For our annual jaguars of the pantanal photo tour, we visited the northern and southern Pantanal of western Brazil. Get a guest’s perspective from the same trip here! The Pantanal is the world’s largest wetland and the best place to see jaguars in the wild. We saw a total of fifteen different jaguars for the duration of the tour, including watching a jaguar mother carry her two month old kittens across a river! Read the rest of our jaguars of the Pantanal photo tour 2023 trip report to get all the details!
Highlights of the 2023 Jaguars of the Pantanal Photo Tour
Jaguar: In total, we photographed fifteen different jaguars, during twenty-two different sightings, both from boats and from vehicles. Sightings averaged thirty minutes, at an average distance of twenty meters. For our closest encounter, we had the jaguar at just five meters!
Giant Anteater: In the southern Pantanal we saw four different giant anteaters, including a mother carrying her young on her back!
Maned Wolf: We got super lucky and had a thirty minute sighting of a maned wolf as it was hunting in the cerrado habitat in the southern Pantanal.
Birds: We saw a total of over 100 species of birds in the Pantanal during our tour, including Hyacinth macaws, Jabiru storks, jacamars, kingfishers, great potoo, black simmers, greater rhea, amongst others!
Detailed Jaguar Trip Summary 2023
Day 1: We jumped on a Caravan for a quick hour-long flight from Cuiabá to Porto Jofre, where we settled in (did some quick birding next to the lodge, of course), and prepared for our first afternoon by the river. Sebastian gave a quick primer on the Northern Pantanal region, and what to expect while searching for jaguars.
After lunch, we headed upriver, where we spotted Guarací lying on the bank. We explored the Carixo Negro by golden hour for the first time and were lucky to get a good view of a boat-billed heron. On our way home, hundreds of snail kites flocked overhead to their evening roosting spot.
Day 2: This day started off with a bang and one of our best sightings of the trip. After seeing Guarací once again, we were keeping an eye out for river otters, when all of a sudden, Sebastian heard something coming from behind us. He spotted Patricia, and her two 6-week old cubs; it appeared she wanted to cross the river to move the cubs. We watched in awe as she carried each cub across the river in her mouth, one at a time. We were the first to see these cubs; Lisa and Zita even got naming rights!
Later that morning, our driver, Vanderlei, found Marcela hunting along the banks, and we ended the morning watching a pair of river otters hunting fish in the water hyacinth.
In the afternoon (lost the GPS routing, unfortunately), Vanderlei found an aboreal Brazilian porcupine high up in a tree, and after searching for awhile, we found Krishna resting deep in the shade on the bank.
Day 3: On our way upriver to a cow carcass, we found some Azar’s Capuchin Monkeys in the trees. Once we arrived at the carcass, we found Alyra resting on the bank just above it. We anchored the boat, and waited for about two hours (after the rest of the boats had left) and were rewarded with a view of her walking down a log and feeding on the carcass.
The afternoon brought Marcela once again, and then Krishna in Carrixo Negro, sitting just off of a hidden carcass. We watched him until he walked out of sight.
Day 4: We were the first boat on the river, and the morning was cool and misty. It was a beautiful sunrise, with flocks of snail kits overhead. Regina spotted howlers in the trees, and we had a nice view of a Jabiru standing in its nest.
Sebastian led us to a special spot, where 12 long-nosed bats camoflauged deeply into a tree trunk. Later that morning, we found Krishna at Carrixo Negro.
In the afternoon, we watched Manath trailing Marcela; we thought they might be mating, but later learned that Manath was still too young to mate; ‘training’ perhaps. Just futher down the creek, we found Marcela sitting off the carcass Krishna had been at just the day before.
We ended the evening visiting Panthera and hearing from ocelot biologist Raíssa and Abbie from Jaguar ID project about conservation efforts in the Pantanal. A red brocket deer was spotted on the ride back to the hotel.
Day 5: We started the morning by exploring the Piquari, a new part of the watershed for us. Back on the Cuiaba, we came upon Tí, resting among the hyacinths, eating grass and vomiting, presumably from something she ate. We had a long sighting with her, while she walked, hunted, swam, and walked along the beach, giving us some great photography opportunities with some nice diffused overcast light. The morning even included a ‘memorable’ toilet ‘stop’! We also saw Marcela that morning crossing the Carrixo Negro and walking up a log.
The afternoon brough two separate sightings of Krishna swimming and walking along the river bank.
Day 6: Our final day in Porto Jofre gave us one final morning boat ride. Juru had been spotted down river, so we took a chance and headed to the Rio Negrinho in search of jags. We saw capuchins and black howlers along this beautiful creek, and spent nearly an hour with a family of river otters, watching them hunt, eat, and mark their territory at a campsite.
