[Posted by Chuck Almdale]

Femi Faminu, who frequently birds with us (and without us) at Malibu Lagoon, recently returned in October 2023 to Brazil for another round of Brazilian Atlantic and Amazonian Rainforests. The Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest is one of those places you can’t visit just once (her prior trip) as: 1) it is hundreds of miles long, closely paralleling the Brazilian coastline from well north of Rio to well south of São Paulo, and 2) it has a great number of endemic species. And the Amazonian rainforest is…well, the Amazonian rain forest. It’s vastness and complexity (not to mention heat and humidity) is beyond words. There’s a reason Brazil has well over 1800 species of birds (as do Peru and Colombia).

At the end of the video is her phylogenetically-sequenced trip lists which includes 220 species before it even gets past the non-oscine passerines and includes over 30 species of tanagers. Yes, there are that many tanagers – most of them in astonishing colors – in this primarily neotropic family, and a lot more to boot. Her all-too-brief YouTube photo & video film is as enjoyable as always.

If you go here https://www.youtube.com/@femif9792 you can see her other films.

Femi claims she goes to Brazil for the birds, but I think it’s for the all-you-can-eat meals at the Churrascaria restaurants – known worldwide for their selective cuisine – in every town.