Visit GLTs in Their Native Rainforest in Rio de Janeiro!
The Associação Mico-Leão-Dourado (Golden Lion Tamarin Association - AMLD) is providing an opportunity for people who travel to Rio de Janeiro to see the Golden Lion Tamarins (GLTs) in the wild. Proceeds from the tour package support AMLD’s activities to conserve golden lion tamarins in their natural habitat. The tour also promotes forest-friendly income generation for the local community, thus contributing to long-term protection of GLT habitat.
The area where you can see GLTs is on a private farm in the municipality of Silva Jardim, a drive of about two hours from the Rio international airport. The journey will take you across the Guanabara Bay toward the town of Silva Jardim. Along the way, you will see first-hand how much of the Atlantic Forest has been cleared and the ongoing expansion of the busy highway from two lanes to four lanes.
The tour begins at a meeting point in the municipality of Silva Jardim. AMLD conservation team members will accompany you and help you learn about our conservation program to save this endangered species in its native habitat. There will be ample opportunity to photograph these beautiful tamarins.
During an easy hike through the rainforest, AMLD staff will demonstrate how GLTs are tracked with radio telemetry equipment, ensuring your tour will see a number of tamarins habituated to human observers. Take your camera and binoculars! You will have plenty of time to watch and photograph a family group as they jump from branch to branch in the canopy overhead. You may be lucky enough to see the mother and father carry babies – best months to see babies are November to December. This area is also good for birdwatching.
After viewing the tamarins, you will be transported to AMLD’s Education Center in the Poço das Antas Biological Reserve where you can see the exhibits and, if you wish, purchase GLT souvenirs such as t-shirts, caps, and more (all of which support AMLD’s GLT conservation program). You will have an opportunity to meet additional AMLD staff members who will tell you about their conservation program to restore the forest and the tamarin population assuring this species has a future in the wild.
Afterward you will have the option to conclude your visit with a leisurely lunch of typical Brazilian cuisine served at a private reserve on a local farm, Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural Fazenda Santo Antonio dos Cordeiros http://fazendadoscordeiros.com.br.
Tours must be scheduled in advance. A maximum of 20 people per day are allowed to visit the GLTs.
For reservations and information contact:
telephone 55-22-2778-2025 or 55-22-2778-1580