On our last 30 minutes on the river, Regina spotted Juru on the banks. It was an amazing sighting; a cat Lisa had very much wanted to see. We watched him hunt in the water for nearly an hour, and then sprinted back to pack up and catch our plane to the Southern Pantanal.
We arrived in the Southern Pantanal in late afternoon, and settled into our villa after a short drive where we saw our first pampas deer, white-lipped peccaries, and a yellow or six-banded armadillo!
Day 7: We spent most of the morning getting to know this new landscape; we saw many new birds including some beautiful woodpeckers and parrot/parakeet species. We saw our first Crab-eating Fox and Agouti, as well as our first Giant Anteater, on foot!
In the afternoon, we spotted some blue-and-yellow macaws (not common for this area), before finding Aracy and her 9-month old cub, Jací together in a beautiful open field. We spent over an hour with them as they played and walked through the area.
On the way home, we saw three different snake species, many paraque (a kind of nightjar), and spotted Nusa, the largest female in the area, right outside the main lodge at the base of the water tank.
Day 8: Our local guides, Marcos and Lucas, showed us how they use the telemetry to find the jaguars, which led us to a big male named Acerola. We had some great views of him walking thorugh an open field, and followed him to a cow carcass, which he fed on, obscured deep in a large bush. Plus, our first marsh deer!
That afternoon, the group split; half of us had a wonderful up-close interaction with two Giant Anteaters at sunset, while the second got to spend time with Jací once again. On the way back, we were incredibly fortunate to see a maned wolf hunting! Exceptionally rare to see! We ended the evening with a Pantaneiro BBQ, enjoying local Brazilian dishes, including churrasco!
Day 9: Our last full day in the Pantanal brough a quieter morning, though we did spot a gray brocket deer, a new mammal species!
In the afternoon, we used telemetry to find Surya, one of our guides’ favorite females. She had killed a young calf the day prior; the cowboy from the ranch pointed us to a spot he thought she might be. We found her there, and spent our sunset sitting with her.
We finished the day with a magical bush dinner in the forest, complete with capirinhas and grilled cheese!
Day 10: Last morning of the trip! We were with Fabio for a fairly quiet morning…UNTIL! We spotted Aracy near a watering hole, sitting beautifully in the morning sun. We spent some time with her, and were able to photograph her walking straight past our vehicle.
After a final breakfast in the villa, we headed to the airstrip. On the way, we finally saw an anteater carrying a baby! An amazing way to say goodbye to the Pantanal.
Jaguars of the Pantanal Photo Tour 2023 Species List
Mammals
| Giant Anteater | Myrmecophaga tridactyla |
| Nine-banded Armadillo | Dasypus novemcinctus |
| Six-banded Armadillo | Euphractus sexcinctus |
| Long-nosed Bat | Leptonycteris yerbabuenae |
| Red-bellied Bat | Lasiurus borealis |
| Azara’s Capuchin Monkey | Sapajus cay |
| Black Howler Monkey | Alouatta caraya |
| Crab-eating Fox | Cerdocyon thous |
| Maned Wolf | Chrysocyon brachyurus |
| Jaguar | Panthera onca |
| Giant River Otter | Pteronura brasiliensis |
| White-lipped Peccary | Tayassu pecari |
| Marsh Deer | Rucervus duvaucelii |
| Red Brocket Deer | Mazama americana |
| Gray Brocket Deer | Mazama gouazoubira |
| Pampas Deer | Ozotoceros bezoarticus |
| Brazilian Porcupine | Coendou prehensilis |
| Capybara | Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris |
| Azara’s Agouti | Dasyprocta azarae |
Birds
| Greater Rhea | Rhea americana |
| Undulated Tinamou | Crypturellus undulatus |
| Southern Screamer | Chauna torquata |
| White-faced Whistling Duck | Dendrocygna viduata |
| Black-Bellied Whistling Duck | Dendrocygna autumnalis |
| Muscovy Duck | Carina moschata |
| Chaco Chachalaca | Ortalis canicollis |
| Blue-throated Piping Guan | Pipile cumanensis |
| Bare-faced Curassow | Crax fasciolata |
| Picazuro Pigeon | Patagioenas picazuro |
| White-tipped Dove | Leptotila verreauxi |
| Guira Cuckoo | Guira guira |
