Peru had been on my bucket list for a while, so I was thrilled to explore this country with a group of like-minded travelers. Although the Sacred Valley was certainly high on my list of “must-sees,” I was equally enthusiastic about time in the Peruvian Amazon basin. I had read about the amazing biodiversity to be seen here, particularly for birding. Colorful macaws and toucans, oropendolas with their swinging nests, tanagers of all kinds, and the less flashy, but very noisy, screaming piha. One bird in particular was on my “bucket list” for birding in the Amazon. The hoatzin definitely qualifies as an odd but amazing bird. It is only found in the neotropics, typically in branches above slow-moving rivers and oxbow lakes. A chicken-sized bird with a blue face and an orange mohawk crest make it unusual enough but additional characteristics make it truly unique. A hoatzin ruminates and digest its food with the help of bacterial fermentation, and because of the foul odors it emits, it is commonly known as the stink bird. Hoatzin chicks are the only birds born with claws on their wings. This enables them to drop from their nests to the water below should they be threatened by a predator. They then swim away and hide near the shore until it is safe. Using their tiny claws, they can climb back up the tree to their nest. I was delighted to finally observe these birds in the wild and capture a few photographic memories.

Cindy Cone Photography
Peru, 2017