A rainforest lexicon

I talk a lot, especially when working with local people who have vast stores of knowledge and understanding to share. As always, on this (now-extended) trip to Peru I’ve spent hours learning from my superb, generous colleagues; nowhere more so than in Amazonia where long boat rides sped past in happy conversation, comparing names for plants and animals in Amazonian Bolivia and Peru. For the linguistically savvy, here’s a list of Peruvian names I’ve learned recently in Amazonia, and of names I used for years for the same species while I lived in Bolivia. (Note that it may contain spelling errors as these names are derived from an oral tradition and all were hastily noted in the field.)

English name	Peruvian (Tambopata) name	Bolivian (camba) name
leafcutter ant	curbinchi	cepe
walking palm species 1	pona	pachiuba
walking palm species 2	cashapona	zancudilla / pachiuba zancuda
Euterpe edible heart palm	wasaí	asaí
titi monkey	ojo-ojo
spider monkey	makisapa	marimono
river turtle	taricaya	peta
howler monkey	cotomono	manechi
bullet ant	isula	tucandera / tucanguira
tiger heron	puma garza	socó
grey-necked woodrail	unchala	caracoé
common potoo	ayaymama	guajojó
capybara	ronsoco	capiguara
Cecropia	cetico	ambaibo
Astrocaryum palm	huicungo	chonta
Triplaris tree, home to vicious stinging ants	tangarana	palo santo / palo diablo
neotropic cormorant	lavaculo	pato cuervo
Erythrina coral bean tree	amasiza	gallito
screamer	camungo (horned)	tapacaré (southern)
tapir	sachavaca	anta
fer de lance	jergón	yoperobobo / yope
bushmaster	shushupe	pucarara
giant armadillo	yungunturo	pejichi
ocelot	tigrillo	gato montés
tayra	manco	melero
undulated tinamou	¿dónde estás?	fonfón / fonfona
tinamou	panguana	perdiz
oropendola	paucar	tojo
plumbeous / ruddy pigeon	falta poco	huasca flojo
pale-vented pigeon	ya te vi
speckled chachalaca	manacaraco / mierda carajo	charata
yellow-rumped cacique	¡ay qué rico!	tojo
razor-billed currasow	paujil	mutún
jaguar	ibhá	chirapa / pata 'e lana / tigre
red-and-green macaw	guacamayo cabezón	paraba roja
blue-and-yellow macaw	guacamayo boliviano	paraba amarilla
chestnut-fronted macaw (and other small macaws)	maracana	parabachi
silky anteater	serafín	osito oro
tamandua	chiwi	oso hormiguero
giant anteater		oso bandera
vulture	gallinazo	sucha
giant otter	lobo de río	londra
sloth	pelejo	perezoso
agouti	añuje	jochi
paca	picuro	jochi pintao
squirrel monkey	huasita / fraile	saimiri
mealy and yellow-crowned parrots	aurora (which is the name used for a trogon in Bolivia)
nunbird	monjita	bati bati
violaceous jay	pían pían
blue-grey tanager	sui sui	(not present in eastern Bolivia where sayubú is used for the near-identical sayaca tanager)
white-throated toucan	tío juan	tucán latidor
coati	achuni	tejón
red brocket deer	venado colorado	huazo
grey brocket deer	venado cenizo	urina
cobalt-winged parakeet	pihuicho
pepper tick	isango	garrapatilla
giant cowbird	chichirichi	seboí grande
Tabebuia tree	tahuarí	tajibo