Quito Botanical Garden: March 27, 2010

Aimee and I are headed to Southern Ecuador during Semana Santa, with plans to bird the Bombuscaro entrance of Podocarpus National Park and the Cordillera del Condor with bases at Cabañas Copalinga and Cabañas Yankuam, respectively (yes, I'm going after the Orange-Throated Tanager again). Before heading south, though, we made an early morning visit today to the Quito Botanical Garden in search of unusual migrants. Roger Ahlman has been recording some unusual sightings here during the last few years, including a Great Crested Flycatcher last year, and he tipped us on to a Northern Waterthrush that is wintering here. With a bit of playback, we were on the bird just a few minutes after arrival, noting little more than a lethargic Swainson's Thrush and a bold Plain-Breasted Hawk during the rest of our brief visit.

Notable birds seen: Plain-Breasted Hawk, Black-Tailed Trainbearer, Swainson's Thrush, Northern Waterthrush.

Laguna San Marcos: March 21, 2010

Laguna San Marcos is a paramo lake located northeast of Volcán Cayambe on the eastern slope. It's a favorite haunt for trout fisherman and folks looking for a scenic place to picnic, although I've never heard of anyone birding here. The lake is surrounded by temperate and elfin forest habitat as well as marsh and paramo, and there is a poorly maintained trail around the lake offering the bold birder access to this rather wild environment. I visited the lake last Sunday with intrepid Mark Thurber, author of Climbing and Hiking in Ecuador, with plans of circumambulating the lake and more. While we eventually grew tired of crawling through tapir tunnels and turned back, I did manage to see a Paramo Tapaculo and a nice mixed flock including Black-Backed Bush-Tanager and Golden-Crowned Tanager. On the lake itself were plenty of ducks, especially Andean Coots, and we must have flushed at least a half-dozen Noble Snipe in the marsh on the south side of the lake, most of which flew off spectacularly into the sky. Leaving the lake, which is located on the edge of the Cayambe-Coca Reserve, we had quick looks at an Andean Condor in the far distance as well as great views of a pair of Black-Chested Buzzard-Eagles being hawked by two Carunculated Caracaras.

Notable birds seen: Andean Ruddy-Duck, Yellow-Billed Pintail, Andean Teal, Andean Coot, Andean Condor, Black-Chested Buzzard-Eagle, Carunculated Caracara, Noble Snipe, Glowing Puffleg, Tawny Antpitta, Paramo Tapaculo, White-Throated Tyrannulet, White-Banded Tyrannulet, Brown-Backed Chat-Tyrant, Grass Wren, Scarlet-Bellied Mountain-Tanager, Golden-Crowned Tanager, Black-Backed Bush-Tanager, Pale-Naped Brush-Finch.

Yanacocha Reserve: March 20, 2010

Although I haven't birding Yanacocha Reserve for over a year, coming back here, which just an hour's drive from Quito, is like coming back home. With dozen's of visits under my belt, I've birded at this site more frequently than any other site in Ecuador, having seen most of the birds on the list as well as adding a few of my own, including Gorgeted Sunangel a few years ago. Still, I've yet to see the star bird of the reserve, the endangered, endemic Black-Breasted Puffleg, an extremely rare hummingbird only found on the northwestern slope of Volcán Pichincha. While March is not the time to see it, I still thought the reserve was worth a Saturday morning visit as a warm up to May through July, the critical months for observing the puffleg at this altitude.

Of course, I've missed plenty of other birds here too, including the Andean Pygmy-Owl, which I tried for on several occasions this morning with the aid of playback. While I did here it calling once in the temperate forest far below down slope, the recorded call did stir some other bird activity, including a single Golden-Crowned Tanager, which perched cautiously in a tree nearby at eye level. Perhaps a group of male Barred Fruiteaters were also roused from their foraging as they started calling incessantly just along beginning of the Trocha Inca, the main trail through the reserve. These striking cotingas are always easy to hear and nearly impossible to find, except this morning, on which I had some unusual luck.

