Indigenous people of the Pantanal

Gwynn Lyons

After today's class, I was curious to know more about the native people of the Pantanal, so I did a little research. I learned that humans first moved into the Pantanal more than 8000 years ago. They tended to settle around the mountains near permanent rivers, where the effects of the flooding were minimal. The first Spanish expedition to encounter these people occurred in 1514 and went up Rio Paraguay. Since they found a tribe named Xaray, they first named the flood region "Mar de Xarayés" before its name got changed to Pantanal.

Courtesy of blog-do-netuno.blogspot.com

It turns out that there were many Indian tribes in the Pantanal, such as the Guaicurú, Terena, Paiaguá, and the Xané. For the most part they were hunters and gatherers; agriculture wasn't greatly developed at this time.  The Pantanal tribes worked collectively, since private property did not exist in their culture. Interestingly, each tribe associated the origin of the Pantanal with an animal. For instance, the Paiaguás believed that they descended from the pacu. Nearly all the tribes in the Pantanal spoke a language called Guarani, which derived from the name of the dominant tribe, the Guaicurú.



The Guaicurú was not the only war-loving tribe, however. The Paiaguás, known as "canoe Indians," were also quite warlike and ended up invading much of their neighbors' territory through canals. They were supposedly the most characteristic tribe of the Pantanal because of their adaptation to the flood cycle and their skills in fishing. Another notable tribe was the Guatô, a nomadic group which was known for excellence in bow-and-arrow hunting. Because they were a relatively small tribe, the Guatô ended up being subsumed by the Guaicurús and the Paiaguás.

Today, most descendants of these tribes have integrated into Brazilian culture, learning Portuguese and using their voice to bring up issues that affect the Pantanal. For instance, recently indigenous people spoke out against Hydrovia Paraguai Paraná, a canal that is planned to link Rio Paraguay and Rio Paraná but would severely disrupt the Pantanal's flood cycle. Currently, the project is being reexamined and the decision whether to follow through with it has not yet been determined. But the fact that it has halted, at least temporarily, shows that the voice of the native people today is powerful.

More information can be found at this website.

"Alternative" Conservation Photography

I found this National Geographic piece on photography in the Pantanal pretty striking. I am currently taking a class on conservation photography, trying to use photography to construct immediate and striking photoessays with a deliberate conservation goal. However, this photographer, Daniel de Granville, decided to start photographing roadkill instead of 'the beauties of the natural world and tell nice stories about them—the kind that everybody likes to see and read and hear.' I think this is really tragic and though tourism, properly managed, is useful and provides a means of supporting an ecosystem, it is really sad that so many needless deaths occur in this way.
I thought it was particularly interesting that he mentioned the dry season, which drives animals to roadside ditches, coincides with the peak of the tourist season. To me, that sounds like an immediate target for the reduction of roadkill deaths. We could limit the car speed coming through, or reduce tourism in this time, or some other method.  I am also quite aware that we are travelling in the dry season - I hope nothing goes wrong with our drives!

N.B I am really excited to see some of the gatherings of wildlife - this is a flock of egrets feasting on the fish in a rapidly shrinking pond as the the rains disappear. Magnificent, no?

South American Dinosaur Profiles

Claire Zabel

The Glyptodontidae are the ancestors of the Pantanal's modern Giant Armadillos, although they were a bit gianter (approximately the size of a car).  They were herbivorous, and defended themselves from predators by being very large, heavy, and hard to bite.  

Amargasaurus (the bitter lizard) is a dinosaur's dinosaur.  It was about ten meters long.  It liked browsing on grass, the early Cretaceous period, and clattering its long neck-spines to strike fear in the hearts of its enemies.  

The genus Irritator was commonly found in Brazil and lived about 110 million years ago.  Martill et al. (1996) said the name Irritator came "from irritation, the feelings the authors felt (understated here) when discovering that the snout had been artificially elongated."  Basically, the original fossil-finders tried to make the skeleton look cooler with car body filler and it didn't go so well.  

Unenlagia means "half-bird"in latinized mapudungun (a language spoken in Chile and Argentina by the Mapuche), which makes sense since Unenlagia kind of looks like something Darwin would make up to make bird evolution sound more plausible.  These guys were about 2-3.5 meters long, and too heavy to fly, although it would be funny if they could, with those tiny wings.

Water Story

So I have been very behind on the blog postings. I had trouble logging on etc. Despite being an engineer, I am very technically challenged. I didn't even have a twitter before this course started.