| Smooth-billed Ani | Crotophaga ani |
| Squirrel Cuckoo | Piaya cayana |
| Nacunda Nighthawk | Chordeiles nacunda |
| Band-tailed Nighthawk | Nyctiprogne leucopyga |
| Common Pauraque | Nyctidromus albicollis |
| Great Potoo | Nyctibius grandis |
| Common Potoo | Nyctibius griseus |
| Gilded Hummingbird | Hylocharis chrysura |
| Gray-cowled Wood Rail | Aramides cajaneus |
| Limpkin | Aramus guarauna |
| Black-necked Stilt | Himantopus mexicanus |
| Pied Lapwing | Vanellus cayanus |
| Southern Lapwing | Vanellus chilensis |
| Collared Plover | Charadrius collaris |
| Wattled Jacana | Jacana jacana |
| Yellow-billed Tern | Sternula superciliaris |
| Large-billed Tern | Phaetusa simplex |
| Black Skimmer | Rynchops niger |
| Maguari Stork | Ciconia maguari |
| Jabiru | Jabiru mycteria |
| Wood Stork | Mycteria americana |
| Anhinga | Anhinga anhinga |
| Neotropic Cormorant | Phalacrocorax brasilianus |
| Rufescent Tiger-Heron | Tigrisoma lineatum |
| Cocoi Heron | Ardea cocoi |
| Great Egret | Andrea alba |
| Snowy Egret | Egretta thula |
| Cattle Egret | Bubulcus ibis |
| Striated Heron | Butorides striata |
| Whistling Heron | Syrigma sibilatrix |
| Capped Heron | Pilherodius pileatus |
| Black-crowned Night Heron | Nycticorax nycticorax |
| Boat-billed Heron | Cochlearius cochlearius |
| Green Ibis | Mesembrinibis cayennensis |
| Bare-faced Ibis | Phimosus infuscatus |
| Plumbeous Ibis | Theristicus caerulescens |
| Buff-necked Ibis | Theristicus caudatus |
| Roseate Spoonbill | Platalea ajaja |
| Black Vulture | Coragyps atratus |
| Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture | Cathartes burrovianus |
| Osprey | Pandion haliaetus |
| Black-collared Hawk | Busarellus nigricollis |
| Snail Kite | Rostrahamus sociabilis |
| Crane Hawk | Geranospiza caerulescens |
| Savanna Hawk | Buteogallus meridionalis |
| Great Black Hawk | Buteogallus urubitinga |
| Roadside Hawk | Rupornis magnirostris |
| Short-tailed Hawk | Buteo brachyurus |
| Ringed Kingfisher | Megaceryle torquata |
| Amazon Kingfisher | Chloroceryle amazona |
| Green Kingfisher | Chloroceryle americana |
| Chaco Puffbird | Nystalus maculatus striatipectus |
| Black-fronted Nunbird | Monasa nigrifrons |
| Toco Toucan | Ramphastos toco |
| White Woodpecker | Melanerpes candidus |
| Crimson-crested Woodpecker | Campephilus melanoleucos |
| Pale-crested Woodpecker | Celeus lugubris |
| Lineated Woodpecker | Dryocopus lineatus |
| Campo Flicker | Colaptes campestris |
| Red-legged Seriema | Cariama cristata |
| Laughing Falcon | Herpetotheres cachinnans |
| Crested Caracara | Caracara plancus |
| Monk Parakeet | Myiopsitta monachus |
| Yellow-chevroned Parakeet | Brotogeris chiriiri |
| Scaly-headed Parrot | Pionus maximiliani |
| Yellow-faced Parrot | Alipiopsitta xanthops |
| Turquoise-fronted Parrot | Amazona aestiva |
| Orange-winged Parrot | Amazona amazonica |
| Hyacinth Macaw | Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus |
| Peach-fronted Parakeet | Eupsittula aurea |
| Nanday Parakeet | Aratinga nenday |
| Yellow-collared Macaw | Primolius auricollis |
| Blue-and-yellow Macaw | Ara ararauana |
| Red-billed Scythebill | Campylorhamphus trochilirostris |
| Narrow-billed Woodcreeper | Lepidocolaptes angustirostris |
| Pale-legged Hornero | Furnarius leucopus |
| Rufous Hornero | Furnarius rufus |
| Rufous Cacholote | Pseudoseisura unirufa |
| Vermilion Flycatcher | Pyrocephalus obscurus |
| White-rumped Monjita | Xomis velatus |
| Cattle Tyrant | Machetornis rixosa |
| Lesser Kiskadee | Pitangus lictor |
| Great Kiskadee | Pitangus sulphuratus |
| White-throated Kingbird | Tyrannus albogularis |
| Tropical Kingbird | Tyrannus melancholicus |
| Purplish Jay | Cyanocorax cyanomelas |
| Plush-crested Jay | Cyanocorax chrysops |
| Black-capped Donacobius | Donacobius atricapilla |
| Southern Rough-winged Swallow | Stelgidopteryx ruficollis |
| Gray-breasted Martin | Progne chalybea |
| White-winged Swallow | Tachycineta albiventer |
| Crested Oropendola | Psarocolius decumanus |
| Solitary Black Cacique | Cacicus solitarius |
| Yellow-rumped Cacique | Cacicus cela |
| Yellow-billed Cardinal | Paroaria capitata |
| Silver-beaked Tanager | Ramphocelus carbo |
