Description: Join us for 1 night in Nauta (on the Marañon River), Peru, and 9 nights in the Amazon jungle at the Santa Cruz Forest Reserve and the Madre Selva Biological Station on a tour designed for reptile and amphibian lovers and photographers. Veteran Amazon trip leaders Matt Cage and Mike Pingleton will be your hosts. These trips regularly encounter over 100 species of snakes, lizards, crocodilians, turtles, geckos, frogs, toads, caecilians and salamanders. There is a good chance of seeing a bushmaster (Lachesis muta), the holy grail of Amazon herpers at both the Santa Cruz Forest Reserve, a site which has become known as “Bushmaster Central” as well as at Madre Selva, where a 3 meter (9’) individual was found in 2024. Possible rarities include the Emerald Tree Boa (Corallus batesii), the Amazon Harlequin Toad (Atelopus spumarius - regular at Madre Selva) and many others. A list of the reptiles and amphibians recorded from the two sites is available on the Project Amazonas website. There is also much to engage the interest of non-herpers as well. The birding is fantastic, the vegetation is incomparably diverse, and with both pink and gray river dolphins, marmosets, many other small mammals (bigger ones are there too, but hard to spot! - check out the “All Creatures” blog), and fantastic butterflies and other insects, there is no time to be bored. Where else can you find a spiny devil conehead?
Participants have the opportunity to hike or kayak on your own, or with a guide, both day and night. We prioritize immediate access to great habitats at the field stations. Hear a weird frog call at 4 AM? Get up and look for it!. Want to hit the trails at 6 AM for early morning birding? Fresh coffee will already be prepared. To join the conversation about Amazon herp trips, visit the MT Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/MTAmazonExpeditions/) or Matt Cage’s website (www.cages.smugmug.com). Many past trip participants post regularly on these sites, so you can obtain first-hand, honest, and unfiltered information on what a trip is like. Don’t just take our word that the trips are great fun, and be sure to ask about the food.
IMPORTANT: These trips are limited to 12 participants to ensure a quality experience. They tend to fill fast (6-8 months in advance), so don’t delay in sending in a reservation and deposit. Currently (June 2026) there are 4 open spaces on this trip.
Cost: $2345 (1st time adult rate). This includes airport reception and drop-off, 1 night hotel in Iquitos (at beginning), all meals, lodging and fees at field stations, river and ground transportation, field station fees, guides and crew services. Repeat client rate is $2145 (adult). Discounted rates are available for teens (ages 13-18 [75% of adult rate]) and pre-teens (age 12 and under [50% of adult rate}.
Itinerary: Includes the Madre Selva Biological Station (Orosa River, south bank tributary of the Amazon), and the Santa Cruz Forest Reserve (Mazan River-north of the Amazon and west of the the Napo River). The first night will be spent in the town of Nauta on the Marañon River with a nighttime excursion to a local hotspot. The two main sites are separated by a major biogeographical barrier (the Amazon River) which adds considerable additional diversity of reptiles and amphibians (and birds) over what would be seen at just one site.
10 Jan 2027 (Mon) - Participants should arrive in Iquitos by 11 AM or earlier if possible. You’ll travel by bus on the Iquitos-Nauta road to look for herps in some specialty locations. Included will be dinner at a polleria (roast-chicken restaurant [vegetarian options are available]) in Nauta, followed by some night-time herping at a known hotspot near Nauta. Overnight in Nauta.
11 Jan 2027 (Tue) - Early travel by bus back to Iquitos (2 hours), with breakfast on the Plaza de Armas (9 AM), followed by transfer to the port of Iquitos at 10 AM for travel via speedboat to Madre Selva Biological Station (3.5 to 4 hours travel time, but with a mid-way stop). Nights of 12-15 Jan spent at Madre Selva.
16 Jan 2027 (Fri) - AM travel from Madre Selva Biological Station to the Santa Cruz Forest Reserve (~4 hours). Nights of 16-20 Jan spent at Santa Cruz.
21 Jan 2027 (Thu) - Light breakfast at Santa Cruz, followed by travel back to Iquitos (~2 hours) with arrival by ~11 AM. Early good-bye lunch on the Iquitos waterfront, with participants free to depart Iquitos for onward destinations from ~2 PM onward.
Leader(s) & Contact:
Matt Cage or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/cage150 (herp identification, photography)
Mike Pingleton (Expedition Co-Leader - herp identification, photography)
Devon Graham (MTAE - logistics, booking, payments)