The Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve is a fantastic protected area to visit in the Amazon Rainforest of northern Peru. The reserve is named after the Tamshiyacu River on one side and the Tahuayo River on the other, and was founded to protect the Red Uakari, one of several Amazon monkeys living within the protected area.
On Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve tours, you will explore the area to find an abundance of monkeys and many other animals. The Amazon Research Center, within the reserve, was started to provide researchers and conservationists a base to study reserve monkeys and wildlife. Behind the center is a 1000 acre trail grid to see fantastic animals, which you can visit on tour from the Tahuayo Lodge, the only lodge close to the reserve.
The Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve protects around 420,000 hectares (1,038,000 acres) of flooded and non-flooded tropical forest and a high diversity of plants and animals. You can see many different animals in the reserve, such as the monkeys already mentioned and over 600 different birds, including toucans, parrots, kingfishers, king vultures, plum throated cotingas, paradise tanagers, trogans, and macaws.
The reptiles in the reserve are also fascinating, such as black caiman, tegu, caiman lizards, coral snakes, emerald tree boas, rainbow boas, anaconda, and monkey lizards. Also, for those with a fondness for frogs, within the reserve is a conservation section set up to help the breeding of poison dart frogs, which can be seen on tour from the Tahuayo Lodge. The frogs you are likely to see include harlequin toad, monkey frogs, glass frogs, and the colorful Ranitomeya poison dart frogs, which range in color from yellow through to red. These are often a favorite subject for photographers.
The Tahuayo Lodge is the only lodge with access to explore the Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve and is a favorite choice for wildlife & rainforest lovers worldwide. You are assigned a private guide with a custom itinerary and given a selection of different itinerary options to choose from, including rainforest hikes, scouting for particular animals and plants, canoeing, lake tours, and camping for those who want to get closer to the rainforest.
Enjoy canoeing the lakes scouting for lake and lakeside inhabitants, such as the prehistoric hoatzin birds, a strange bird that doesn’t like to fly and digests food in a similar way to cows. Other lake wildlife include caiman, a less aggressive species than their crocodile cousins, snakes, such as the non venomous emerald tree boas, other reptiles, and water birds like herons, jacanas, horned screamers, and parrots.
Early morning boat tours and guided rainforest walks are often the best way to see wildlife. Your guide will spot different animals, such as the monkeys, birds and reptiles, and make sure you are in the best position to see.
For those who enjoy adventure, you would love camping in the reserve. To lay in your tent listening to sounds from the rainforest knowing you’re in the middle of the Amazon is a fantastic experience.
The Tahuayo Lodge is also home to the longest canopy zipline systems in the Amazon Rainforest. You can whiz from tree to tree using the canopy platforms placed in between, which allow you to rest and look over the canopy to see different Amazon birds. The zipline has been enjoyed by grandparents and families with young children.
On tours of 6 days or more, you will visit both the main lodge and Amazon Research Center to see two different sections of the reserve. Both lodges have different animals more easily seen at each area. For example, close to the Tahuayo Lodge you have good chance of seeing the pygmy marmosets, one of the world’s smallest monkeys, different lakes to see caiman, squirrel monkeys, hoatzin, horned screamers, jacanas, and king fishers.
From the Amazon Research Center, you will have access to the primate research grid, which means you can spend your time finding the reserve’s several different monkeys, including howler monkeys, titi monkeys, saki monkeys, owl monkeys, woolly monkeys, capuchins, tamarins, and, if you’re lucky, the red uakaris.
Other animals include coatis, tamanduas, peccary, jaguar, tapir, deer, paca, agouti, sloths and bats. You can see some excellent photos of jaguar in the reserve captured by camera traps set up by the lodge, although sighting these rare and mysterious animals is very rare.
To reach the Tahuayo Lodge, you will first fly from Peru’s capital of Lima to Iquitos in northern Peru. You will then be collected by Tahuayo Lodge staff for a 150 km boat trip down the Amazon and Tahuayo tributary before reaching the lodge. Once here, you will sit down with your private guides to discuss your interests and what you would like to spend your time doing.
Because of its distance from Iquitos, we recommend visiting for a minimum of four days, and a recommended timeframe of 8 days, to make sure you get the most of the experience. The distance from Iquitos also explains why there is so much wildlife here, as animals are less abundant the closer you get to the city. To contact the Tahuayo Lodge directly for questions and booking, you can use the contact bubble below.
The Tahuayo Lodge
Iquitos, PeruFrom the Tahuayo Lodge, you will explore the Amazon Rainforest’s wildlife-rich Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve with a private guide on a custom itinerary. ...
- Private Guide, Custom Itinerary
From $ 1,295
/ person
Ash
Tour Advisor at TourTheTropics.comAsh Card is a frequent visitor to the Tropics and has a passion for helping visitors get the best experiences from tropical locations. Ash is a contributor and tour advisor at TourTheTropics.com. Feel free to contact Ash for tour help in the tropics. When not helping tourists with tours and info, Ash can be found traveling, on wildlife tours or salsa dancing. Ash has completed a BSc in Biology, a Master’s degree in Zoology, and has undertaken a research scholarship at a world-class university on animal behavior. He has published scientific research in the Australian Journal of Zoology and the Journal of Behavioral Ecology. His goal is to help a global society live in balance with the natural world.