Guyana: What to Expect
Several national parks and wildlife reserves protect numerous animals including armadillos, tapirs, ocelots, monkeys and the resplendent cock of the rock. Guyana also offers possibly the best chance to see South America’s Big Five: the jaguar, giant otter, black caiman, giant anteater and the harpy eagle. Guyana is a mixture of Caribbean and Amerindian influences, virgin rainforest and sprawling river systems with little infrastructure and thus expensive to travel around. After the abolition of slavery in 1834, the plantation owners imported labourers from India. Indians now form the largest racial group, with most living in the agricultural areas.