THE BIRDING JAUNT TO THE SOUTH: PART TWO

When the alarm wakes me up on any given setting, I know I’ve slept well.  I’m usually awake beforehand, anticipating whatever it was that I set the alarm for.  We were off by 5:45, and it was just getting light.  A good sign was seeing Common Pauraques in the road.  We did not have to go far, just a short distance to a road that went up one of the hillsides which surrounded the town.  

THE TOWN OF PALANDA, WAY BELOW

We went uphill about a half mile, parked, and began to walk back down, listening for the avifauna.  The chorus began in earnest the lighter it got.  I think in about 30 minutes we had tallied some 50 species, including a male Cock-of-the-Rock (you should really look that one up!), Western Striated Puffbird (a long hoped for lifer), Little Tinamou, White-winged, Spotted, Silvery, White-lined and Swallow Tanagers, Blue Dacnis, Bluish-gray Saltator, White-necked Thrush, Andean Solitare, and Red-billed Parrots, to name some of them.  Due to the many birds to sort through, it was slow going, and I think it took us 90 minutes or so to return to the car, where we ate breakfast.

Standing around the car watching birds made it a drawn out meal.  A pair of Green-backed Becards finally posed for the camera, and here is a decent shot of a male.

GREEN-BACKED BECARD

The rest of the morning would be a series of stops heading up the mountain.  At the next stop, maybe in another half mile, was where Christian was going see his long awaited and hoped for lifer - a Chestnut-headed Cotinga.  

CHESTNUT-HEADED COTINGA

Diego knew just where to stop, where he used playback to entice one to come.  It took about 5 minutes, but Christian was on him, taking pics while oo-hing and ahh-ing.  I think we stayed on him for some 30 minutes.

The next stop, another half mile along, turned out to be difficult to break away from, as the birds kept coming and going, so we were there at least an hour seeing the likes of a Greenish Puffleg, Bronzy Inca, Lesser Violetear (Hummingbirds), Speckled Hummingbird, Rufous-winged Tyranulet (rare), Black-and-White Becard (rare), Slate-colored Grosbeak, Red-headed Barbet, Streak-headed Antbird, Streaked Xenops, Olivaceous Greenlet, and Golden-eared Tanager. Here are some of the ones we saw here.

CINNAMON FLYCATCHER

BLACK AND WHITE BECARD

GREENISH PUFFLEG

BLUE-WINGED MOUNTAIN TANAGER

SLATE-COLORED GROSBEAK

Break away we finally did.  But by now the road had become steep enough to need to use 4WD with my “new” 2004 Grand Vitara.  No more spinning the back wheels.  Another half mile or so, and we pulled over for our next and last stop.  As soon as we got out, they could hear White-capped Tanagers, a species usually congregated in small groups.  Diego said there was a group to one side of us and another to the other side….somewhere.  I never did hear them even after turning up my hearing aids, but they kept using playback to entice some to come our way, which did not happen….yet.

In short order another 3 Chestnut-headed Cotingas were found, so Christian’s and my camera returned to life with one posing nicely not too far away.  Just afterward a White-winged Brushfinch made an appearance, which turned out to be a lifer for Christian. (Hard to imagine I had one on my life list which he didn’t).  He was thrilled as it is getting harder to add lifers the longer he birds.  

ANOTHER VIEW OF PALANDA WITH THE SURROUNDING HILLSIDES

GOLDEN-FACED TANAGER

BLACK-MASKED DACNIS

We ended up walking uphill, rather slowly, adding Green-and-Black Fruiteaters, Speckle-breasted Wren, Tropical Parula, Buff-browed Foliage Gleaner, Smoky-brown Woodpecker and White-bellied Woodstar, Metallic-green and Saffron-headed Tanagers.  Then they began hearing the White-capped Tanagers again, so we walked farther uphill to where a wider clearing allowed us better visibility.  Using playback it took about 10 minutes for one to finally fly by.  They must be the largest tanager in that family, as big as a Robin.  The white cap stands out and one can see it a long ways away.  The back is blackish and the undersides are reddish.  After a few minutes another came by and landed on a palm snag, but this was against the bright sky, so here is my pic of a silhouette. Amazingly you can still see his white cap.