I remember seeing some postings about our water story on here. I wanted to share mine. This is actually one of the most interesting prompts I have written on in a while. It was open ended and I was able to reflect on a great experience I had. Hope you enjoy

-Enrique Garcia


Water can be a unifying force and the source of opportunities for humans to collaborate on an unheard of scale. I got a chance to experience this while touring the Itaipu Dam on the Brazilian-Uruguay border. Although we learned about the technical aspects of how the dam converts water flow into electric current, I noticed a sense of collaboration between two nations that I had never heard of before. Given it's location, both governments agreed to divide both benefits and liabilities 50/50. There was visible passion and pride in the technical accomplishments that this dam represented to the people of both countries as demonstrated by the enthusiastic tour guide, who at every turn, had a story to tell about the process leading up the completion of this project. In a world where we distinguish ourselves through borders and feuds are more common than collaboration, this dam is an example of two nations working together for the collective progress of its citizens. At the entrance of this dam, there was a wall listing the nationalities of all it's visitors which included all the countries you could ever think of. At Itaipu, water was a demonstration to the world that human collaboration is both possible and sustainable.

World Wetlands Day ~ Feb. 2!

Hey everyone,

February 2nd is World Wetlands Day as designated by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance! The Pantanal is, of course, part of the list of the wetlands designated by the convention that meets the criteria for being of global importance. The convention is dedicated to the "conservation and wise use" of important wetlands all over the world, with the idea of "wise use" suggesting a management approach that conserves the ecological character of wetland ecosystems and focuses on sustainable development and use.

This year the Ramsar convention has chosen the theme of "Wetlands and Agriculture" as the focus for World Wetlands Day. It is an opportunity to spread the word about sustainable agricultural practices that can help maintain the health of wetland ecosystems worldwide and protect against nutrient overloading, soil erosion and other dangers of intensive agriculture on wetland systems!

Check out the Ramsar website and get pumped for World Wetlands day! (I only moderately recommend the video...)

-Cole

La Laguna de los Xarayes
Early history of the Pantanal

The Pantanal captivated the interest of travelers from as early as the 1500s, when the first Spanish explorers, Martínez de Irala and Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, arrived in the midst of the rainy season, traveling by boat up the Paraguay River. Writing of the vast expanses of water they encountered, people soon began to believe in the existence of a vast inland sea, which was called the Laguna de los Xarayes. The Laguna de los Xarayes was thought to be the gateway to the Amazon and a portal to the legendary city of gold, El Dorado.

In the 1600s, European cartographers began placing this "Laguna" on their maps, and soon began incorporating within the lake a large island, known as La Isla de los Orejones. This island was told to contain an abundance of fruits such as olives, grapes and pears (ah yes, the most traditional of South American crops) and inhabited by good-natured native people who possessed gold, strange ear piercings and friendly hearts for living in this land of plenty. It was also known as the "Island of Paradise".

It was in the mid-1700s that this myth was put to rest, when Portuguese explorers ventured west of the demarcation line of the Treaty of Tordesillas, trying to gain more territory for Portugal. When they came to the region of the Pantanal, they discovered no island, and for that matter, no vast inland sea. It was a while longer before people realized that the Paraguay River did not connect with the Amazon basin.

Historical map of central South America. The Laguna de los Xarayes is located in the center and connects to the rivers of Northern Brazil.

See: http://www.geographicus.com/blog/rare-and-antique-maps/laguna-delos-xarayes/ 
and http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantanal#Historia (español)

-Palani

Nature Photography in the Pantanal - David Pattyn

So, I was just kind of exploring the internet and typing different words related to the Pantanal into various search engines when I came across nature photographer, David Pattyn's, website. As I started to scroll through his pictures I realized that he had an entire album dedicated to the "Brazilian Pantanal." His pictures are really beautiful and, in my own personal opinion, very well composed. I figured his website and pictures could serve our class in two ways. By looking at his pictures we can begin to get a sense of "what works" and what doesn't when photographing the wildlife of the Pantanal. Pattyn's photographs vary in light, compositional strategy, and depth of field, showcasing the array of options we will have when trying to capture the perfect moment while we are abroad. Secondly, Pattyn's Pantanal album is a great source of pictures for us to use in our animal presentations. Below I included some samples of his pictures from the Pantanal. Hopefully you will find his website as helpful as I did.

