While Adam and I were paddling along a couple of days ago we saw an interesting sight. After we heard some rustling in the bushes, we looked over and saw a small bird struggling in the water. I immediately took notice because we have not seen any birds hanging out in the water on this whole trip. This looked like a baby and it was working its way back to shore by the time we paddled away.

At first confused, I soon realized what was happening. I had read about a bird called the Hoatzin and we had seen a number of the adults during this trip.

As adults, the chicken-sized birds climb and jump about in the canopy. Their rare flights cover only short distances. The Hoatzin's red eyes are surrounded by bright blue skin and they have a rather scragley crest of long, thin feathers. These features combine to give them an unusual appearance.

The most unusual feature of the Hoatzin is seen only in the very young birds. When they are newly hatched, Hoatzins have two well-developed claws located at the bend of each wing. These claws are used to help the youngsters climb about in the vegetation. Their nests are usually built over water, and if a young bird is disturbed, it will dive into the water and swim to a thicket where it uses its claws to climb back into the trees. This is truly something that helps these young birds survive in the flooded forest!

At one time, scientists thought these birds were related to the archaeopteryx because of these claws but have since placed them as the only species in their own family. Ruben believes that these unique birds are only found in South America.

Jesse

(Some information from "Amazon: Jungles of Peru." International Expeditions, Inc.)