WHITE-CAPPED TANAGER

One the way back to the car we encountered a Peruvian Rackettail, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Long-tailed Sylph, and Violet-fronted Brilliant (Hummingbirds).  The male Rackettail was a cool lifer! Seeing pictures of this bird was inspiring such that it was very meaningful when I finally saw one.   So we tallied 9 species each of hummers and tanagers this morning.

It was after noon by now, and time to called it quits.  We found a restaurant in town which was not overly crowded on this Sunday afternoon.  Christian decided to celebrate his 2 lifers with 2 bottles of beer.  He suggested I tip Diego for his guidance, which I was happy to do.  As I did not even know he was going to be part of the weekend, it was puzzling to know just how this was to work out.  

Leaving Diego at his pad, Christian and I began the 2 hour drive to Vilcabamba.  En route back we stopped to look for the Rufous-capped Thornbill which did not show when coming south.  He obliged us in about a minute.  My last lifer of the trip!   7 new hummers was fun!

RUFOUS-CAPPED THORNBILL

THE SAME BIRD WHEN HE TOOK OFF.  ACROBATIC LITTLE GUY

We would have birded at the reserve for a bit, but the gate was locked and no one seemingly around.  So we drove on and got to my place around 3:00.  Christian needed some coffee, so I made him a large cup.  He did not want to take the cup so drank it while he chatted with Rosie and me.  We ended up showing him our house and talking about life in Oregon and etc.  We even made temporary plans to go birding again, of which I will no doubt write a blog for.  

So I ended the jaunt adding 28 lifers!  There is still plenty of great birding to be experienced within a few hours drive from where I live, and more so farther afield.  One good birding friend is likely to come down next Jan-Feb for a much needed birding vacation. It would be good if one or two other birders were along for the jaunt.  I will take him locally, to the places described in this blog, and also over to the other side of the Andes.  At minimum, at least 300 species should be tallied, and likely more.  When in my home area, lodging and meals will be free at my house, and the same is rather inexpensive elsewhere, for the most part.  Guide service by the aforementioned birders is very reasonable.  Splitting up the costs of gas, entrance fees, guide service and etc brings the cost per person down some as well.  So if this is something that appeals to you, contact me for more info.  And if per chance you may know of some mutual birding friends who may be interested in this, feel free to share it with them.  

THE BIRDING JAUNT TO THE SOUTH - PART ONE

Now that we’ve been here 6 months, I was finally able to get away birding for a couple days.  I’d been eyeing the area south of us, just over an hour drive away, and the road goes over the continental divide.  It is considered part of the Amazon Basin as all the rivers drain east to the Amazon River and eventually the Atlantic Ocean.  As far as the birds go it is an interesting mix of species from the east and west, and is the northern range limit for some from Peru.  And while being somewhat jungle, it is not steamy hot like it is to farther east.  

In researching the area via eBird, I saw a place called, “Reserva Manakin,” (Manakin Reserve).  But there was only one checklist recorded, and it happened to be by Christian Romero, the guide who was with us last time we were in the county in January 2023.  He tallied 104 species at the reserve in one day.  I suspect that with only one checklist, the area must have been recently set aside.  I thought I’d like to check the place out, so texted him.  I asked him if there was lodging there.  He said no, and that you needed to walk for an hour and a half to get there.  He said he’d like to take me there, so it was at least on the back burner, initially.  

I finally set the date for the weekend of Sept 27-29, and gave Christian directions to my place.  He eventually made it, an hour late.  I suppose giving directions with my way of thinking probably does not cut it down here, but it was great to see him again, and we took off right away so as not to have to drive much in the dark.  He said something about including a friend, so I assumed his friend was a birder.