Missing the Rainbow-Bearded Thornbill that often haunts the open shrubby habitat along the next section of the Trocha Inca, I stumbled on to a Black-Chested Mountain-Tanager that was acting even shier than usual. Maybe it was due to the Plain-Breasted Hawk that was perched on a bush nearby, flushing quickly as I rounded a bend in the trail. Amazingly, this was my first time encountering this common raptor, although I would see it again the following weekend, strangely enough at the urban Quito Botanical Garden. Shortly after ticking this lifer, I ran into a mixed flock with an excellent mating pair of Barred Woodpeckers. Also present was the Superciliaried Hemispingus, Blue-Backed Conebill, Hooded Mountain-Tanager, and Grass-Green Tanager.

As most of the hummingbird feeders were empty in the hummingbird gardens at the end of the first stage of the Trocha Inca, I decided to continue through the tunnel to another stretch of good habitat, finding some flowering trees containing a number of Purple-Mantled Thornbills. These unique hummingbirds have the shortest bills of any in the world, having adapted perfectly for feeding at these very trees. I watched them for over an hours, trying my best to capture the striking purple mantle of the male but only managing a few passable images. The hummingbirds, though, were continually chased off their territories by an aggressive group of tanagers and flycatchers, including a pair of Rufous-Breasted Chat-Tyrants that were calling incessantly.

Notable birds seen: Plain-Breasted Hawk, White-Collared Swift, Purple-Mantled Thornbill, Sapphire-Vented Puffleg, Barred Woodpecker, Pearled Treerunner, Streaked Tuftedcheek, Blackish Tapaculo, Smoky Bush-Tyrant, Crowned Chat-Tyrant, White-Banded Tyrannulet, White-Throated Tyrannulet, Barred Fruiteater, Rufous Wren, Glossy-Black Thrush, Masked Flowerpiercer, Glossy Flowerpiercer, Red-Crested Cotinga, Blue-Backed Conebill, Superciliaried Hemispingus, Scarlet-Bellied Mountain-Tanager, Black-Chested Mountain-Tanager, Hooded Mountain-Tanager, Golden-Crowned Tanager, Rufous-Naped Brush-Finch, Stripe-Headed Brush-Finch.

Reserva las Gralarias: March 14, 2010

Reserva las Gralarias is an important private reserve on the northwestern slope protecting several critical watersheds located outside of Mindo. Preserving over 400 hectares of subtropical forest and regenerating woodland in the Choco bioregion across an altitude range of 1790 to 2370m, the reserve is host to a hefty number of restricted-range species, including Orange-Breasted Fruiteater, Toucan Barbet, Plate-Billed Mountain-Toucan, Beautiful Jay, Black-Chinned Mountain-Tanager, Hoary Puffleg, Yellow-Breasted Antpitta, and Purple-Bibbed Whitetip. Owned and managed by the erudite Jane Lyons, who is something of a matriarch of birding in northwestern Ecuador, the comfortable guest house makes a great base for birding the region, and groups from Mindo Bird Tours are often found here, a secluded site over three kilometers from the Calicali-Independencia highway (day use of the 12 kilometers of trails costs $10 and must be arranged in advance).

Staying informed about recent bird sightings through the observation database at Aves Ecuador, I noticed that a Moustached Antpitta nest had recently been found and documented within the reserve. As this antpitta has continued to elude me on both slopes, at regular sites such as the Guacamayos Ridge Trail and Refugio Paz de las Aves, it was time to go after what should have been a sure thing, as the nestlings had only hatched a week or so ago. I was also hoping to pick up a few other new birds, including the Rufous-Breasted Antthrush, Beautiful Jay, and Hoary Puffleg, the latter which was regularly recorded at one of the hummingbird feeder stations in January. And if I needed yet another reason to visit, it's always nice to bird in a new area, even if you've visited dozens of sites in the same region and are already familiar with the avifauna.

Leaving Quito around 4am, I arrived at the reserve at dawn with the northwestern foothills and lowlands laid out magnificently before me in the growing light. Checking in with Jane to get a trail map and the latest information on bird sightings, I hit the upper section of trails, finding a few mixed flocks in quick succession. Starting things off with the Streaked Tuftedcheek, Buff-Fronted Foliage-Gleaner, Flavescent Flycatcher, and Dusky Bush-Tanager, I next lucked on to a group of tanagers, including the excellent Black-Chinned Mountain-Tanager, several of which were mixed in with a larger group of the similar patterned Blue-Winged Mountain-Tanager. After picking up Plate-Billed Mountain-Toucan, Toucan Barbet, and Golden-Headed Quetzal, I moved down slope along the Puma Trail, encountering a noisy group of Powerful Woodpeckers that were calling frequently and drilling loudly into trees as they progressed slowly through the forest.

