ACTS Field Station and Canopy Walkway

25/09/2024

The Morpho Institute is doing some amazing work with teachers. Their Amazon Research Experience for Educators (ARIE) takes place at the station each summer. Teachers partner with researchers, like Dr. Dave Pearson, to conduct original research, species surveys, and more. Check them out and get involved - as a participant or as faculty!

29/05/2024

Biodiversity Files No.243: Let’s talk about otters in the Amazon. The Giant Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) is the largest (if not the heaviest) of the world’s otter species. It is found in lowland regions of the Orinoco, Amazon, and La Plata river basins in South America. A powerful carnivore reaching up to 5 ½ feet in length (~1.7m), this is a social animal, and its penchant for living in family groups has made the species an easy target for fur hunters. Habitat destruction, of course, has also taken its toll. These can be exceptionally tough animals to see but there are a couple of preserves in Loreto, Peru, where encounters can be had and other sites in Brasil that regularly produce sightings.

The Neotropical Otter (Lontra longicaudis) ranges from Central- and South America to Trinidad. Of all otter species, it may be the least known species. Aspects of its biology and ecology remain unclear. It inhabits lowland tropical regions where it is usually found in forest streams and small rivers. Owing to hunting pressure (skins) and habitat destruction, this beautiful creature has been classified by the IUCN as 'near threatened.' One study of the species found that it does best in drainage systems where there are few people and lower boat traffic. Otters feed primarily upon fishes and mollusks but will opportunistically take other small vertebrates.

Amazonian wildlife is as diverse as any other assemblage of wildlife on the planet - these are things worth fighting for; now is the time to fight for them. How can you help? Funding is the key issue with every conservation initiative out there. Find one that speaks to you and financially support it. Any amount helps. Please see the link to our program in the Amazon where we work with indigenous groups to help them conserve rainforest on their traditional lands (Project Selva).

Thank you.

18/04/2024

BIODIVERSITY FILES No.202: The Bleeding Heart Tetra (Hyphessobrycon erythrostigma) is an old favorite among aquarium hobbyists. The species was originally described from the “Three Frontiers” region of the upper Amazon Basin where Peru, Colombia, and Brasil intersect. The species if found in and along tributaries of the Amazon in Peru all the way up to and around Iquitos – such as slower waters on the Río Nanay. The color of males really brightens up during the breeding season.

25/06/2022

Excited to have research groups returning for extended stays at the field station! Currently in the field is a team from the . The group consists of ACEER conservation fellows and a delegation of teachers from the Delaware Teachers Institute. Thanks to President and ex director for your leadership and partnership with ACTS and .

14/05/2022

BIG NEWS TODAY! For the first time in a very long time, Saki monkeys have been spotted along the canopy walkway! This troop of 7 was spotted by Peruvian guide Luis Mayanchi and a small group of visitors. This is such good news and an indicator that biodiversity is returning to Amazon Explorama Lodges' Napo-Sucusari Biologicial Reserve and to the adjacent Maijuna-Kichwa Regional Conseration Area.

01/04/2022

Our Associate Director of Research, Dr. Lindsey Swierk is in the news! https://www.bupipedream.com/news/126311/bu-professor-to-lead-research-in-amazon-rainforest/

Lindsey Swierk, an assistant research professor of biology at Binghamton University, was recently appointed as associate director of research at the Amazon Conservatory for Tropical...

24/02/2022

View of the Napo-Sucusari Biological Reserve and the Maijuna-Kichwa Regional
Conservation Area from platform #6 of the ACTS Canopy Walkway, Peruvian Amazon.

16/02/2022

Patience is a virtue!
Thanks .ecology for sharing your photos and field notes
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The Many-banded Aracari (Pteroglossus pluricinctus).

Aracaris belong to the same family (Ramphastidae) as the more commonly known toucans. The Many-banded Aracari is identified by the two dark bands that run across its belly, distinctive among the 4 aracari species that can be found north of the Amazon River.