En route we reached the reserve  named Tapichalaca,  in an hour, the one set aside for the Jocotoco Antpitta, a splendid and odd bird new to science only about 25 years ago.  Christian talked to the guide on duty there (who he knew) and learned there was a rare Rufuous-capped Thornbill (Hummingbird) being seen just up the road, so we dashed back out to look for it.  We waited around at the exact spot for 10 minutes, but he was to be a no show.  We moved over, maybe 75 feet up the road to another clear view down the hillside.  In short order a hummer showed up, which turned out to be an immature Geoffrey’s Daggerbill, an even rarer hummingbird not often seen in the area.  Because it had a black mask and was quite small, I thought it was a Speckled Hummingbird, and did not even ready my camera.  Christian kept looking at it and finally realized it was something different, and so my camera finally served its purpose, but too late to get any good photos.  This first lifer was a great way to start off the weekend.

GEOFFREY’S DAGGERBILL

While awaiting for the Thornbill to show, this Amethyst Throated Sunangel gave us a show.

AMETHYST THROATED SUNANGEL

We connected with Christian’s friend Diego in Palanda, and after going to the hotel, he went to stay at Diego’s house.  The hotel was basic and very clean, and I felt it was a deal at $15/night.  We left for the Manakin Reserve at 4:30 the next morning for the 60+ minute drive farther south.  We were on the main road in the Andes to Peru.  What had been a very nice concrete “highway” soon turned to gravel with potholes and water bars here and there.  At the town named “Progresso” we turned left and meandered downhill.

As it was getting light we reached the end of the road where we parked.  There was a river here about 200 feet wide, and the water was brown from mining operations, which were unsightly, to say the least.  We walked across the foot bridge and headed downriver through the mining “camp,” where the workers were literally camping out in makeshift tin roofed lean-tos.   The machines were already blaring, but in a few minutes they were behind us, the quietude a nice greeting.  

THE BROWN RIVER WITH MINING OPERATIONS

During the drive I learned that Diego was a nature guide at Tapichalaca, so he knew the birds of the area, and I was soon to learn he was quite the expert.  But now we had to walk to the reserve, an uphill trek on a trail through what was basically farmland.  The river kept getting farther downhill, but above us was undisturbed forest.  The birds began showing up:  Peruvian Pigeon (Rare for the area), Dusky Pigeon, Plumbeous Pigeon, Rufous fronted Thornbird, Linneated Woodpeckers, Yellow-tufted Woodpeckers, Silver-beaked Tanagers, Olive-chested Flycatcher, Speckled Chachalaca,  White-eyed Parakeets, Maranon Thrush, just to name a few.  

THE ENTRANCE.  CHRISTIAN IN THE MIDDLE, DIEGO ON RIGHT

We finally reached the area set aside, preserved from logging/agriculture.  I suspect it was only 20 acres tops, but it was mostly undisturbed jungle.  The “entrance,” which was a few small, dead logs acting as a barrier, was accompanied by a sign, and through the foliage I could see a small building, which turned out to be a one room “cabin” of sorts.  Between bird sightings we ate some breakfast.   A Green Hermit (Hummingbird) had made an appearance when we reached the area, but others were making themselves known like Golden-faced Tyrannulet, Buff-throated Saltators, Green Jays and White-lined Tanager and Blue-gray Tanagers.

The trail seemed to be calling us so we began the hike.  With two guides, Diego in the front and Christian in the rear, we’d not miss anything.  Their ears were fine tuned to hearing every little sound, and Diego could pick out any slight movement with his eyes.  Right off the bat was a family of Rufous-breasted Wood Quail, often heard but not often seen.  They were right in the middle of the trail ahead of us allowing visuals, but each time I raised the camera they did not so cooperate.  

The trail was maybe 200 meters to the end, but it took us at least an hour and a half to make it there due to seeking out and following up on bird vocalizations and sightings.  One really intriguing find were a couple of Gray-throated Leaftossers, and these being the first for me seeing any of this family of species.  They allowed decent views, but by the time I got the lens on one, they vanished.  Other cool and/or new birds were Euller’s Flycatcher, Coppery-chested Jacamar, Chestnut-headed Gnateater, Tawny-breasted Flycatcher, Great Antshrike, Lined Antshrike, and White-throated Spadebill. 

