On the first day of 2023, we headed to the Iguazu Falls. It was truly unforgettable! However, in Foz do Iguazu, we also wanted to visit another very popular tourist attraction called the “Bird Park.” This park, alongside the waterfalls, is considered a must-visit for all tourists who come to this border region of three countries. So, we were no exception, and just a day later, we set out to see these extraordinary birds. This time, our friend Felipe and his little daughter Ana joined us.
Bird Park in Foz do Iguazu
The Bird Park (or “Parque das Aves” in Portuguese) is located right next to the entrance to the Iguazu Falls. This is very convenient if you want to visit both of these places in one day. We recommend visiting the waterfalls first because the tickets you purchase online are for a specific time slot. It’s also a good idea to arrive at the opening time when there are fewer tourists, and it’s not as hot.
Once you’ve explored the Iguazu National Park, grab a snack, take a break, and head to the Bird Park. You can purchase tickets right at the ticket office. Payment can be made in cash or by card, which is very convenient (we emphasize this for a reason because such payment options aren’t available everywhere in South America).
Admission to the Bird Park costs: 80 Brazilian Reals.
The park is open: from 9:00 AM to 6:30 PM.
It’s a massive park, covering a vast area of 16 hectares.
The Bird Park in Foz do Iguazu is the world’s only organization dedicated to the preservation of birds from the Atlantic Rainforest, also known as the Brazilian Rainforest, an eco-region in South America located along the Atlantic coast of southeastern Brazil. This forest covers an area of over one million square kilometers and is incredibly rich in flora and fauna. On just one hectare, you can find up to 450 tree species. Moreover, over 90% of the animals and birds living in this region can only be found here and nowhere else in the world.
The park’s route is circular and designed in the style of an arboretum. The pathway leads through the jungle from one aviary to another. In some of them, you can enter and be up close with the birds, while in others, you simply pass by and observe them through a mesh screen. The park also has a butterfly aviary, and along the way, you can encounter turtles and large lizards. You can also purchase bird food and feed the parrots, but it’s not allowed to feed them with your own food.
Perhaps what impressed us the most were the parrots, especially the Macaws in their aviary. They are enormous, brightly colored, flap their wings loudly, and call out while flying right over your head.
We also loved the bright red ibises and Caracaras, which are gigantic bird-dinosaurs (that’s what we nicknamed them) from New Guinea, resembling Jurassic-era ostriches. They are quite dangerous, having something like horns, and a head strike from them can be fatal. We also wanted to see toucans, but there were very few of them.
Felipe mentioned that there used to be many more of them, and their aviary might have been under maintenance. Overall, it was most interesting to observe the emotions of his daughter. She had been here more than once, but still, she was filled with incredible delight. For children, the Bird Park is a real adventure.
But for us, as much as these birds were beautiful and unusual, they are still birds in cages. Sometimes it’s much more interesting and impressive to see an ordinary bird in the wild or even in an urban environment than some exotic bird in captivity. After all, birds are creatures born to fly (not all, of course, but a significant part). Flight is a manifestation of freedom, and these birds are deprived of it. However, it’s essential to remember that many of these birds are either endangered or saved from poachers and smugglers. This park was created to protect and restore their populations.
We love birds very much! That’s why we decided to visit this park. It’s always exciting for us to see unusual birds, and it’s even more thrilling to be able to photograph them. We didn’t want to take photos inside the aviaries since it felt somewhat different. However, we took many pictures and will show them to you in one of our videos on our channel. Please subscribe and hit the notification bell not to miss it. This way, you can support us and our project. Thanks for reading!
From Brazil with love, Nastya and Vasya
