A JAUNT TO THE WEST - PART 1

For some time I’ve have been eyeing a certain birding lodge about 4 hours to the east called the Umbrellabird Lodge, which lies within the Buena Ventura Reserve.  We finally had good reason for a diversion there, but it was not how we would have planned such.  Our beautiful cat Buster passed away, a real heartbreaker, so we decided to get away.  

Wednesday, July 16, we left home mid morning, driving over to Catamayo where the local airport is, and heading west from there.   Using Google Maps we took the shortest route.  Just a few miles beyond Catamayo we veered off to the right and headed farther out into the country, but after a few miles the pavement ran out.  At least it was a decent gravel road, and we unexpectedly ended up running a ridge for a half hour or so before meandering down to a river valley where we finally reached the pavement again.  

A TYPICAL RIVER VALLEY - SEEN FROM THE RIDGE WE DROVE ON

Not long after we came to the towns of Portabelo and Pinas, both mining towns,  and we were glad to get past them.  After leaving Pinas we headed up over a pass, and for the next half hour or so  descended through the undisturbed forest of the huge Buena Ventura Reserve.  Everything was lush and green.  We finally found the turn off to the UmbrellaBird Lodge.  That road was NOT paved, full of pot holes and muddy puddles here and there, most of it going uphill.  After about 4 miles of slow driving we reached the lodge.  

THE UMBRELLABIRD LODGE

THE LARGE PORCH OF THE LODGE

THE DINING AREA

Now when you see those huge morpho butterflies flitting about and heliconias everywhere and feel the humidity, you know you are in the jungle.  There were only 3 cabins, all with 2 rooms.   The lodge itself was nice, with screening to divide the dining area from the huge porch.  This was certainly needed to keep out the family of Coatis who came looking for food.

The hummingbird feeders were alive with the activity of 5 species of hummers.  

Green Honeycreepers and Bananaquits also pigged out on the sugar water:

GREEN HONEYCREEPER

BANANAQUIT

I noticed  two other birders and their guide there, and after striking up a conversation with one, I learned that I knew their guide - Juan Carlos Figueroa from Guayaquil.  I had hired him 4.5 years ago when in his area while awaiting the results of a Covid test.  So we got reacquainted.   He explained that in the present dry season birds are spread out because food is more widely available, and some are not at their lek sight.  This would explain why the Umbrellabirds were not seen by them that morning.  

JUAN CARLOS AND ME

After dinner Juan went outside and called in the local Black-and-White Owl,  came back in to herd us outside to see him.  Just down the steps he shined the light straight up into one of the cecropia trees, and we all had great looks at him.  One of these days I hope to be able to take pics of one on a day perch.  

The next morning I was off early with the lodge guide to the Umbrellabird lek.  A lek is a small area where male birds gather and call for the females.  As fate would have it, none were there.  So the guide and I spent a couple hours walking farther up the mountain.  It was eerily quiet with hardly any birds heard.  But after about 30 minutes they started showing up:  Rufous and Broad-billed Motmot, White-whiskered Puffbird, Scaly-throated Foliage-gleaner, Northern Schiffornis, Western Woodhaunter, White-throated Spadebill, Collared and Gartered Trogons, Song Wrens, and others.  The best find was this White-tipped Sicklebill, certainly a unique hummingbird:

WHITE-TIPPED SICKLEBILL

After breakfast my wife Rosie came with us going downhill, the opposite direction, although she turned around when it got too hot.  Some additions were a Chestnut-headed Oropendola, White-shouldered Tanager, Slaty Spinetail, Black-faced Dacnis, Brownish Twistwing, Black-crowned, Russet, Chestnut-backed and Esmeraldes Antbirds, Bronze-winged Parrots, Red-masked Parakeets, Roadside and Short-tailed Hawks.  A very welcome surprise was this Ornate Hawk Eagle who was after a Crested Guan.

ORANTE HAWK EAGLE

In the afternoon we returned to the Umbrellabird lek, but still no sign of one.  Early the next morning we’d try again.  The trail descends a ways downhill.  They made interesting use of used tires by placing them where steps are needed, and filling them with concrete.  Long before we reached the bottom we heard the unmistakable call of one. Just like a fog horn.   The guide, Holger, gave me the thumbs up, indicating a sure thing.  When we got to the bottom we spied one only 30 feet above us.  The lighting was not good for photography, but I snapped a few pics anyway.  

