Scarlet Macaw River Clay Lick — Manu Peru
The Blanquillo Clay Lick on the Manu River in Peru's Madre de Dios is the Amazon's most visited and most photographically productive clay lick — up to 2,000 scarlet and red-and-green macaws, and 15+ additional parrot species, descending to the riverbank clay each morning from 7–11am to ingest mineral-laden soil that neutralises dietary toxins from their fruit and seed diet. The lick's combination of species — the electric red-and-blue of the scarlet macaw, the blue-and-yellow of the blue-and-yellow macaw, and the pure green of the mealy Amazon — creates a colour display of the highest intensity visible from wooden viewing platforms directly across the river at 30-metre range. The approaching macaw flocks — arriving in waves of 50–100 birds, making multiple passes before landing, the flock's alarm response to a passing hawk clearing the clay face in an explosion of red — is one of the Amazon's most reliably extraordinary morning wildlife performances.
About this spectacle
Each morning between 7 and 11am, the clay face at Blanquillo on the Manu River becomes one of the Amazon's most electric wildlife spectacles. Waves of 50–100 scarlet and red-and-green macaws wheel overhead, making repeated passes before committing to the mineral-rich bank — a behaviour that makes the approach itself as thrilling as the landing. Up to 2,000 birds from 15-plus parrot species may gather simultaneously: the burning red-and-blue of scarlet macaws, the vivid blue-and-yellow of blue-and-yellow macaws, and the deep green of mealy Amazons collide into a wall of colour at close range. Visitors watch from wooden platforms on the opposite bank, barely 30 metres away, close enough to hear the contact calls and wingbeats. When a raptor triggers an alarm, the entire clay face erupts in a roar of colour and sound that startles even veteran naturalists. The experience is consistent enough to be planned around, yet wild enough to feel utterly unscripted each visit.
When to go
Apr — Nov, peak May — Oct
Getting there
Nearest airport: PEM. Nearest city: Puerto Maldonado.
Booking options
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