Back in the UK

Hey Bloggers,

Well, it is official, the Peru Girls Primate Research Expedition has ended and we are now all back in the UK. We all had such a fantastic time in Peru and I am sure that it will remain as one of the most amazing experiences of our lives.  

I would like to thank all of you who have been reading the blog throughout these last three months, I hope that you found it interesting, informative and fun! :)

All the best,

Sophia

The Final Trip to the Forest

Hello again,

Before beginning this entry I would just like to mention that when we returned to Bagua Grande we had received an e-mail from Conservation International regarding our application for the Primate Action Fund Grant... it stated that we had been awarded US$3,500 toward our project :D Fantastic news!

It was so strange thinking that this was going to be our final trip to the forest, especially when there was still quite a lot to do (census and vegetation data collection). We managed to get organised and set off much earlier than the previous trip. Unfortunately there were no mules available to help carry our equipment and food, so we rearranged our backpacks (loading the essentials) and left the everything else to be taken the following day.

The next morning we realised that we had not packed enough food to keep us going incase the mules did not arrive that day...but luckily later in the afternoon we saw a caravan of mules carrying bags approaching (we were so relieved).

After this, the days seemed to fly past - we were constantly working day and night collecting census data and it took two long days (12 hours) to complete the vegetation data collection on the trails. But we still had time to observe and admire the wildlife (various insects, frogs and birds...sadly no monkeys though) and beautiful scenery. 

(big slug)

Although the majority of Cordillera Colan is protected forest, the buffer zone is not and we would occasionally hear chainsaws being used near our census points and sadly along one of our trails a large Ficus spp. tree was found (recently) cut down. All that was left was a stump, while the rest of the tree was further down the slope, it was not even being used for anything, which makes it even more sad because it is such a waste and in addition to this Nicola thought that it was a potential sleeping site tree for A. miconax. 

(Cedar wood - this is frequently transported from the buffer zone)

After 7 days we had finally completed all of our data collection, Nicola had several sightings and presence data for the night monkeys (Aotus miconax) and even I managed to hear a few groups of yellow-tailed woolly monkeys (Oreonax flavicauda) at the census points, but sadly I did not see any. But it still did not feel as though we would not be returning.

The hike back seemed much easier this time and what once took us 6 hours only took 4 1/2! Sadly there was no jeep waiting for us, but luckily a taxi was driving by and despite our muddy appearance took us back to Bagua Grande.

We spent a few days in Bagua Grande recovering from our final trip and getting prepared for our return journey to La Esperanza. It is strange how quickly these 3 months have gone, but we have all had such an amazing experience.

(watching the sunset)

Sadly we had to say goodbye to Thiago who will be heading on to Ecuador, he has been a great help to us throughout the project and we will all miss him very much and wish him all the best with his project. 

(Thiago)

Thanks for reading, hope you are all well wherever you are.

Cordillera Colan - The Second Site

Hey bloggers,

Thank you for your patience, I know that it has been a while since the last update.

We were packed and ready for our first trip to the new study site, but unsure about whether we were prepared for the 6 hour hike it would take to get to the campsite...Yes that's twice as long as the walk from La Esperanza to El Torro.

The organisation that was helping us at this site (SERNANP - Servicio Nacional de Areas Naturales Protegidas) took us, all our clothing and food for the next ten days. It was a bumpy ride and when the jeep could go no further, we had to get out and walk the rest of the way.

(From left to right: Esme, Nicola, Thiago and Leyda)

The scenery around Cordillera Colan was truly stunning and the trails were just as muddy as El Torro (knee deep)...6 hours later and we finally arrived at the campsite, where we would be sleeping in quite different accommodation than we were used to. 

(the 4 of us were sharing the silver tent)

The next day we walked along a few of the trails and started to think about where we could set up our census points. We ended up with 4 trails: 3 were in the buffer zone (areas that have been deforested and now used for pastoral farming) and 1 in the national park (protected area).

(buffer zone)

It was a little difficult finding an accessible area to the national park, as there is a river in between the two areas, but we managed to find a shallow bit to cross.  

When our census points were marked, we thought that we would make a start on collecting our vegetation data, however our guide (Leyda) found it difficult to identify the trees (to Family and Genus) without a field guide. So this was put on hold until the next trip.

(Nicola marking a census point)

With regard to monkey data collection... I only heard a group of Yellow-tailed woolly monkeys (Oreonax flavicauda) once and never saw them, however Nicola had a few night monkey (Aotus miconax) and kinkajou sightings.

By the 9th day we were quite low on food supplies and all very tired and achey, but despite this we managed to hike back in 5 1/2 hours. It was such a relief to see the Jeep waiting for us at the end.

Thanks for reading :)