As there was a 2nd bird calling not far off, we headed in that direction.  However, a Black-howler Monkey distracted us, hissing down upon us.  I took a few pics, but the light was still not great, and they turned out fuzzy.  The lighting was a little better for photographing the 2nd bird.  Holger suggested I get closer for better photos.  So here is my best shot:

LONG-WATTLED UMBRELLABIRD

I suspect the birds which come to the lek are used to the presence of people as they did not spook with me being so close.  It was a great experience.   On the way back up another lifer was awaiting me.  We noticed a Yellow-throated Toucan being rather uneasy about something, which turned out to be this Bicolored Hawk.  

BICOLORED HAWK

YELLOW-THROATED TOUCAN

CHOCO TOUCAN

From there we drove back down to the river, near the turn off for the lodge looking for my last hoped for lifer - a Royal Flycatcher.  We parked just after a bridge and began to walk.  Bird activity was very good, but we did not stay focused on any  particular bird as we were after Royalty.  The road was flat and paralleled the river and after about 1/3 mile Holger heard one.  He played the song and after a bit, this Royal Flycatcher came in,  and here is my best picture:

ROYAL FLYCATCHER

While walking back to the car we saw a white egret type of bird down along the river’s edge.  I snapped a few pics.  It was an immature bird, either a Snowy Egret or a Little Blue Heron.  They are difficult to distinguish when young, but my pics verified it as a Snowy Egret.  Funny that of all the birds seen during our time there, this would be the rarest for the area.  eBird had it flagged, needing documentation, so my picture with a short description was supplied.  

IMMATURE SNOWY EGRET

Here are a few other bird pics from Buena Ventura and the Lodge area:

WHITE-SHOULDERED TANAGER

TROPICAL PARULA

ANDEAN EMERALD

BROWN VIOLETEAR

GREEN THORNTAIL

WHITE-NECKED JACOBIN

BROWNISH TWISTWING

CHESTNUT-BACKED ANTBIRD

GRAY-BACKED HAWK

FLAME-RUMPED TANAGER WITH CATERPILLAR 

After breakfast Rosie and I took off toward the south, heading for the next destination, the Urraca Lodge within the Jorupe Reserve.  We’d been here before in January and this was certainly a nice place to spend a couple more nights.  Following the Google Maps app we headed back to Pinas and Portobela and went south.  I now remember reading this was the best route due to a landslide elsewhere.  But in hindsight I learned that the landslide had been cleared up, so we traveled about 90 extra minutes to our next destination. In taking the suggested route, we ended up traveling almost 3 hours on a gravel road to finally get to the main highway where we needed to be.  The first half hour or more was along a beautiful, clear river.   I have to admit it was great scenery, but we only averaged 25 mph while the car took a beating from the washboards and potholes.  Going up one mountainside the winds were howling, kicking up the dust so badly that we had to slow way down because the visibility was as bad as a snow storm.  

TYPICAL LANDSLIDE AREA

But eventually we made it to the pavement, headed SW toward Macara, the city that borders Peru.  We were now driving along another ridge and the views were great.  We decided to stop at a restaurant for lunch and enjoy the view.  Little by little as we descended downward the temperature went upward.  After a total of 7 hours driving we arrived at the Urraca Lodge, where Part 2 picks up.  

THE JAUNT WEST: PART 2

The Urraca Lodge is a nice place with cabins and dining area, much like the UmbrellaBird Lodge where we just were.  I suspect all the places owned and run by the Jocotoco Foundation are similar in this regard, the large dining area screened in to keep out insects.  We had been here in January so knew what to expect.  Much lower in elevation and temperatures a little higher.  

I had arranged for the lodge bird guide Leo to guide me in the morning.  Most of the easier lifers I had seen back in January, but the Slaty Becard had eluded me.  But Leo knows the birds of the area quite well, and their habits.  So we went to the entrance where, after using playback, a female Slaty Becard came in.  She was shy and did not allow for a picture.  