-Megan Good

A Cool Resource: Pantanal BirdClub Youtube Channel

Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you guys know about a useful YouTube channel called Pantanal BirdClub that I found while doing research for my organism presentation. Most of the channel's videos focus on birdlife in the area, but there are also plenty of videos of Giant River Otters, Jaguars and Tapirs. Watching the videos definitely gives you a sense of what kinds of animals we might see in the Pantanal and what the conditions will be like there.

Here, for example, is a video that a group of tourists took while photographing a tapir in the rain. At the end, an anteater comes scurrying by, which demonstrates how easy it is to see a diversity of animals in the area.

Most of their bird videos illustrate both the birds' appearance and its call, such as the following video of a Musician Wren. The videos give you a sense of what we might hear while we are in the Pantanal. Plus, if you have the time, you might even be able to identify birds by their calls by the time we get there!

Pantanal Music Exchange!

CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO:http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/pantanal-music-exchange
Natalya Thakur

About the Project

The Nazaré Orphanage in rural Brazil is home to sixty boys whose lives have been scarred by domestic violence, abuse, and neglect. Orphanage founder Father Joaquim Tébar secured a donation of numerous violins, violas, and cellos to teach the children music. Tragically, he died before he could turn his idea into reality. This project is to carry on his vision to bring music to lives that have known little else but adversity and hardship.

_________________

 

The Pantanal Music Exchange is trying to promote creativity in the lives of these boys and provide them with a community that they can rely on and share similar obstacles with. They perform a wide range of music but also stay true to their traditional tunes. Some of their long term goals include:

 

-Incorporate with larger Brazilian and South American youth orchestra organizations, and xchange both student players and instructors

-Develop relations with US orchestras and music organizations to provide a constant source of support

-Perform locally and at other locations in Brazil

 

From my personal experience in working with youth orchestras I have noticed that the kids in these groups are often individuals who get frustrated with the fact that they must work and play together, initially. I think one of the big takeaways from projects like these will be for the boys to learn how to accept others like themselves and to share emotional and physical patience.

Natalya Thakur

 

 

The Pantanal: Home to many, including local people

Conservation of precious ecosystems like those found in the Pantanal is definitely an important cause, both to promote biodiversity and to save the environment from total commercialization and deforestation.

When I was panning through Google for more information about the Pantanal, I stumbled upon an article about the residents of the Pantanal and their positions on the conservation efforts. While the people living in the Pantanal undoubtedly

Currently, a case is going on in Brazilian court to determine whether 230 families in the Inácio Barbosa neighborhood should be allowed to build homes in this Pantanal community or should be forced to leave. The conflict is that many of these families are illegally occupying the river banks in this area, which impedes the preservation of nature and the site restoration.

Residents are hesitant to leave, claiming that their families have lived in that area for the past 30 years and have established a community there. For these families, their livelihood is based upon the area, and they do not feel as though the relocation plans are adequate to make up for uprooting them from their homes.

Where do we draw the line about what human occupation is detrimental to the preservation of nature? I've always thought this topic is complex, but reading this article made me think more about the legal complexities of preservation, especially for a region like the Pantanal which has so much private ownership.

Thoughts? Should these 230 families be allowed to stay and use the resources of the Pantanal or leave and find another place to reside so as to not disturb the ecosystem balance in the Pantanal? I haven't formed a definitive opinion yet, so I'd love to hear all of your thoughts!

- Nicole

Another perspective on Arena Pantanal

This post is in response to the one about the controversy around Arena Pantanal. I just found an article that seems to take a more positive spin on the construction of this new event space. Specifically, the article claims that a "sustainable approach has been applied to every detail along the way," citing the wood used to contract the Arena as "coming from certified sources," and the waste being recycled. What's more, the stadium has been nicknamed the Portuguese equivalent of "The Big Green" since its air and soil quality are closely monitored. 

It's curious that different sources have such wildly contrasting views on the Arena; while the other emphasized the misappropriation of conservation funds to construct this structure, this one highlighted the efforts made to make the Arena ecologically friendly. Yet I am a bit skeptical about this article since it seems more promotional than informational. I wonder what view most Brazilian people have of this development- do they see it as a "Big Green" that both provides a spectator space and furthers sustainability of the Pantanal? Or do they see it as a harmful enterprise that promoters have tried to brand with the label of sustainability? Maybe when we go to the Pantanal, we can poll the locals to see what's really up with this new Arena.

