Rising water
November to January
Rain from the highlands arrives, the river climbs and the plain begins to fill. The forest greens over and the birds start nesting.
The biome
The Pantanal, the largest floodplain on Earth
Some 150,000 km² that breathe with the water: they fill, they overflow, they dry out and they fill again. That pulse is what makes the Pantanal the most generous place on the continent to see wildlife up close.
An inland sea
Here, the water decides everything
Set in the heart of South America, the Pantanal is a shallow basin that collects the rain falling on the highlands and gives it back slowly, over months. The water does not drain away: it spreads out, floods entire grasslands and reshapes the landscape four times a year.
That slowness is the secret of the biome. Nutrients stay put, fish multiply in the shallow bays, birds nest by the thousand and large mammals gather along the banks. Nowhere else in Brazil is wildlife this visible.
- Of floodplain within Brazilian territory
- 150,000 km²Of floodplain within Brazilian territory
- Bird species recorded in the biome
- 650+Bird species recorded in the biome
- Fish species in its rivers and bays
- 260+Fish species in its rivers and bays
- Declared a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site
- 2000Declared a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site
The jaguar
The highest density of jaguars in the world
On the river banks around Porto Jofre, jaguars hunt capybara and caiman in broad daylight, and so let themselves be seen like nowhere else. Aboard the Transpantanal boats you meet them from the water, without ever cornering or chasing the animal.
Jun to Oct
The best window of the year for sightings, when the water drops and the jaguar comes down to the bank
The cycle of the waters
Four seasons of water, four Pantanals
The biome has no summer and winter: it has flood, high water, ebb and dry. Each phase changes what you see, where you can navigate and what the river gives back. Reading that calendar is half the trip.
01 02 High water
February to April
The Pantanal turns into a shallow sea. Fish spread out across the flooded grasslands to feed, and almost the whole landscape can be navigated.
03 Ebb
May to July
The water retreats and hands the fish back to the rivers and bays. This is the most generous stretch for sport fishing and for bird photography.
04 Dry season
August to October
Life concentrates around whatever water is left. Caimans, capybaras, giant otters and jaguars pile up along the banks. It is the peak of ecotourism.
Fishing season: February to September
Outside that window the closed season applies: the fish run upriver to spawn and fishing is suspended by law. Ecotourism and wildlife watching carry on all year round.
Who lives here
The most visible wildlife in the Americas
Jaguars, giant otters, caimans, capybaras and more than 650 bird species share the same banks. In the Pantanal the forest is open and the water is shallow. Wildlife has nowhere to hide, and that is what makes every outing memorable.
JaguarThe largest cat in the Americas, entirely at home in the water
Yacare caimanMillions of them: the most abundant predator in the biome
CapybaraThe world's largest rodent, and the jaguar's favourite meal
Jabiru storkThe symbol of the Pantanal, with a wingspan of nearly three metres
Striated heronA patient hunter of the water hyacinth and the river margins
Jaguar at restIt spends the hot hours lying in the shade of the river bank
KingfisherDives from branch to water in a fraction of a second
Cocoi heronFollows the fishing boats, flying low over the river
Northern Pantanal
Porto Jofre, where the Transpantaneira ends and the river begins
The Northern Pantanal, in Mato Grosso, is the best preserved and most sought-after part of the biome. You reach it from Poconé, driving 150 km of dirt road along the Transpantaneira, a highway of more than a hundred wooden bridges suspended over the wetland. The drive is already a safari.
At the end of it lies Porto Jofre, where the Piquiri and São Lourenço rivers meet. That is where Transpantanal operates: our floating base is anchored at the confluence, and every outing leaves straight for the channels and bays.
- Meeting of the waters
- Piquiri and São Lourenço rivers
- Access
- 150 km from Poconé on the Transpantaneira
- Base of operations
- Porto Jofre, Mato Grosso
- Fishing season
- February to September
The Pantanal is best seen from the river itself
Our floating base sits exactly where the wildlife gathers. Tell us when you plan to come and our team will build the itinerary with you on WhatsApp.