I suggested we next head to the rice fields near Macara for the next stop.  There were plenty of Cattle, Snowy and Great Egrets, and Black-necked Stilts around.  Some 10 Crested Caracaras were here and there.  A lone, rare bird for this area was a Southern Lapwing, new for my Loja Province list. This Savanna Hawk flew in for a picture as well:

SAVANNA HAWK

A few Comb Ducks were flying around.  From eBird RBAs I knew the place had lots of potential for rare birds, but the ones I had hoped for were not here today.  This Vermillion Flycatcher was though:

VERMILLION FLYCATCHER

CRESTED CARACARAS

After breakfast Rosie joined Leo and I walking farther along the road into the reserve.  Some of the more interesting birds we encountered were Rufous-necked Foliage Gleaner, Henna-hooded Foliage Gleaner, One-colored Becards, Speckle-breasted Wrens, Gray-breasted Flycatcher, Tropical Parulas, Baird’s and Streaked Flycatchers, Gray-cheeked and Red-masked Parakeets, Ecuadorian Trogons, and a Gray-backed and Zone-tailed Hawk.  Yellow-rumped Caciques were aplenty it seemed.

RUFOUS HEADED CHACHALACA

ECUADORIAN TROGON

PACIFIC ELAENIA

BAIRD’S FLYCATCHER

FASCIATED WREN TAKING A DUST BATH

YELLOW-RUMPED CACIQUE

TUMBES PEWEE

STREAKED XENOPS

GRAY BREASTED FLYCATHER

STREAK-HEADED WOODCREEPER

WHITE-TAILED JAY

Rosie turned back again because of the lack of shade, but right after that the trees provided protection from the sun.  One more bird of interest was the Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant, another first for my Loja list.

SCALE-CRESTED PYGMY TYANT

By the time we got back to the lodge it was quite warm, so Leo said we could resume birding at 3:30.  So after lunch and a short siesta we struck out with him again, but this time back along the road toward the entrance.  It took a half hour to go 100 meters because of the abundance of birds.  All were more or less common as I remember.  Farther down the road there was a large bird nest laying in the road, which Leo said was of a One-colored Becard.  The Becards make huge nests like this.   A little later we found this nest of a Yellow-green Flatbill, a flycatcher.   And not long after that Leo pointed out the hole in a bank which was the nest of a pair of Henna-hooded Foliage Gleaners.  We used playback and two of them appeared nearby, but due to their skulking habits in the underbrush, my pics are not worthy of much. 

LEO WITH ONE-COLORED BECARD NEST

THE NEST OF A YELLOW-GREEN FLATBILL

Early the next morning I was out walking back toward the highway, hoping for a better shot of the Henna Hoodeds.  But soon the traffic began to come by along what is usually a seldom used road, and most of them stopping to ask me something, which of course I could not understand.  But later I’d find out that the lodge was hosting a young women’s group of medical workers (students?) Who were having breakfast there.  So birding was cut short.

NOTICE THE HUGE SPIDER WEBS?

OUR CABIN

THE VIEW FROM THE BACK PORCH OR OUR CABIN

WALKING STICK

After our breakfast alongside the noisy bunch of young ladies, we took off for the final leg of our jaunt, back home.  We picked up Leo at the entrance as he had offered to help us find a few birds higher up.  The first areas we’d look were on the roadside near the Utuana Reserve.  On the 2nd stop we found a pair of Jelski’s Chat Tyrants.  In the reserve itself we found a lone Black-cowled Saltator.  While waiting at the hummingbird feeders I photographed this Purple-throated Sunangel.  By 11:30 is was hot, sunny and windy, so we left the reserve and Leo departed back to Macara.

PURPLE-THROATED SUNANGEL

BLACK-COWLED SALTATOR

Just east of the reserve I stopped at a place where Black-tufted Tit-Tyrants have been reported, and it took about 10 minutes for a pair to respond to playback.  Mission accomplished, we set about for the 2.5 hour drive back home, which thankfully was uneventful. 

Announcement: I have been looking into a trip to the Shiripuno Lodge in the Amazon Basin.  Two other birders have a high interest in going there with me.  We need one more to round out the group so that there will be 4 of us.  Beside going to the lodge, the rest of our time will be spent mostly on the east slope of the Andes, east of Quito.  The approximate dates are Jan 9-24. I will be picking everyone up in Quito, making a circuit going east and returning to Quito at the end.  If interested drop me a note for more info.