Welcome to the Jungle (uumm...more like an aboreal forest)!

Chin-loo, Vanda, and I went out today collecting animals that were trapped since yesterday. Along the way was a fox, but it was not red like ours, but instead quite black and had floppy ears. It walked like the ones in Maine, but when it ran, it resembled a puppy bounding after a ball.

When we got to the traps, we found a variety of amphibians (including a tree frog), a couple of millipedes (which we released), a few lizards, a gecko, and 3 HUGE tarantulas. Now, you must understand that I am petrified of spiders to begin with, but I decided that I wanted the whole "Pantanal experience", and, with Chin-loo cheering me on, I tried to collect the first one. The problem was, I was trying to grab it as though it were a smaller species, quick and in one motion. Not a good idea. And that's an understatement. He (or she) became extremely agitated and arched its back, displaying its fangs to scare the "enemy"--it worked. Ellen (the researcher) carefully lifted it out and set it free a few feet into the woods. I was so disappointed in myself.

However, I got to redeem myself. At the next trap that just Chin-loo and I went to, another tarantula awaited. He (or she) was a big one! Once again, Chin-loo was kind enough to let me take it out of the trap (or at least attempt to); I slowly reached down with the tweezers, and, learning from last time, slowly approached the tarantula, then, in one quick motion, grabbed him by his body. he squirmed, but did not get loose. I held on to him while the others took pictures, and, I look like I'm okay with it in the pictures, but I felt so exhilerated and scared at the same time.

At the next set of traps, Chin-loo and I separated. I did two and she did two while Vanda and Ellen did the other pairs of traps. Of course, my trap had a tarantula in it--you guys know my luck, right? So, as I did the last one, but this time with no one around (honestly, Chin-loo was only about 30 feet away--but that's far when you're talking tarantula!), I picked up the spider, which was smaller than the previous one. He (or she) had different coloring than the first two, and just picking it up annoyed it. I know this, because when I went to release it a few feet away he grabbed on to the tweezers, and tried climbing toward my hand. At that point, I actually kept calm (yes, I surprise myself too), and shook him on to the ground nearby. He reared up, arched his back and showed off his fangs. Boy, this tactic really works when a tarantula wants to scare you. I decided it was best to hop to the other side of the trap fence--Chin-loo, who had since joined me, decided that was a good idea and hopped the fence too. Whew!

In a couple of days, we will be collecting turtles at the Salinas, where we get to wade through the water (only about a meter deep). Tomorrow, I will be with Mary, Vanda, Edson, and Manuel to survey signs of otters--I really hope to see at least one, but it is rare this time of year because, with the banks flooded to overflowing, the dens and resting areas are also flooded and the otters have migrated until a drier time. We'll see!

Also, another goal of mine is to see the Hyacinth Macaw, which are around, but I have missed every sighting and photo-op so far. I am also keeping an eye out for the Howler Monkey and the Toucan. I learned that when you keep the image in your mind's eye when you're searching, you are more likely to see the animal you are looking for. It's called the "search image". Makes sense, right?

More to come tomorrow....