Brazil: Pantanal Safari - August 2026
Dates: August 5-19, 2026
Leader: Erik Bruhnke
E-bird
Total Species: 231 birds
Click Here to view list.
Overall Summary
The VENT Pantanal Safari tour is a whirlwind of incredible diversity, and the magic of the Pantanal and Cerrado was thoroughly enjoyed throughout the trip. It was a joy to lead this tour with my good friend and local guide, Kike!
Our first full day started off with a birding bang, as we made our way to SouthWild Pantanal for the next few nights. First, before even leaving Cuiabá, however, we made a necessary stop at the local grocery store, as we always do, for some snacks and drinks for the travel days to come. Upon arriving in the grocery store parking lot, we enjoyed views of a rooftop-perched Burrowing Owl keeping watch over the entrance. We chuckled in delight at seeing this little ground-dwelling bird so high up! On the trek south, we enjoyed magnificent birds like Hyacinth Macaws, Jabiru, Green Ibis, Black-capped Donacobius, and more. An obligatory ice cream stop was a tasty and cool treat, complementing the many incredible birds we saw during the first few hours of day one. Chestnut-bellied Guans and Chaco Chachalacas seemed to greet us as we arrived at the lodge. Over the next day and a half, we would enjoy wonderful birds like both Common and Great Potoo, Bare-faced Curassows, Mato Grosso Antbird, White Woodpeckers, Toco Toucans, Picui Ground-Doves, and a broad plethora of additional sightings of many sorts. Rufous Cachalotes were a delight, as were the chatty Chotoy Spinetails, too. There was so much to appreciate around the grounds! The food and friendly staff left us with smiles each night. The evening Ocelot trek was a success on our first night, too!
After birding by foot and by vehicle around the lodge grounds, we made our way down the Transpantaneira toward vast rivers of wildlife-diverse proportions for the next few days. We got to meet Joao, our awesome boat driver, who catered immaculately to our wildlife-viewing needs. Staying at the Jaguar Suites is an unforgettable experience, and the wildlife we saw in the days ahead was awesome. First off, the numerous Jaguars were a thrill. We collectively had twelve Jaguar sightings during our time out of the Jaguar Suites. Each cat was gorgeous to see, powerful and beautiful as they are. Adorable Capybaras were frequently seen resting along the shore, while always-ready Yacare Caiman relaxed both on the sandbar and in the water, keeping watch for food. We saw huge ones and tiny ones. The snarly Giant Otters were seen well, too, in the waters. Seeing several Brazilian Tapirs was a delight in itself, as this animal is often very hard to track down, if at all. And an evening experience viewing a super-rare Maned Wolf happened one night, too! The boat ride back home from the Maned Wolf evening was enchanting and memorable, as we gazed up from the moving boat into an open sky of endless stars, without a trace of light pollution in the wilderness. The bird life from the river was astounding each day, too.
Each morning and evening on the river were chock-full of highlights, from the many Yellow-billed and Large-billed Terns to delicate-plumaged Capped Herons with buttery-yellow accents, Boat-billed Herons, Pied Plovers, and kingfishers galore. It was common to be taken aback by the sheer diversity of bird life. One morning alone, we had 89 bird species observed from our few-hour-long boat trip just up and down the rivers! The rooms, food, and friendly staff were all a treat at the Jaguar Suites.
After a wildly diverse experience birding by boat, we made our way north to Pousada Piuval, with a very slight change to the tour’s schedule while ensuring every excursion and birding opportunity was possible as planned. And there was delicious ice cream en route, with Hyacinth Macaws feeding in the tree in front of us. We were greeted at Pousada Piuval by Campo Flickers and squawking Red-legged Seriemas. A pre-dinner evening excursion took place around the property, where we enjoyed the sound of two vocalizing Black-banded Owls, a Little Nightjar, and a Spot-tailed Nightjar, too. Our latter time around Pousada Piuval was charmed with views of Yellowish Pipit, Aplomado Falcon, Greater Rhea, Golden-collared Macaws, dapper flyby Whistling Herons, and more, just sampling the endless highlights. The birding sights around the immediate lodge grounds were fun as we walked among the many lazy Capybaras each day. We enjoyed a total of FOUR Giant Anteater sightings and a rare Southern Tamandua here as well! Discovering a nighttime Jaguar on one of our evening vehicle excursions was not on the radar, either. So incredible!
