Guw on ger outta it yow ay gettin me this wick bea...
(Translation for non Black Country speaking Folk "Go on get out of it you are not getting me this week beastie")
Well the 2 biologists came and went. 2 more contacts though Malena and Fernando ( and yes I had the Abba song going round in my head). Malena is making a map of the area and what plants are in the area whilst Fernando was investigating bees. In particular non stinging bees and also the properties of their honey in medicinal terms. All of the local tribes in the area of Misiones eat it for various medical cures eg as an antiseptic which has been proved scientifically. And if the pollens from certain known medicinal plants that the bees collect carry those properties into the honey. It was quite interesting to listen to the theories and I learnt quite a lot about bees in a short space of time. So after doing my now perfected " If you would like to write an article to go in Ratel magazine we would love to hear about it" speech we exchanged email addresses and headed off on our own expeditions.
So at 5.45am I headed to the Capi area, about 5 minutes away from the steps something barked a warning at me. And then there was lots of rustling .. The best way I can describe it was a bit like a big dogs woof like a Labrador for example..excpet you don't get Labradors in the jungle..unless the Hunters had brought one.. For someone who has an over imaginative imagination at the best of times this wasn't good. I was glad I had put my leather gaitors on in the morning!! I stood not quite knowing to go on or runaway I had on one side of me the practical voice saying make lots of noise and it will go away its going to be far more scared of you than you of it. And the other side wailing BUT ITS A WILD BEASTIE!! and somewhere inbetween Guns and Roses Welcome to the Jungle song came into it.. anyway..I decided that the Crowned Crane Tactic at work would be best. Remember my roots and go northern on it. For some unknown reason this method works particulary well on our Crowned Crane male when he has chicks and is being all aggressive so if it works on him it must work on a non english speaking thing? After making lots of noise and repeating the above title it appeared to have gone away. Which is just aswell because I dont know that a 2foot rotting stick would have been much of a threat anyway..
After a slightly more hesitant trip to the Capi area I managed about an hour before seriously wilting. First thing in the morning there is not much shade in the Capi area and after checking the temp it was hitting 40.8 degrees. After deciding no sensible Toucan or person would be out in temperatures of that degree I made a warily and wearily trip back to the station to start and format some sort of results from the area. Interestingly all my toucan spottings have been inbetween 24 -28 degrees and reading the German bird groups reports they have said that it is a rarity that these birds are seen here and they have clocked up a lot more hours of observation than me. So I feel a bit privledged to leave here with at least 3 sightings and photos even though it is a bit of a let down that it isn't what I wanted to do. By 3 o clock it was siesta time I just couldnt stay awake, the temp was 32 degrees in the shade. By the time I woke up about an hour and half later it was to the sound of rain and thunder. The temp was down to 27 so ideal Toucan spotting weather, unfortunatly no show but they could be heard so I wonder if it was too late in the day to fly over from Brazil ( Brazil by the by is 1km across the river away!).
I have also got my own back on Greg today!! Ha Ha Ha I've issued him with a parking fine for not having the correct parking permit for the area!!Its got a Toucan on it and Ebio parking services logo on it and everything! Fine of 25 pounds ( I cant find the pound sign!) or a few beers! Bet the taxi rate goes up!