of us. He went above and beyond to make sure we werr comfortable. And he was always smiling. He made us feel so welcome. We had Erik as our guide who is so knowledgeable and experienced. We learned so much, saw so much wildlife. It really was a dream vacation. Thank you!! Read all

Chose this place to stay at the Amazon, as I heard it benefits the local indigenous community. Life changing experience. Oscar was an excellent guide! We saw so many wildlife! No 4th wall made it such an immersive jungle experience. Since they are eco friendly, there is no AC. It can get pretty hot depending on the season. So better to follow their guidance for clothing choices Read all

If you want to experience the Amazon in all its glory This is the place to come to Staff and guides were excellent Food was just incredible The forest walks were really interesting and informative Read all

If you are a birder, ask for Juan Carlos Yatto. He recognizes an astounding number of bird calls and can duplicate many of them. This place is magical, all I could have imagined. All the staff and scientists are incredible. The experience of a lifetime. Read all

This was the most amazing experience Very well organised The ground staff were so well organised The guides were excellent ( I’m looking at you Carlos!) Food was tasty and very varied Amazed that the chefs managed to get such variety in the middle of the Amazon Do not hesitate Book immediately you will not be disappointed. Highly recommended Read all

I can not say enough good things about my time at the Tambopata Research Center. Between the guides, the boat drivers, the chefs, the staff, the bartenders, the researchers, etc. Everyone was absolutely wonderful! If you are interested in viewing wildlife in the Amazon, this is the place for you! A special thank you to the maître d' Carlos who was so incredibly kind and hospitable and our guide Dino who was like a real life Indiana Jones. I can't wait to come back! Read all

An unforgettable, fully immersive jungle experience. Amazing how Tambopata Lodge delivers luxury touches in such a remote and rugged location. The food is fantastic, the staff incredible, and the wildlife sightings non-stop. The personalised itinerary and one-on-one guiding made the trip truly special—huge thanks to our guide Johan for sharing his passion and knowledge. The Macaw Project is inspiring, and it’s clear the lodge fully supports this important conservation work. Manager Brian was always kind, helpful. Well-done all involved. Read all

The most important fact we are grateful for is the true sense of understanding of the ecology of the Amazon the staff at Rainforest Expeditions (RFE) have shown us. RFE stands out for its stand against the pure, profit-motive initiatives many other tour operators do. We are very grateful to have had Carlos as our guide. Carlos is deeply dedicated, and is able to explain the nuances of the flora and fauna. The world today needs to act as one against the impact of climate change. RFE is one, bright shining light in this regard. Read all

We had a fabulous trip! The people were amazing, kind and very professional. The food was exceptionally good! The facilities are beautiful and well kept. We just loved our second time with Rainforest Expeditions and can't wait to go again!! Read all

Fantastic to be deep in the forest surrounded by incredible wildlife with our amazing guide Juan Carlos Yatto, who really knew his stuff! Also his photography skills meant that we could share our experience even better through his telescope using our phone cameras! We learned so much!! He went to extra lengths to find butterflies and moths for us along with so many different birds and monkeys. This was a travel highlight for us as experienced wildlife travellers. We loved our spacious room with no windows and open to more wildlife visitors but after 5 nights the bed could have been a little more comfortable. Luckily we had a second bed to use. Otherwise it was fantastic with hot water showers and fresh drinking water all the time. We were amazed at the variety of food on offer for breakfast, lunch and dinner and couldn’t believe they could have such a wonderful food offering in such a remote location. Even the wine and cocktails were great. I highly recommend spending the extra money and time getting to this location. We stayed at another lodge later which was closer to Puerto Maldonado and there was far less wildlife. Read all

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