Our last stretch of birding and lodging was at SouthWild Pantanal one more time. The highlights kept coming in hot. We got to see several open-winged Sunbitterns showing off their spectacular and vibrant wing patterns, the earthy-looking Plumbeous Ibis, out-in-the-open Flavescent Warblers feeding on the ground with a Gray-headed Tanager, and dapper Large-billed Antwrens, all while walking the woods. A tiny White-wedged Piculet brought smiles to all while watching it scooch among the fine branches, and a Toco Toucan was seen well in the afternoon light. There were so many highlights once again. And among all of this, the rare and regional Chestnut-bellied Guans delighted us every morning around the birdfeeders, like icing on the cake of birding.
There was so much to relish every day of this tour. A special thanks goes out again to Kike, our incredibly knowledgeable birding guide and friend, for the many birding experiences and teachings in the field. It was great to bird with him again. To Joao, our awesome boat driver, who led us to just the right spots and directions while watching birds and Jaguars alike. To the many wonderful hotel staff and cooks, too, who took care of us. And a big thank you to all of the participants who were on this tour—it was a wonderful time! I’m already looking forward to next year’s tour.
Day-by-Day Summary
August 5 - Gather in hotel and enjoy a welcome dinner at Churrascaria Aeroporto Grill
August 6 - Leave Cuiaba, bird our way to SouthWild Pantanal with ice cream stop en route, afternoon birding around SouthWild Pantanal, evening Ocelot visit (success!)
August 7 - Forest hiking around SouthWild Pantanal, open-back vehicle ride around SouthWild Pantanal.
August 8 - Check out of SouthWild Pantanal and make our way down to Porto Jofre (ice cream stop en route among birding), check into Jaguar Suites, afternoon excursion around the local rivers (Cuiaba River, Tres Irmaos, Black Channel)
August 9 - River birding both in the morning and afternoon (Cuiaba River, Black Channel, Tres Irmaos, Island Channel)
August 10 - River birding both in the morning and afternoon (Cuiaba River, Black Channel, Tres Irmaos, Island Channel)
August 11 - River birding in the morning (Piquiri River), evening/night along the Piquiri River for the Maned Wolf experience at fishing lodge (success!)
August 12 - River birding in morning (Cuiaba River, Black Channel, Island Channel), check out of Jaguar Suites and head north to Pousada Piuval with an ice cream break on the way.
August 13 - Early morning excursion for anteaters/birding on Pousada Piuval grounds via open-bed truck, morning birding around property via open-bed truck, and mid-afternoon/evening excursion around Pousada Piuval property via open-bed truck.
August 14 -Pousada Piuval early morning excursion via open-bed truck for anteaters/birding on Pousada Piuval grounds, morning birding around property via open-bed truck, check out of Pousada Piuval and make our way to SouthWild Pantanal for an evening of birding by open-bed truck before dinner.
August 15 - Hike around SouthWild Pantanal forest, afternoon exploring SouthWild Pantanal grounds.
August 16 - Hike around SouthWild Pantanal forest one more time with even more fun sightings, lunch at Rio Claro with the Nanday Parakeets, make our way to the Amazon Aeropuerto hotel for our wrap-up dinner and our last night.
August 17 - Fly home.
Wildlife Seen:
MAMMALS:
Giant Anteater (4)
Southern Tamandua (1)
Black-tailed Marmoset (rare!)
Tufted Capuchin
Black Howler Monkey
Brazilian Guinea Pig (lifer for everyone on the VENT tour including Erik)
Capybara
Azara’s Agouti
Tropical Cottontail
Long-nosed Bat (Proboscis Bat)
Lesser Bulldog Bat
Greater Bulldog Bat
Ocelot
Jaguar (13!)
Crab-eating Fox
Maned Wolf
Giant Otter
South American Coati
Brazilian Tapir
Marsh Deer
Red Brocket Deer
Amazonian Brown Brocket Deer
Pampas Deer
AMPHIBIAN/REPTILE:
Yacare Caiman
Golden Tegu
Black-and-white Tegu
Green Iguana
Lava Lizard
False Water Cobra
Neotropical Racer
Red-footed Tortoise
Common Milk Frog
BUTTERFLY:
Blue Cracker
White Peacock
Antinoe Catone
Owl-Eye Butterfly
Telea Hairstreak
Owl Butterfly
MOTH:
Heiroglyphic Moth
Aithorape Moth sp.
Sphinx Moth sp.
DRAGONFLY:
Band-winged Dragonlet.
WASP:
Tarantula Hawk