The Manu Biosphere Reserve has, within it's boundaries, the highest concentration of bird life on Earth.  At the time of writing approximately 925 species have been recorded and ornitholigists expect this figure to break the 1000 mark in the near future as remoter areas  of the reserve are explored. There are a little under 9000 species of birds in the world therefore Manu holds one in every nine species found on the planet. No other protected area on Earth contains so many birds.  The explanation  for so much avian diversity is that the Manu

Biosphere Reserve contains a great variety of   altitudinal zones and habitat types. Altitudes vary from over 4000 meters above sea level in the high Andes down to 350 meters in the lowland Amazonian rain forest , and for every 1000 meters gained or lost, the structure of the bird communities differs. This, coupled with the variety of forest types, grasslands, lakes, and micro-habitats such as bamboo stands, reed-beds, and treefalls, has produced the highest bird  count for any area in the world.

Manu is  a birdwatchers paradise and many eco-tourists visit the reserve specifically to watch birds.  On a  two to three week birding trip to Manu , from the highlands to the lowlands,  birdwatchers regularly record 450 - 500 species per trip, a staggering number.

The high grasslands at Ajcanacu pass hold high altitude Tinamous, Canasteros and Sierra-finches and this life zone is one of the least ornithologically explored areas of Manu and where we expect several new species for the Manu Reserve to be added in the near future.  At this altitude of nearly 4000 meters, a stunted forest, known as elfin forest ,  holds several Tanagers, Flowerpiercers and a Thistletail found nowhere else in the reserve. Below  the elfin forest and high grasslands , at approximately 3400 - 2500 meters is the humid temperate forest, characterised by tree-ferns and chusquea bamboo stands. Birds such as Gray-breasted Mountain-toucan, Swallow-tailed Nightjar, Mountain Cacique, Barred Fruiteater and Collared Jay are typical. . Below 2500 meters on down to 1500 meters is the humid subtropical forest. This is the home of one of  Manu's most  well known and spectacular birds - the Andean  Cock-of-the-Rock. a visit  to a lek ( traditional display site) is a must as up to 20 brightly colored males  sing and display in an attempt  to attract the seemingly indifferent females. Here too are Quetzals, Toucanets, and a wide variety of Tanagers, Flycatchers   and Wrens. A mornings birdwatching here can be a fantastic experience as large mixed species flocks containing several dozen species of birds move through  the cloud forest, some sally-gleaning, some probing crevices, others climbing tree trunks or limbs.    Below  here and between 1500 and 900 meters is the humid upper tropical  forest where some of the difficult  to see birds of Manu exist. The  forest at this altitude  is under much pressure in the rest of South America due to cutting for the  growing of tea, coffee and coca. In Manu it  remains intact.    Here mixed species flocks may contain Orange-fronted Plushcrown,  Versicolored Barbet, Chestnut-breasted Wren, Cerulean-capped Manakin, Peruvian Piedtail and scores of Flycatchers, Woodcreepers, Tanagers and Flowerpiecers.

Leaving the Andes behind with it's rushing streams and montane forest, the visitor to Manu suddenly finds him or herself  in  flat humid tropical forest - the Amazon  Basin proper. Here ,  the  Manu River   is characterised by a meandering, slow flowing watercourse  with  white sand beaches exposed during the dry season from June to October.  These beaches provide valuable nesting habitat, and are loaded with nesting  and visiting  birds. Unlike many other river systems in the Amazon, birds can breed unmolested. Hundreds of Black Skimmers, Large-billed and Yellow-billed Terns, Orinoco Geese, Pied Lapwings, Collared Plovers and Sand-colored Nightjars nest along  the Manu.  These beaches are also used by Jabiru and American Wood-storks,  Roseate Spoonbills,  a variety of Egrets and Herons and in late July and August , many  migrating shorebirds  from North America on their way  to points further south.     

The slow flowing  river forms high banks on outside river bends  where at certain favored spots, hundreds of  Macaws, Parrots and their smaller relatives,  congregate to eat clay essential to their digestion. The spectacle of  hundreds of  Macaws, the worlds largest members of the Parrot family, screaming  and wheeling overhead and settling on the clay lick  is surely one of the worlds great wildlife shows and worth a trip to Manu on it's own!  Macaws are still common  and seven species occur in the forests of Manu unlike  many other areas where Macaw populations have been severly depleated due to deforestation , hunting and collection for the pet trade. The  meandering Manu has created many ox-bow lakes in various stages of development from recently formed , to very old, overgrown lakes with almost no water.   This is a microhabitat characterised by birds such as Sungrebe  and Sunbittern, Wattled Jacana, Muscovy Duck, Rufous-sided Crake, Pale-eyed Blackbird, Anhinga, Agami and Boat-billed Herons, Silvered Antbirds and  Streaked Antwrens, Red-capped Cardinals and the strange prehistoric looking Hoatzin, to name but a few.

The forests of the Manu drainage  vary from varzea forest and transitional floodplain forest to tierra firme forest. These pristine lowland forests  hold over 500 species alone and present some of the most  tricky but exciting birdwatching  in the world. A good ear is essential as many species are only  located when the song  or call note is recognised. Many birds live only in the canopy of  the forest and are difficult to see, others only in the middle and understory and others yet are terrestrial. Some specialise in creeping up trees and probing  for insects,  others sally out to catch flying insects or turn over leaf litter in serch of anthropods or fallen seeds and fruits. Forest-falcons and other winged predators lurk in vine tangles ready to snatch a small bird out of a mixed species flock!   Large bamboo stands occur as microhabitats within these forest  types and hold some of the rarest and most sought  after birds such as - Rufous-headed Woodpecker, Manu Antbird, White-cheeked Tody-flycatcher, Peruvian Recurvebill, and Long-crested pygmy-tyrant.  Recently formed islands hold willow loving species such as Orange-headed Tanager and River Tyrannulet. Here in the forests of Manu many species of birds flock to-gether as a defence against predators - more eyes to keep watch.  These mixed feeding flocks are divided into two main types- canopy flocks and mid-story flocks.  When the two types of flock join to-gether as they often do for short periods, up to 70 species of  bird  may  be present at  one time!

In short, the Manu Biosphere Reserve is home to some of the most important and varied birdlife found anywhere and indeed certain species, such as Black-faced Cotinga and Rufous-fronted Antthrush can be seen with certainty only  here.  Truly a paradise for the birdwatcher and for the birds a very important protected area indeed!

To view the list of 1000 plus species of birds in the Manu Biosphere Reserve, please email us and we will provide you with the list.

Email us for the: Bird List of the Manu Biosphere Reserve