Searching for Jacquot

The mountainous centre of St. Lucia is a roadless rainforest and home to the country's national bird, the St. Lucia Parrot, locally known as Jacquot.

A taxi driver had told me to visit the local zoo if I wanted to see this endemic bird, whose protection in the 1970s also led to the preservation of the forest.

Instead I hired a local birding guide, Donald Anthony, for a 5:00AM pick up and long drive up twisting roads to the edge of the forest reserve.

As soon as we got out of the car and started hiking we could hear the squawks of hidden parrots overhead. The rainforest was alive with birdsong, frogs and crickets.

Soon I had a roosting Jacquot in my camera's sights and by mid-day we had spotted virtually every endemic bird of St. Lucia. 

While hunting for birds with binoculars and camera is rewarding in itself, the real pleasure for me is in experiencing nature at its most sublime. The damp cool air, the early morning light, the strange sounds and the gorgeous patterns of green growth that surround me will linger pleasantly in my memory for years to come!