About half-way along a Western Fire-eye piped up, so Diego use playback to draw him in.  It took about 5 minutes for the bird to finally show up, an all black robin size bird with a gleaming bright red eye.  It would have been nice to get his picture, but he never perched still for more than about 3 seconds.  

Diego wanted to go higher, and so we trapsed uphill, reaching another trail in about 50 meters.  Finally a few tanagers showed up, the Paradise Tanager being the most gaudy of them.  But Bay-headed Tanager is a close second.  Otherwise the Blue-necked and Blue Gray Tanagers were welcomed.

PARADISE TANAGER

 

When we neared the cabin again, birds became more numerous and a Wire-crested Thornbill (Hummingbird) feeding on the pollen of the white flowers of a nearby tree was a nice lifer.   Right afterward another hoped for tanager made a short appearance - the Black-faced Tanager, another lifer.  Others that came around were the Golden-faced Tyrannult, Ruddy Pigeon, Sickle-winged Guan, Long-billed Starthroat (Hummingbird), Lafrenaye’s Piculet (The Smallest of Woodpeckers), Plain Antvireo and others.  

GOLDEN-FACED TYRANNULET

RUDDY PIGEON

YELLOW-TUFTED WOODPECKER

But it was now time to head back.  It was a relief that the trek back was all downhill.  The mining camp was now alive with workers, who seemed a little disheveled and rough, so I was glad Diego and Christian were along.  They stopped and talked to some, shaking hands upon meeting and parting, including me.  The trees on riverbank along the last 50 meters before the footbridge were alive with birds, and tanagers now made themselves known.  Another target of mine, the Buff-bellied Tanager, was now seen well.  Other tanagers in attendance were Orange-eared, Palm, Golden, White-lined, Blue-necked and Bay-headed.  An assortiment of others included Slaty-capped Flycathers, Varigated Bristle-tyrant, Common Tody-flycatcher,  Green-backed Becard, Blue Dacnis and Black-faced Dacnis, and Short-billed Chlorospingus.  

ORANGE-BELLIED EUPHONIA

RUFOUS-FRONTED THORNBILL NEST

VARIGATED BRISTLE-TYRANT

Driving up and out of that river valley was interesting as I could now see the scenery.  Lots of high hills, the lower portions were all farmed, the higher parts still forested.  We made our way back to Progresso where we had lunch.  Only $3.00 each for a meal which consisted of soup, chicken, rice and a salad.  We were then off, continuing farther south, going “down” the next series of switch-backs to another river, this one clear and pristine.  After meeting a bus on this one-way gravel road, I now put it together that, since this was the main road south, it was well used by buses, trucks and any other vehicles for transportation.  Phew, these were very reminiscent of the logging roads I’ve driven on in Oregon, usually not convenient with narrow or no shoulders.  Can’t imagine what happens when two buses meet on a narrow stretch……

When we reached the river there was a kettle of 9 Swallow-tailed Kites circling overhead.  I did not know they flocked like this.  We turned left, down stream before we got to the bridge and drove a good mile where we parked a little before the chain blocking further progress.  We had been paralleling a series of large, concrete channels made for diverting water.  These were not in use due to a landslide which had demolished it in one place.  We walked past the chain birding.  It was now mid day and the temperature had risen to about 85 degrees, so birding was a little slow. Diego found a Bronze-green Euphonia (Think Tanager Family), a new one for me. Long-tailed Tyrants were common on the overhead wires, and Grassquits and Seedeaters were in abundance along the road - Blue-black Grassquit, Chestnut-bellied, Yellow-bellied and Plain-colored Seedeaters.   Before leaving we tallied 31 species.

