Birdwatching and wildlife tour in Emas National Park

“The Brazilian Serengeti, a large sanctuary of Cerrado grasslands in central Brazil”

Emas National Park is one of the largest protected areas of campo-cerrado habitat, which comprises a vast mosaic of open savannas and scrublands. Here crystal clear streams rush across the golden grasslands, surrounded by evergreen gallery forest. This tract of grasslands is one of the richest savannas in the world and consequently is a very important wildlife refuge in Brazil. The park is dissected by many fire roads that give us the opportunity to reach the many different habitats in search of birds and mammals. The terrain is gentle, making for pleasant outings walking on dirt tracks and forest trails.

We will be among the few people to explore this region, and some of the highlights that will please both birders and photographers are the many flocks of Blue-and-yellow Macaws feeding and perching at eye level, Aplomado Falcons, Greater Rheas, Red-legged Seriemas, and Helmeted Manakins. This park is also home for some of the most fascinating birds in the cerrado, such as Bearded Tachuri, Black-masked Finch, Yellow-faced Parrot, the handsome Sharp-tailed Tyrant and the amazing Cock-tailed Tyrants, flying across the grasslands like miniature airplanes. When night falls, we will search out another specialty of this park, the gracious White-winged Nightjar. We also have a chance to find the rare Cone-billed Tanager, a little-known species that was re-discovered here just a few years ago.

As good as Emas National Park is for birds, it is one of the premier parks in Brazil for observing mammals, such as Pampas Deer, Giant Anteater, Manned Wolf, Brazilian Tapir, Crab-eating and Hoary foxes, and among the several armadillos species, the possibility of finding the rare and endangered Giant Armadillo, one of the most elusive animals in South America.