Centro Urku (March 30, 2018)

[Martin Hash]

My son, Haven, knows what I like: while we were visiting Tarapoto, Peru, he arranged for some motocabs to take us along the bumpy track to Centro Urku, the “not a zoo.” My guess is that they had been burned by all the sanctimonious twits leaving bad Yelp reviews because zoos are socially unfashionable, so they had written that they were “not a zoo” on their website, brochure and the big sign out front; instead they called themselves a “conservation and recovery center.” I can only recommend that people who don’t like seeing animals shouldn’t go see animals, but I couldn't wait.

Bicycle Power s.JPG

Animal Graveyard s.JPG

The grounds were obviously subject to lots of rain; drainage was provided by a bicycle rigged up as a pump. There weren't many animals but the ones there I'd never seen before. The animal graveyard was unusual but I've seen that kind of thing before at boutique, family-run “not a zoos.” The big find was the Miraposa (butterfly) Observatory. It was rather rundown, and it wasn't really the right time of the year, but the big Owl butterflies were abundant, and they have the largest caterpillars I’ve ever personally seen, as long as a man’s hand. The guide would deftly capture a butterfly between his fingers, spread the wings with practiced delicacy to determine the insect's sex, then expertly release them to flutter away unconcerned, like only butterflies and babies can be. My own imagination and sense of possibility was fully stoked: I keep telling my wife, Gwynne, that we should raise butterflies in our house during the summer. She never comments on the idea so I think I’ve just about got her convinced...

Owl Butterflies s.JPG

Owl Butterfly Caterpillars.jpg