In Yasuní, amongst the giant trees and nocturnal mammals

The wisdom of the Waorani people who live in Yasuní National Park, a veritable endless succession of small hills, shaped by the millennia-long flow of rivers within one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the entire Amazon, shines through in the oral tales they pass down through the generations, featuring the jaguar and the anaconda as their protagonists. Situated in the north of the country, within the province of Napa, this UNESCO-protected Biosphere Reserve is mainly explored by small boats and on trekking expeditions that allow visitors to brush past the trunks of Fabaceae trees, particularly balsam and mahogany. The Annonaceae family is also well represented by the genera Crematosperma, Guatteria, Porcelia and Rollinia. There is no shortage of Brosimum, Ficus and Perebea amongst the Moraceae, as well as Pourouma and Cecropia, palms and ferns. And then there are lianas, mosses, lichens and fungi. This entire paradise is home to 204 species of mammals, 80 per cent of which are nocturnal. Accompanied by Culture Adventure’s guides, you’ll be able to spot, whilst walking, the spider monkey, woolly and squirrel monkeys, the giant anteater and the sloth whilst walking; whilst paddling through the dense network of canals, the pink river dolphin and the giant otter may make an appearance, and jacanas, toucans and trumpeter birds leap from branch to branch. However, the bird that will capture your imagination more than any other is the harpy eagle – the largest bird of prey in the Americas and the second largest in the world – whose wingspan easily exceeds two metres.