Reaching the lower section of trails, where the reserve's research station is located, I made my way to the Moustached Antpitta nest with the help of one of the frog researchers who is studying there. Staking out the nest from a respectful distance for a half an hour, I witnessed an adult Moustached Antpitta bringing worms to the nestlings several times. Hopping quickly through the forest and then stopping abruptly, as all larger antpittas seem to do, this secretive bird was shockingly revealed performing its most surreptitious of activities. A bit discombobulated by the experience, I climbed slowly back up towards the guest house, at one point coming face to face with a female Scaled Fruiteater that flew off before I could ready my camera. Taking a break at one of the nectar and fruit feeder stations, I talked for a while with a young man who is researching the courtship displays of male woodstars, focusing here on the Purple-Throated Woodstar. No one has ever really studied these birds before, which adds credence to the feeling that birding in South America is still an act of exploration, where each birding trip has the potential to contribute to ornithological knowledge.

During the rest of the day, I chased after a group of Beautiful Jays that Jane had heard calling from the next watershed to the north. While I never had sight nor sound of them, I did find a few other birds of note, including a pair of delightful Rufous-Crowned Tody-Tyrants, a Spotted Barbtail, and a Purple-Bibbed Whitetip at one of the hummingbird feeder stations. A final surprise was crossing paths with a giant earthworm on one of the trails. Over a meter long and maybe ten centimeters in diameter, this worm almost made me lose my lunch as it inched its way through the leaf litter, its translucent body revealing a huge vein of rich dark earth inside.

Notable birds seen: Sickle-Winged Guan, Andean Emerald, Purple-Bibbed Whitetip, Brown Inca, Velvet-Purple Coronet, Purple-Throated Woodstar, Golden-Headed Quetzal, Masked Trogon, Toucan Barbet, Plate-Billed Mountain-Toucan, Crimson-Mantled Woodpecker, Powerful Woodpecker, Streaked Tuftedcheek, Spotted Barbtail, Scaly-Throated Foliage-Gleaner, Buff-Fronted Foliage-Gleaner, Moustached Antpitta, Spillman's Tapaculo, Streak-Necked Flycatcher, Rufous-Crowned Tody-Flycatcher, Flavescent Flycatcher, Cinnamon Flycatcher, Scaled Fruiteater, Turquoise Jay, Sepia-Brown Wren, Gray-Breasted Wood-Wren, Three-Striped Warbler, Russet-Crowned Warbler, Golden-Naped Tanager, Beryl-Spangled Tanager, Blue-Winged Mountain-Tanager, Black-Chinned Mountain-Tanager, Dusky Bush-Tanager, Chestnut-Capped Brush-Finch.

Sumapaz National Park, Colombia: February 3, 2013

Much like Quito, Bogotá is a high-altitude Andean capital city, nestled up against even higher moutains whose upper reaches are covered in elfin forest and grassland, or páramo, habitat.  Chingaza National Park is the typical páramo birding site visited by tour groups passing through Bogotá, but I had heard that given the recent dry weather, bird activity there has been unseasonably low.  Instead, I made the two hour drive south to Sumapaz National Park, which protects over 150,000 hectares of montane forest and of grassland stretching from 1500 up to 4300 meters and including unique patches of mature polylepis woodland near treeline.  The part of the park accessible via road through Usme consists basically of frailejone-dominated páramo interspersed with shrubs and elfin forest, as well as a few lakes, bogs, and marshes.

My primary target bird was the Bearded Helmetcrest, a fierce-looking and hardy hummingbird capable of withstanding the cold and wet weather of the highlands.  There were a few other new species awaiting me too, including several country endemics, but I was simply excited to head out to the páramo again, where I had spent innumerable days hiking and birding while living in Ecuador.  Buoyed by my successful excursion on the previous day, I set out confidently in my rental car with only a few printed maps from the Internet. Indeed, the Sunday morning sky at dawn was perfectly clear, portending a satisfying and productive day, despite me not having any specific site information or even a field guide to the birds of Colombia.

