Two summers ago, I was traveling in the southeast area of Peru deep within the confines of the Amazon Rainforest. After spending time in the Las Piedras area, it was time to head south to the Tambopata National Reserve. This vast protected area encompasses 1,061 square miles and is bordered by the Bahuaja-Sonene National Park to the south with the city of Puerto Maldonado to the North.
This reserve is made up of predominantly tropical rainforest and a host of unique fauna and flora. However, it is likely most known for its clay licks, large exposed riverbanks where dozens of macaws, parrots, other birds, and mammals gather to consume clay.
Clay licks are structures formed from erosion when clay-rich riverbanks and cliffsides are exposed. Other forms of clay licks can often be found on the forest floor, but these sites are visited by mammals more so than parrots. The majority of clay licks are found in the western Amazon within Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Brazil.
The consumption of clay known as geophagy has been observed in a wide range of animals and there are many hypotheses for this behavior. These range from the ability of clay to aid in nutrient (especially sodium) supplementation, removing harmful toxins obtained through plants, buffering pH levels, and improving digestion. Large scale parrot use of clay licks is quite extraordinary considering that movements are well-coordinated and occur regularly in groups.
My journey began with a seven-hour boat ride downriver in order to reach the Tambopata Research Center. This is the only lodge and research station within the borders of the Tambopata reserve and is only accessible by boat.
This station is renowned for its research on the longest known clay lick, Colpa Colorado, which is found on the riverbank adjacent to the lodge. The Tambopata Macaw Project conducts this research to improve the understanding and conservation of large macaws and parrots in the area.
The next morning, I arose early to view the magnificent clay licks in the morning light when the activity is often greatest. After taking a short boat ride, we all settled down in a lookout in front of the clay lick. This maximized our views of the area but minimized disturbance to the birds. While exposed on clay licks, parrots are very alert and will flee at the slightest disturbance. This meant that we had to sit and wait until the birds believed that the coast was clear.
It started almost as soon as we arrived when pairs of macaws and large groups of the smaller parrots and parakeets flew in landing on nearby trees. The raucous created was unmistakable as hundreds of these birds vocalized all at once communicating with each other in ways that are not yet understood. This spectacle was interesting enough to watch on its own even with the parrots spread out and concealed beneath greenery.
After about an hour, the main action began when the first parrots descended on the vertical surface of the clay lick. First the Mealy Parrots, then the Blue-headed Parrots followed by Red & Green Macaws with Blue & Yellow Macaws. After some time on the lick, individual birds dispersed but were almost always replaced by another individual.
The colorful parrots were joined by several other less noticeable visitors including guans (a ground-feeding chicken-like bird) and pigeons which also picked at the reddish clay with their beaks.
This phenomenon continued until mid-morning when all of a sudden alarm calls broke out sending all the feeding birds in rapid flight fleeing the lick. They were joined by others as this massive gathering of birds departed all at once.
The silhouettes of hundreds of parrots passed by overhead while their deafening calls blended together. This is a natural phenomenon unlike any other and even the pictures do not do it justice. This spectacle is truly one of the most underestimated wonders of the world.
