Pacaya Samiria
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Introduction – Pacaya Samiria National Park
Containing over 2,080,000 hectares, the Pacaya Samiria National Park is a wonderful example of Western Amazon Rainforest. The nature reserve was created in 1982 and is situated between the Ucayali and Marañon rivers. These rivers are home to gigantic fish called paiches (Arapaima gigas) that weigh an impressive 100 kg. These rivers of the Pacaya Samiria contain an assortment of wildlife such as black caiman, pink dolphins and manatees. The main waterways flowing through this impressive wilderness are black with the high concentration of life giving nutrients.
Best Time to Visit – Pacaya Samiria National Park
During the rainy season, the Pacaya Samiria floods with water claiming the land. Fish normally restricted to the river systems can now swim freely between the forest trees. At this time hundreds of different birds, amphibians and fish explore the forest searching for fallen fruit. This is a crucial time for seed dispersal. The wet season is the best time to visit if your interest is mainly birds and fish. The wet season means you can canoe into the forest to get a better view of the canopy. However, the dry season, from April to October, is usually the recommended season to visit. This is when small pools of terrestrial water shrink to a fraction of their former size, concentrating the wildlife so you can see an impressive assortment of Amazonian animals.
Human Population & Conservation – Pacaya Samiria National Park
The human population of the Pacaya Samiria National Park consists of 94 villages, where around a quarter belong to the cocama-cocamilla. The cocama-cocamilla have a population size of 42,000 people living off fishing, agriculture, and hunting. The communities of the reserve are passionate about sustainable development promoting stable use of reserve resources. They are reintroducing the taricaya turtles to the reserve and impressively brought the paiche population of El Dorado Lake back from the brink of extinction. In 1994 only four specimens were found and today you can find over 800, which establishes Lake El Dorado as one of the many successful conservation efforts of this area. The reserve is also home to an assortment of sustainably harvested delicious fruit. You can try some of the fruit from this reserve in either Nauta or Iquitos. One of the favourites is the small, tart citrus fruit named camu-camu.
Flooded Forest
Despite the distinct wet and dry seasons, a large portion of the Pacaya Samiria remains flooded throughout the year. This has resulted in adaptations of the vegetation to cope with being constantly submerged. Aguaja palms are one of these plants and are the dominant vegetation type across thousands of hectares, which are named aguajales.
Animals of the Pacaya Samiria
The reserve contains 132 species of mammals such as the abundant different rodents and primates. Pacaya Samiria amphibians and reptiles when taken together comprise around 150 species. There are 220 different types of fish, such as the gigantic paiche previously mentioned, and around 450 species of birds including 23 migrants. This means the park is home to about a quarter of all the birds in Peru. Along with these animals, you may see the endangered South American river turtles, amazon manatees, and pink and grey dolphins.
Nearby Reserves
Other areas worth visiting in this area are the small Allpahuayo-Mishana National Reserve close to the city of Iquitos and the Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Reserve with its incredible diversity of primates. The Tamshiyacu Tahuayo has its own primate research center, which you can visit when staying at the Tahuayo Lodge.
