The highlight of our trip to Caroni Swamp should have been huge congregations of Trinidad’s national bird, the scarlet ibis, flying into roost. Instead, it was a single flamingo, albeit an injured one.
The swamp, the largest mangrove wetland on the island, is located on the west coast, where Nanan Eco Tours have been running boat trips since the 1930s.
We were the last to board the wooden boat which seated around 30 and set off at 4pm through the mangroves. Shortly afterwards we stopped and Lester, our captain, told us about the types of mangrove (red have branches hanging down, whilst white and black grow up from the ground), and about how the tours began. Continuing onwards, various birds were pointed out like the little blue heron, white egret, cardinal and cormorant and also two tree boas curled up in branches above our heads.
Veering off deeper into the mangroves, we got closer and closer to a lone flamingo and having realised it had been injured and was unable to fly, Lester decided it should be rescued to avoid it being targeted by poachers. It wasn’t clear what happened, but the bird was quickly onboard and being held by a young man who had retrieved it from the water. He was sitting directly behind us, and we could see the beautifully pale pink flamingo trembling, and the bird poop all down the young man’s beige shorts.
We then resumed our search for the Ibis, where in an open area, the motor was cut, and having moored up at a wooden stake, we watched a flamboyance of flamingos take off. We could see White Egrets in the trees opposite, but eventually when congregations of ibis arrived to roost overnight, the egrets headed deeper into the trees. The ibis were truly incredible, due to their volume, they can number up to 5,000, and their bright colour, which amazingly comes from carotenoids or pigments found in the crustaceans they eat.
However, they were difficult to photograph as they were so far away, and we settled for watching them through binoculars. Whilst the birds are not currently endangered, stocks are dwindling due to poaching, as both their meat and feathers are valued and there are significant fines and prison sentences of up to two years, for those caught.
A couple of other boats passed by, and the look on the passengers faces when they saw the flamingo on board was hilarious. When the flow of birds died off, we left and sped directly back to base where wildlife rescue were waiting.
TIPS – the boat is open, although we were told there was a cover for wet weather, but mosquito repellent is advised. As we were last on, we didn’t have a choice of where to sit, but at the front it would be difficult to hear the captain, and at the back, you might be affected by diesel fumes.
