River monster

Travelling along a tropical river with toucans, parrots and monkeys flitting though the treetops either side of you is a magical experience and it can be easy as a result of this to overlook the water. That can be a mistake, things swim in tropical rivers. Surprising things......

Yep. That is a freshwater dolphin. Specifically a Boto, Inia geoffrensis, the largest of the river dolphins.If we're gonna be really specific this is the Orinoco subspecies; humboldtiana.

Boto are weird. They're pink and pretty much blinf, they have extended rostrums as shown in the shot above, pretty well perfect for catching fish (cf gharials) and those rostrums are often goofily lopsided.

Its also the subject of some weird legends - supposedly they carry off the womenfolk and so forth. Well goofy looking and the subject of creepy legends they may be. But they're still dolphins and seeingwild dolphins always equates to a huge grin and a perfect memory.