Hoatzin - Guyana

The Iwokrama Rainforest of Central Guyana covers almost 10,000 square kilometers of pristine tropical forest. It has been set aside as a natural preserve and research center. The wide variety of plant and animal life has made the Iwokrama Rainforest a prime example of the importance in preserving the forests of the world.

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Opisthocomus hoazin - Various internal and external features have separated the hoatzin from most other birds. The hoatzin is a true ruminant; the leafy foliage, a hoatzin primary food source, is digested in the same way as the large herbivores digest their food, a process called foregut-ferment rumination. Hoatzin young have functional claws at the ends of their wings similar to the claws of archaeopteryx, an extinct dinosaur. The claws are lost when the bird matures; they are used to keep the chick from falling out of the nest or tree.

Scarlet Ibis - Guyana

Eudocimus ruber - The scarlet ibis can be found along the muddy coast and mangrove swamps of Northeastern South America. It feeds mainly on small mollusks and crustaceans by using its long beak to dig them out of the muddy bottom. Juveniles are gray with white undersides, but the adults have an intense and striking display of scarlet color covering their entire bodies. Mating pairs prefer to build their nest on islands as an extra precaution against predators. Both parents share nesting responsibilities.

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The Dutch were the first Europeans to establish settlements in Guyana. Three colonies were formed; Essequibo and Berbice sprang up in the early 17th century and Demerara in the mid 18th century. The colonies were ceded to Britain in 1814 and then merged into a single colony known as British Guiana in 1831. Great Britain retained control until 1966, when Guyana became a sovereign nation. It became a republic in 1970, but retained its membership within the British Commonwealth of Nations.