We are a group of Peruvian biology graduates who accompany Lucy on her adventure of studying monkeys, here in Peru.
The beginning of our journey began in a charming montane cloud forest in the Central Jungle of Peru, with incomparable landscapes almost intangible of human activities; the Puyu – Sacha forest, a protected forest located above 2000 meters above sea level with an area of approximately 1700ha.
One of the objectives of the study consists of the evaluation of the primate community regarding the degree of human disturbance, which is carried out through observation through transect routes of approximately 1km in length, in a determined time.
We traveled long distances to locate ourselves at the beginning of the transect and begin our evaluation, adapting to the steep slopes, wide altitude gradients and therefore the cold weather that was felt mainly in the morning and at night, typical of a montane forest. However, none of that mattered when we saw our first troop of woolly monkeys moving in search of food, indifferent to our presence and a moment later, without expecting it, they were resting very close on our heads; The juvenile of the group was interested, observing us curiously from a relevant distance. It was gratifying for the entire team, since we had been working in the forest for many days without having seen them. We were amazed watching them for a long time, managing to capture some images of them.
Another objective of the study is to collect audio recordings of elusive monkeys; this is attempted to be achieved through audio recording equipment that is installed in strategic locations within the transects.
We remember with great enthusiasm how on one occasion while we were changing batteries and memory cards of the respective recorders, we heard a considerable noise and were able to observe in front of us an adult male quickly climbing a tree and a few seconds later we realized that that we were surrounded by a large group of woolly monkeys. Unknowingly, we had interrupted their lunch hour, when they noticed us, one of them alerted the rest of the group and they decided to head in another direction.
In addition, studies were carried out on portions of the forest surrounding the transects, to learn more about the composition of the forest and the environment in which the primates develop. Likewise, these evaluations give us the opportunity to witness other types of fauna characteristic of the forest; For example, one afternoon while we were evaluating a plot, one of us who was measuring the DBH of a tree heard in the distance the rustling of dry leaves on the ground which was increasing. She, scared and astonished, saw a herd of unsuspecting peccaries approaching her, absorbed in their search for food; When she realized, she was surrounded by all of them, so she just wanted to hide and in her movement, she accidentally made a small noise enough for the collared peccaries to notice her presence and instantly took flight. It was an exciting day and just like this, many anecdotes accompanied us during our stay in this magical place.
As you can see, the Puyu-Sacha forest is overflowing with wildlife, some of which we were able to observe were tayras, armadillos, porcupines, the cock-of-the-rock, considered our national bird; and endemic vegetation such as cinchona, the official tree of Peru and multiple species of orchids.
Our journey continues…
Authors:
Angie Remigio
Cris Sandoval
Lourdes Grace Ponce Huaranga
Stephanie Alexandra Riofrio Guarderas
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