World Wildlife Fund

© WWF / Paloma Alcazar

Deep in the heart of the Amazon roam jaguars, pumas and other creatures of the jungle. Rodrigo Donadi of WWF’s AREAS Amazonia project has been tracking them for almost two years. He’s felt the bone-rattling sound of a jaguar’s roar and seen herds of wild pigs stampeding through the lush rain forest. Join him in the Amazon as he comes face to face with the jaguar – king of the jungle.

Part 1: A Dream Come True | Part 2: River Ride | Part 3: Forest Friends | Part 4: Platforms and Peccaries | Part 5: Tigers in the Amazon? | Part 6: A Trapper's Call | Part 7: Success on the First Try! | Part 8: Face to Face with a King | Part 9: Darting Tankar | Part 10: Tracking in the Jungle | Part 11:
Ghost of the Amazon | Part 12: Afterthoughts

The research station has work labs on the first floor and sleeping quarters upstairs. It’s a “green” building, made from local materials and certified sustainable harvest wood.
© WWF / Brett Cole

The WWF AREAS Amazonia research station is located in the Peruvian Amazon at the confluence of two rivers – the famous Tambopata and the lesser-known Malinowski – and sits on the buffer zone just outside a great complex of protected areas made up of the Tambopata National Reserve and the Bahuaja-Sonene National Park.

Most of our work is within the protective borders of these parks. Thus virtually no hunting, logging or other human activities take place here except some ecotourism and sustainable use by native communities such as fishing and turtle egg collecting. WWF is able to study animals in their natural environment without human pressures, something seldom seen in many parts of the world.

Here I meet the rest of the team which is a great mix of local guys, both young and old, a good portion of them being former park rangers (some even ex-hunters or loggers) that have gone into conservation work. These would be my friends, teachers, boat captains, and all-around support for my entire time in the Amazon.