Article can be found here: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/destination/stadiums/stadium=5025112/

-Gwynn

Summers on the Swamp: My Water Story

Hi Everyone, I was inspired by other people's water stories and decided to share my own. 
To give you some background it is about my experiences as a child at a nature day camp I went to many summers during my childhood. It was at a place called Tennant Lake Interpretive Center located on these freshwater wetlands by a river. I remember being very confused as to why it was called a lake when it was covered mostly in trees and shrubs and lily pads but loved exploring the area nonetheless. I enjoyed it so much that I went back one high school summer and volunteered as an assistant for the same nature day camps I use to enjoy so much! So here is my story about my most memorable night at the lake and a few pictures from my 


I held my mint tea closer to my face, warming my hands on the plastic much as I lightly blew along the surface to cool the water. It was nearly time, the sun had set and the stars were already in their places. “Ok” Birdman said, “lets start walking”. So we started walking, our feet making a soft crunching sound on the gravel with each step. We were trying to be as quiet as possible in search of a great reward. We reached the bridge over a small slough and the group came to a halt. In silence we stood, scared to breathe as though the tiniest fragment of sound would ruin it all. The water was a glassy surface beneath us, it seemed inconceivable that we would be lucky enough to witness something ruin this pristine stillness. “SLAP” I jumped at the sudden jolt of sound. We had heard it! I looked at my peers, all of our eyes wide with excitement. After many summers of missing my lucky moment I had finally heard the mythical beaver tail slap. I felt inexplicably gratified, my patience, hope and waiting had paid off and instilled with a new sense of wonder and excitement. As we walked out to the end of the boardwalk and held a lighter to the swamp gas we collected and blue flame appeared I felt this sense of wonderment extend beyond myself to all of this mucky and wonderful land.

Ten years later the interpretive center at Tennant Lake lay boarded up. A casualty of state budget cuts. Children no longer quietly trek out to the boardwalk at night to hear the slap of a beaver tail or see the pale blue flame of swamp gas.The naturalists that taught me about the wonders of the land are no longer leading expeditions to pass on their passion to the youth. But the lake and the wetland will always remain. Perhaps one day I’ll hold the hand of my child as we quietly trek along that familiar trail at night. We’ll go to the small bridge over the slough to wait quietly for that magical moment where their eyes are opened. And when I see that spark of wonderment I’ll know another pale blue flame of curiosity is lit for life.

During the Spring and early summer the entirety of the lake would be covered in green lily pads.

My most fond memories of these reeds is when I would spot a Red winged blackbird perched on them and know summer was coming. 

There were also large grassy fields nearby that were perfect for both catching bugs and flying kites. 

-Martell 

Arena Pantnal Almost Ready for World Cup

     Arena Pantanal, the soccer stadium created in Cuiaba, is almost ready to open. Although this arena is not a direct threat to its namesake, it's interesting to analyze it in a larger social context. Over the past six months, over a million Brazilians have protested the amount of money spent in preparation for the World Cup. The anger is due to the spending being double the budget, and that the extra money came from funds reserved for education, healthcare, and public transportation. The excess money used on security and new facilities could have been used to help alleviate the large social inequality that exists in Brazil. Bringing this back to the Pantanal, instead of honoring the stadium with its name, a less extravagant facility could have been built, with the extra money being spend directly on conservation efforts, or to help the poor in the region so that there is less tension between human resource need and protection of the Pantanal. Not to mention that it would probably help decrease the occurrence of poaching. People argue that the World Cup is a good thing for Brazil and can serve as an opportunity to demonstrate to the world what Brazil has to offer. If this were actually true, maybe less money should be spent on new facilities for tourists, and more on the people and environment that make it special.

-Catie

Pantanal Conservation Challenges

By Claire Zabel

I read this paper on the unique challenges of conserving the Pantanal, and I thought it raised a few especially interesting points I wanted to share with the group.  Little is known about the Pantanal’s ability to support the growing demand for ecotourism.  Until lately, little attention was paid to the Pantanal’s biota, and that makes tracings any increase or decrease in their numbers especially challenging.   Wetlands are often classified as “ecotones,” the transitional area between two biomes such as forest and grassland.  However, because the Pantanal is so vast, it has an unusually low circumference-to-area ration, and must be viewed as a full, and unusually large ecosystem in itself.  Thus, it may be far less influenced by surrounding ecosystems than other wetlands.  For example, the Everglades and Okavango wetlands are about 10% or less the size of the Pantanal, yet most wetland research has been conducted in them.  Thus, conservation science of the Everglades may prove misleading when applied to the Pantanal. 

