Wildlife Watching in Laguna del Diamante

Information

The Laguna del Diamante Nature Reserve is a place where it is possible to see an important number of high Andean species, some of them with great ease.

Starting with mammals, it is normal to see herds of guanacos (Lama guanicoe) all along the way from the entrance to the protected area to the Laguna del Diamante. Among the rodents, you can see some Mendoza tuco-tuco (Ctenomys mendocinus) peeping out of their burrows at dawn or dusk. Sometimes a culpeo (Lycalopex culpaeus) approaches the camping area surrounding the laguna.

Huge numbers of lizards can be seen on the rocks in the midday hours during the warm summer months (December to March). The high mountain lizard (Phymaturus palluma) and the austromendocino tree iguana (Liolaemus austromendocinus) are among the most common.

There are birds that frequent the camping area by the laguna such as the rufous-banded miner (Geositta rufipennis), the creamy-rumped miner (Geositta isabellina), the greater yellow-finch (Sicalis auriventris) and the greenish yellow-finch (Sicalis olivascens). Also very common are the grey-breasted seedsnipe (Thinocorus orbignyianus), the spot-billed ground-tyrant (Muscisaxicola maculirostris) and the ochre-naped ground-tyrant (Muscisaxicola flavinucha). The Mourning Sierra-finch (Rhopospina fruticeti) can be seen at the entrance to the protected area. Among the aquatic birds, the Andean gull (Larus serranus) and the upland goose (Chloephaga picta) are abundant in the area of the source of the Diamante River.