Jaguars & Wildlife of Brazil's Pantanal

Brazilian lowlands known as the Pantanal form an enormous wilderness in the heart of South America. This flat rain-fed region, laced with waterways and submerged beneath silvery sheets of floodwater for half the year, is one of the most photographically productive wildlife habitats on the entire continent.

Few places offer so many animals of such variety, so spectacularly visible, as the Pantanal. One reason for the incredible exuberance of animal life is the sparse human settlement of the region. Because of the damp land and annual flooding, large-scale cultivation is impractical, and access remains difficult—except by boat. Giant cattle ranches lay claim to the land, but they are stocked at low density, and ranching has done little to change the essential character of the landscape. These days, more and more of these fazendas are being converted into eco lodges.

Jaguars, the third largest "big cat" on earth dwell deep within the Pantanal’s tangled floodplain forests. Here, they have remained one of the planet’s most photographically elusive large predators—until now! Along several Pantanal rivers, jaguars have become habituated to the growing activity of commercial and sport fishing boats. Over the past few years jaguars have learned to relax on the banks in the shade of riverside trees—because of their growing familiarity of this increasing river traffic. From exposed vantage points and camouflaged lairs, they monitor these rivers and wait for prey along their sandy banks. Being enthusiastic swimmers, they often cool down with a refreshing dip as the day heats up. These amazing Pantanal jaguars are the world’s largest jaguar subspecies and big, photogenic males can weigh over 300 pounds.

We photograph the Pantanal’s fantastic variety of wildlife while exploring the Transpantaneira Highway by vehicle and by cruising numerous waterways in small boats. By building the "highway" through the wetland, the mounding of soil for the roadbed has created the adjacent "borrow pit" as a by-product that extends for countless miles. Here, our cameras capture jabiru, the world’s largest stork—an iconic symbol of the Pantanal. Families of capybaras are often seen wallowing and feeding right alongside the voracious caiman. Capybaras resemble giant guinea pigs—this conspicuous rodent attains weights exceeding 130 pounds! Noisy groups of endangered giant otters patrol these same rivers and we should have good opportunities to photograph them at close range!

The abundance and diversity of large mammals can be seen on all sides, yet many of the region’s big mammals have not been photographed extensively. Marsh deer, coatimundi, giant anteaters, tapirs and giant river otters are all potential targets for our lenses. And now—during the dry season in the Pantanal—rarely-seen jaguars are a welcome new addition to Pantanal’s photographic repertoire!

The greatest spectacle of all is provided by the amazing variety of water birds that utilize these wetlands to probe, sift and stab for prey. They include huge numbers of egrets, herons, ibis and wood storks, as well as spoonbills and jabiru. Bird photography is exceptional here, reminiscent of Florida’s Everglades in the 1800s before its degradation. Other interesting species to photograph at close range, such as toco toucan, hyacinth macaw, snail kite and buff-necked ibis, add spice to this exceptional photographic adventure!

If you’re a serious nature traveler and you’ve never been to the Pantanal, you’ve really missed one of Planet Earth’s greatest wildlife habitats and photography destinations! Elusive jaguars and a throng of other charismatic wildlife provide undreamed of photographic opportunities.