Flight over Amazonia back to Manaus.
There is a small floating house in a part of the forest where the local family would throw out the leftover fish from their meals which attracted the local pod of Boto or Amazonian river dolphin. The family still live on the house but have now built up a relationship with these intelligent animals that allows people to actually get in the water with them as they feed them fish.
Biologists have studied the dolphins behaviour and have decided that this activity is not having negative effects on the animals or population.
The boto is a true freshwater dolphin and is restricted to the Amazon and its major tributaries. They are almost blind because eyesight is almost useless in the murky waters and their echolocation has developed more sophisticated as a result. Unfortunately their population is now decreasing because a market for catfish that feed on dead meat is increasing in Asia and the dolphins are hunted to supply bait for this trade.
We had several good sightings of botos in the Mamirua reserve but the views at Novo Airao were completely unique as we got into the water to swim with them. They seemed naturally inquisitive and would rub their flippers against your leg to feel how close they were to you.
Boto (Amazon river dolphin)
While we were driving by boat through the flooded forest we came across 2-3 groups of tuxuci (Gray river) dolphins which are considerably smaller and favoured the wider channels.
Tuxuci dolphin
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