Week 1: Welcomed by Wandering Spiders

Tucked away in the rainforest of the Madre de Dios region of Peru, the Secret Forest Ranger Station is no easy feat to get to. My 48 hour travel day consisted of a layover in LA, a night spent in Lima, a plane to Puerto Maldonado, a tuk tuk to a hostel, an hour long bus ride, and a 30 minute boat ride. Upon my arrival at the station, I was pretty exhausted to say the least. This exhaustion was quickly forgotten as I took in my surroundings. Located just off of the Madre de Dios River, the Secret Forest Station is a biodiversity hotspot with trees towering overhead and birds darting across the canopy. My crew’s arrival was welcomed by the call of oropendolas and the chatter of Tamarin monkeys. 

View from the riverside when I first arrived.

Shortly after lugging our things ashore, we were shown our rooms. The girl’s bungalow consists of a few bunk beds and a bathroom. The bathroom has no separation from the bedroom area, so privacy while using the toilet is hard to come by. Luckily I am yet to face the infamous traveler's diarrhea (this would be very unfortunate for my roommates). 

The bungalow I will be living in for the next few months.

After dropping luggage off and settling in a bit, we met for a two hour safety briefing. The presentation warned of us wandering spiders, bullet ants, coral snakes, chiggers, tree falls, and other dangers we may face while living in the rainforest. To kick off my blog, I thought I would share a few of the dangers, as well as some of the challenges I have faced while trying to navigate my first couple of weeks in the jungle. In no particular order, here are a few things to watch out for whilst living in the Amazon. 

#1: Wandering Spiders

Wandering Spiders, infamous for their venomous bites and defensive nature, are common in the rainforests of South America. Here in the Madre de Dios region, there are two species with potentially fatal bites: Phoneutria boliviensis and Phoneutria fera. To best avoid unwanted interactions with these spiders, we shake out our boots and clothes before putting them on and watch where we put our hands and feet in the forest. Just last night, we had a wandering spider as an unexpected visitor in our bedroom. Always fun to find a highly venomous spider in your sleeping quarters.

Wandering spider found on a herpetology walk.

#2: Bullet Ants

Another bug to avoid: the bullet ant. A quick Google search will tell you that a sting from one of these ants will feel like you've been shot by a bullet with pain lasting 24 hours. After seeing several bullet ants within my first few days, I was incredibly curious to know if this intense description was accurate to the actual experience. Several of the interns, as well as a coordinator, agreed that the whole gunshot thing was exaggerated. To prove this, my coordinator explained that he had continued to do fieldwork throughout the day that he was stung (take this with a grain of salt as he is generally unfazed). Regardless of the intensity of the pain, a bullet ant is definitely a bug that is not to be messed with.

Bullet Ants!! Sorry for the low-quality picture. I was trying to avoid getting too close, haha.

#3: Venomous Snakes

“Red touches yellow kills a fellow,” does not apply here. There are various colorations and species of coral snake in the area, none of which you would want to mess with. I generally avoid touching anything colorful in the jungle, insects included. There have been multiple occasions where I've considered picking up a little caterpillar or something, only to find out that they will hurt to the touch. 

We are yet to catch anything super venomous, so I have included some pictures of the snakes we've found. This one is an Oxyrhopus occipitalis that was spotted near camp.

On top of coral snakes, Fer-de-Lances can also be found here. One of the most venomous snakes in South America, bites can be fatal without treatment. I work with a very knowledgeable herpetology team and they are careful to id any snake with certainty before handling it. When we go out into the forest at night, my headlamp is constantly scanning the floor for danger noodles.

Oxyrhopus melanogenys found on a herp walk (false coral snake).

#4: Mosquitoes, Sandflies, Chiggers, Etc.

Unless you want to subject yourself to bites galore, a trip into the forest usually necessitates long sleeves, pants, and rain boots. On occasion, I will risk short sleeves when the heat is unbearable, but the consequence is being speckled with red, itchy bumps. These bites can come from a number of different sources.

Mosquitoes are one of the main culprits. Despite sleeping under a net, I am currently covered in mosquito bites. They always seem to find a way to make it through my thin pants and shirts. Luckily, we are in a low-risk area for malaria so that is not a major concern.

I didn't think people would really want to see mosquito photos so here's a cool beetle I found instead!

Sand flies, perhaps even more annoying than mosquitoes, are tiny little midges that draw little dots of blood when they bite. They are all over at night and have even found their way into the dining area. While mostly just obnoxious, these flies do carry a potentially fatal parasitic disease called Leishmaniasis. I've heard horror stories of a chemo-like treatment if infected. I just try to wear long sleeves and avoid thinking about it too much. This has kind of been my overall approach to a lot of the diseases that are out of my control. 

#5: Humidity, Heat, and Rain

Today was the first major rainfall I have experienced in Peru. I made the massive mistake of washing and hanging my clothes yesterday evening. I came back from the field this morning to my clothes being absolutely soaked. I am really hoping the sun comes out this afternoon in full force. Otherwise, my clothes might be mildewy for a bit. Maybe the smell will just blend in with the other musks of the forest?

The bird banding team on our way back to camp during a downpour.

On top of the rain, the heat and humidity make it near impossible to stay dry. I always feel slightly damp with sweat and moisture. Kind of disgusting but I have just kind of accepted my reality at this point.

I realize that this post focuses a lot on the negatives of my experience so far. I want to point out that despite the many challenges I have encountered, it has been an incredibly rewarding experience. I get to wake up to wildlife every day, work with and learn from incredibly knowledgeable people, and experience a side of the world I have never seen before. I look forward to continuing to share my journey and plan to give more specifics related to the work I do and the animals I encounter in my next few posts. Thanks for reading! 

Highlight of the week was catching an emerald tree boa! A pretty rare find and we were lucky enough to see two!

I was also super stoked to see a pacman frog! We saw three different individuals this week!