This other paper lays out a recent analysis of the state of the Pantanal.  15-20% of the wetland has been deforested.  Although Brazilian and international law supports the conservation of the Pantanal, enforcement is weak and inconsistent. 

Both papers focus on a need for further research, but I’m not sure I believe it.  It seems like the research always says the same things: deforestation, climate change, and invasive species is bad, rich biodiversity is being lost, regulation needs to increase.  Do you feel that way when you read about conservation research?  Like they never admit that the science is clear and it is time for action rather than more studies?    

Toco Toucan Love

There are over 40 species of Toucan and an extremely prevalent one is the Toco Toucan. This is a bird I am really excited to photograph while in the Pantanal!!

Location and Habitat

Toco toucans are located in many countries throughout South America. The countries are located mostly on the eastern side of the continent and include Brazil, Guyana, Suriname, Argentina, Bolivia and Venezuela.

**A toucans niche is to consume various fruits and deposit the seeds in their waste, therefore the seeds are spread and the fruit can repopulate. Also they keep the population of insects and small lizards under control.

Reproduction

Toco toucans will lay clutches of 2 - 5 eggs in the nests they have built in the trees. Both the male and the female will sit on the eggs to incubate them until they hatch. The eggs will hatch after about a half of a month of incubation. Toco toucans often build their nests in decayed, hollow trees of the rainforest. These nests are often found high in the canopies of the rainforests.

 Behaviors

Tocos are not excellent fliers so they often need to walk and hop across branches to get to places where fruit is at. They will then use their long beaks to grab fruit that would otherwise be out of reach to birds with smaller bills. 

 

Natalya Thakur

Capybara fun facts

As I was putting together my presentation about capybara for tonight, I found some awesome pictures and great fun facts. Here are just a few:

Some weird habits:
Capybara will eat their own feces to extract more nutrients as the grasses they eat pass through their digestive system a second time.
The young can be raised by other females in the pack, a phenomenon known as alloparenting.

The capybara is the world's largest rodent. The heaviest known capybara weighed in at 200 pounds!

Capybara meat is eaten in some parts of South America. For example, in parts of Venezuela during Lent, the people will eat it because it is one of the only meats allowed by the Catholic Church.

 Capybara are adept swimmers. They can hold their breath for up to 5 minutes to escape predators. They can also sleep in water.

Capybara have slightly webbed feet, which helps with swimming and walking in mud. Their hind legs are slightly longer than their forelegs.

-Palani

Threats to the Harpy Eagle and Conservation Prospects

The Harpy Eagle is the largest bird of prey found in the Americas, where it ranges from Mexico through Brazil and Argentina. However, despite its extensive range, Harpy Eagle populations are dwindling and it has become extinct in portions of its range, predominantly in Central America.

The main threats to Harpy Eagle populations are deforestation and hunting, though capture for captivity is also a burgeoning issue. The Harpy Eagle is forest dwelling, keeping to the forest canopy for flight rather than using the open skies. Thus, habitat fragmentation has become particularly problematic because the birds are unlikely to cross from one fragment to another to feed or breed. The eagle nests in tall, emergent trees, which, unfortunately, tend to be commercially valuable. Selective logging of valuable trees therefore inhibits Harpy Eagle breeding, leading to population decline. The birds’ slow reproductive rate and sparse distribution exacerbate these effects.

            Harpy Eagle hunting has two primary impetuses: trophy gathering and culling of a perceived threat to livestock. Obviously, the bird’s immense size and ornate plumage make it desirable as a trophy. The Harpy Eagle generally preys upon medium-sized animals, from parrots to small deer. Farmers have come to believe that it will also target their livestock, which has led them to hunt the eagle to the brink of extinction. This perception, though, is largely unfounded because Harpy Eagles prefer to seize their prey from atop forest branches, not open grazing land.

            The Peregrine Fund, a charity dedicated to “saving birds of prey from extinction,” has pioneered a three-tier conservation project to protect the Harpy Eagle. In an attempt to restore its populations, they have employed captive breeding and reintroduction and local education in communities in Central America. The reintroduction programs have been successful in Panama and Belize and the local education programs have raised awareness among over 2,000 people across Central America.

Sources:

http://www.arkive.org/harpy-eagle/harpia-harpyja/image-G51881.html

http://www.peregrinefund.org/projects/harpy-eagle