After waking up extra early only to encounter zero birds all morning, and I were suddenly surrounded by a group of these Many-banded Aracaris. It feels great when your patience pays off 🙌

Photo taken on canopy walkway at .

10/02/2022

This beautiful footage of paradise tanagers was captured by from the ACTS Canopy Walkway during the research expedition last month.
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Tangara paraíso, paradise Tanager, (Tangara chilensis). La mayor parte de la biodiversidad en los bosques se encuentra en el dosel del los árboles, algunos animales pasan mucho tiempo en lo más alto del los árboles en busca de alimento y otros recursos como estas tangaras de siete colores aprovechan bañarse en los cuerpos de agua que guardan las bromelias después de las lluvias. Los animales y plantas an desarrollado diferentes mecanismos para tener una convivencia mutua y así mantener un ecosistema equilibrado que hasta el momento todavía podemos disfrutar de su belleza que esconde nuestra Amazonia.

03/02/2022

Meet the inspiration for our new logo - the Amazon Shoveltail Lizard (Uracentron flaviceps). Also called thornytails, these lizards are charismatic residents of the Amazon rainforest’s canopy trees. As their name implies, they have spiky and flat tails, and males show off by waving their bright orange heads to other lizards (and sometimes humans, too!). There is some evidence that shoveltails are one of the few species of lizard that live in family groups, with a dominant male, a few subordinate males, females, and youngsters living in the same network of tree holes. Rarely seen in the lower strata of the rainforest, shoveltails are frequent observers of human visitors on the ACTS Canopy Walkway. Shoveltails are a reminder that so much of the Amazon’s biodiversity is only revealed to those who search high in the trees.

Hat tip to Dr. Lindsey Swierk, our Associate Director of Reseach for this intro and Phil Kahler for the photos.

30/01/2022

Who We Are: The Amazon Conservatory for Tropical Studies (ACTS) supports tropical research, educational initiatives, classes, workshops, and sustainable development projects in the Peruvian Amazon.

The ACTS Field Station and ACTS Canopy Walkway are located within the private 4,136-acre Napo-Sucusari Biological Reserve in the upper Amazon basin of northeastern Peru and are owned and maintained by Amazon Explorama Lodges with research and programming support from the ACTS Advisory Council.

29/01/2022

Hey! We just launched on INSTAGRAM and TWITTER! Come on over and follow us

29/01/2022

So glad to welcome researchers back to the field station after a long two years!

Thanks to , and for putting this dynamic group together.

29/01/2022

From forest floor to the top of the rainforest canopy, the 4,136-acre Napo-Sucusari Biological Reserve in the upper Amazon basin of northeastern Peru is both a classroom and laboratory.

Amazon Explorama Lodges

27/01/2022

Welcome to the heart of the Peruvian Amazon rainforest and the Amazon Conservatory for Tropical Studies (ACTS)!

Based in one of the most biologically diverse forests in the world, ACTS supports tropical research, educational initiatives, classes, workshops, and sustainable development projects in the Peruvian Amazon.

The ACTS Field Station and Canopy Walkway are located within the private 4,136-acre Napo-Sucusari Biological Reserve in the upper Amazon basin of northeastern Peru.

The ACTS Canopy Walkway is one of the longest canopy walkway systems in the world, extending horizontally 500 meters throughout the treetops and reaching a maximum height of nearly 35 meters (115 feet). This system of aerial platforms and pathways allows scientists, educators, and students to observe and study previously inaccessible parts of the rainforest.

With access to all levels of the rainforest, the ACTS Field Station and Canopy Walkway provide the resources to advance tropical research and conservation.

The ACTS Field Station, Canopy Walkway, and the Napo-Sucusari Biological Reserve are owned and maintained by Amazon Explorama Lodges with research and programming support from the ACTS Advisory Council.

ACTS is a proud member of the Organization of Biological Field Stations.