PANTANAL
The Pantanal is a region that lies primarily in Brazil. The name comes from the Portuguese word plantano meaning wetland. Most of the floodplains are submerged during the rainy season nurturing a diverse collection of aquatic plants and a wide array of animal species. The floodplain shifts between phases of standing water and phases of dry soil.
Many of the flora and fauna are unique to this region. Among the rarest are the marsh deer and the giant river otter. Many other species are endangered, such as the hyacinth macaw. Our sites were on the jaguar (the world’s largest) which come to the Cuiaba River to hunt, mostly the abundant caiman and the capybara.
