Ariau Amazon Towers - Wildlife Rehabilitation Program - "Aviary of Hope"
1995 Winner of the Emerald Globe Award - International Institute of Convention Management

Ariau Amazon Towers is a lodge that is completely built at the level of the rainforest canopy with over 3 miles of catwalks affording visitors an intimate communion with the flora and fauna of the Amazon region. Ariau is located 35 miles from Manaus on the confluence of the Rio Negro and Ariau Creek at the foot of the Anavilhanas Archipelago, the largest fresh water archipelago in the world. The region is considered one of the most biologically diverse regions known to man.

The Aviary "Esperanca"or Hope is part of a project under the auspices of Ariau Jungle Tower Hotel President - Dr. Ritta Bernardino. This project includes an herbarium housing medicinal plants traditionally used in the Amazon region, an orchidarium, including a collection of bromeliads common to the Rio Negro and an Amphitheater where traditional Amazonian music and dance are performed, as well as seminars regarding the ecology of the rainforest are presented. A museum is currently being built sponsored by the National Institute of Amazon Research (INPA), which will house a collection of indigenous crafts as well as samples of the many traditional uses of plants and trees by local natives. All construction is done in the regional manner with minimal disturbance to the environment

The "Aviary of Hope" is a wildlife rehabilitation program designed to reintroduce endangered species back into their natural habitat - the rainforest. Over the past year Ariau has been receiving animals and birds that have been confiscated by the police from black market trade. The black market trade of Amazonian wildlife is and has been a major threat to the survival of many species such as the Hyacinth Macaw and many types of parakeets, and primates. A toucan can earn a trader as much as $10,000 dollars in the United States alone. Once captured by a trader, birds spend a long time in confinement, densely packed with others, vulnerable to the spread of disease and to physical injury. Inadequate food, water or ventilation imposes fatalities. The bird trade alone involves great cruelty.

The Aviary of Hope provides an alternative route for these animals, a way back to their biological destiny so to speak. Upon arrival at Ariau they are examined by a veterinarian and then held in quarantine for approximately 90 to 100 days depending on the condition of the individual animal. Steps are taken to teach the animals how to again feed and fend for themselves in the wild. Currently under the care of the Ariau staff are spider monkeys, squirrel monkeys, woolly monkeys, marmosets, a baby ocelot, macaws, parrots, parakeets and toucans. A thrilling moment for visitors to Ariau, as well as the permanent staff is the day when one of the animals may be released back into the wild. A special ceremony is announced so that all may participate in the delight of watching one of nature's own return.