The drive wasn’t as easy as I had expected, but my intuition and a few well-placed road signs eventually put me on the correct path.  About 30km outside of Usme on a winding but paved road, I eventually outstripped all the small potato farms and arrived at some undisturbed habitat before the signed entrance to the part (there is no park control or entrance fee).  Within seconds I was eyeing my first pair of Rufous-Browed Conebills, a subtle but still rewarding country endemic.  After catching flashes of a Bronze-Tailed Thornbill, I moved on to the tapaculo that was calling from near the side of the road.  It took a while without playback, but I eventually caught a glimpse of a non-descript tapaculo foraging in the mossy undergrowth of some dense shrubs.  Presumably this was the Pale-Bellied Tapaculo, but that’s only an identification based on habitat and range. 

Continuing into the park, I stopped at a large lake, where there is a parking area and a few hiking trails.  Opposite the lake is an expansive marsh, habitat I knew would be much more productive than the rocky shores of the lake.  Descending towards the marsh I passed through dense shrubs interspersed with frailejones, a genus of perrenial shrubs that are considered the tallest flowers on the planet and can grow upwards of ten meters in height.  In addition to flushing several Noble Snipe, I encountered several common birds of the páramo, including Brown-Backed Chat-Tyrant, Andean Tit-Spinetail, Sedge Wren, and Plumbeous Sierra-Finch. As usual, the Tawny Antpittas were nearly ubiquitous, but their call is considerably varied from those found in northern Ecuador.  It’s strange to think that an antpitta could ever be one of the easiest birds to see, considering nearly every other species is extremely reclusive.

Here I also found my first male Bearded Helmetcrest, perched commandingly on top of the tallest frailejon in the area.  Unfortunately, it was backlit and soon sped off to defend its territory from another hummingbird.  Could I possibly photograph this bizarre bird, I wondered?  It’s something of a cross between a thornbill and a mountaineer – both hummingbirds, of course – but the spiky crest and long double-pointed beard are completely unique in my experience.  Also present at the marsh were Andean Teal,  Lesser Yellowlegs, and Great Thrush, looking much more at home here than in Bogotá, where it is one of the few urban birds (I found Quito much birdier by comparison offering a good chance at also finding unusual migrants in the botanical gardens and other city parks).

To pursue a photograph of the helmetcrest, I explored an area down the road that was densely covered in frailejones.  Again, I spotted a few from a distance, but all were quick to speed off from their perches before I could approach.  Many-Striped Canasteros were common in this area, and I was nearly able to photograph one side by side with the similar-looking Andean Tit-Spinetail for comparison.  I made sure to scan the rocky cliffs a few times before the clouds moved in, which is always a matter of when, not if, in the páramo, but I didn’t see a single raptor during the day.  Further down the road I passed through a military checkpoint, a reminder that Colombia’s long civil war is not yet a thing in the past, despite the recent uptick in foreign investment and tourism.  Here the road descends to lower altitudes and passes along side tall polylepis woodland, but the area is also populated and somewhat degraded by agriculture.

Returning to the marsh, I decided to try for the endemic Bogotá Rail, which responded quickly to playback by striding out from a patch of tall grass.  I also attempted playback for Chestnut-Winged Cinclodes in the areas in which I’ve seen different cinclodes species in Peru and Ecuador, including both rocky slopes and the sides of streams, but without success; this was my only real dip of the day.  By then it was already early afternoon and had started to rain and, so I headed back towards Bogotá, making a final stop to investigate some bird activity along the roadside.  A small flock yielded Pale-Naped Brush-Finch and the exquisite Buff-Breasted Mountain-Tanager, a chunky tanager that generally stays in deep cover.  Even better, I also heard a group of Apolinar’s Wrens in the distance that came in nicely to playback (look for isolated tall, dense clumps of grass).  But the coup was finding myself in the middle of a territorial squabble between three male Bearded Helmetcrests, an encounter that finally yielded a few photographs.

Notable birds seen: Andean Teal, Bogota Rail, Noble Snipe, Lesser Yellowlegs, Bearded Helmetcrest, Bronze-Tailed Thornbill, Tawny Antpitta, Pale-Bellied Tapaculo, Many-Striped Canastero, Andean Tit-Spinetail, Brown-Backed Chat-Tyrant, Sedge Wren, Apolinar’s Wren, Great Thrush, Buff-Breasted Mountain-Tanager, Glossy Flowerpiercer, Rufous-Browed Conebill, Pale-Naped Brush-Finch, Plain-Colored Seedeater, Plumbeous Sierra-Finch.