LONG-TAILED TYRANT

Just as we were about to head back up the hill, I stopped to check out some birding activity.  I can’t remember was it was I saw, but this turned out to be a bad decision, as a truck went by, up the hill, which I’d now have to follow, eating his dust all the way back to Progresso, some 5 miles up the hill.  In town he pulled over, much to my relief.  But then I  got stuck behind a bus, which finally allowed me to pass in 3-4 miles.  I did not realize it, but we were returning to Palanda a different way which provided more of the same great scenery of forested hilltops as far as the eye could see.  The birds seemed to always be in evidence now as we traversed through these partially forested areas.  We spied a raptor overhead, which turned out to be a Semi-collared Hawk, a lifer for me.  Now and then we’d pull over when birds were notable.  At one place our first Swallow Tanagers were seen, real beauties of that family.  While admiring them, we saw a large bird soaring south, which turn out to be a Wood Stork, probably going from one location far away to another.  There were certainly no marshes anywhere near here.  I got some rather poor but identifiable pics, but somehow these got deleted before I could get to them.   I was really hoping to add them to the eBird checklist, which flagged such as rare and needing documentation.

By now Christian was dragging and said he needed some coffee.  He sounded like this was not going to be a problem, but since we were still miles from Palanda I figured he’d have to wait.  But in less than a mile we pulled into a coffee plantation, and Diego knew the family who owned the place.  A young teenager made Christian a large cup while Diego had a shot of vodka which one family member was imbibing on.  It was a serene place with lots of birds, and I would have liked to hang around there for a while, but we had to break away and continue back to civilization. 

DIEGO AT THE LARGE WOODEN PAIL-LIKE CONTAINER WITH THE
LARGE POUNDER FOR SEPARATING COFFEE BEANS FROM THE HUSKS

CHRISTIAN BOUGHT ME THIS POUND OF COFFEE FROM THE FARM

At the next river crossing I finally saw a long awaited White-capped Dipper on the rocks.  I’d been looking for such near where we live every time we were in the vicinity of appropriate habitat.  So it was great to finally have that happen.  

I found it exhilarating when driving through forested terrain that birds were plentiful.  Literally, every place we stopped we detected a few species.  One place, just before the coffee farm where there was a creek crossing was a Mottle-backed Elaenia and a Great Kiskadee, two species new for the trip.  

MOTTLE-BACKED ELAENIA

GREAT KISKADEE

Since this was a different route back to Palanda, I was wondering when we’d finally get there when all of a sudden, around one corner, the houses appeared. We were going to do some owling after dark, but as it had started raining, Diego knew it would not pan out.  At least I could sleep in until 5:30 the next morning, so that was nice. 

THE MARKET PLACES

The town of Malacatos lies only 5 miles to the north of Vilcabamba.  It has a bigger population base, and so the produce market is said to be larger.   But it was simply too inconvenient to go there without a car.  But that all changed when we obtained a car last week.  The produce market takes place every Sunday.  We were not sure just exactly where it was, but I had been told it was near the church. (It seems every town in this country has a large, Catholic Church, and the town square always seems to be adjacent to it). One cannot miss such because it is the largest landmark to be seen for miles.  Plus, a colony of Chestnut-collared Swallows have built plenty of nests in the upper balconies of which I was keenly aware.  

We had no trouble finding the market area.  We did have difficulty finding a parking place, which ended up being about 3 blocks away.  Lots of people coming and going.  The produce market was on a street, and was probably 100 meters long, with booths on both sides of the road.  They ranged in size about 6 feet wide and 12 feet, I think.  Mangos and Avocados were in short supply, so probably out of season.   I think everything else was well represented: Fruits were Melons, Papaya, Pineapple, Apples, Pears, Bananas, Plantains, Grapes, Oranges, Mandarins, Blackberries, Guanabana, and a few we have yet to try or learn the names of.  Veggies - Potatoes (Many different kinds). Carrots, Peppers, Tomatoes, Beets, Parsnips, Parsley, Chard, Lettuce.  Broccoli, Cauliflower, Large Radishes, Yucca (Yuck) and others.  

We decided to walk the entire length and see what all was there.  In the process we asked prices so we could “shop and compare.” It was a test of our language skills to find out the prices sometimes.  Plus, they do sometimes take advantage of gringos because they know we have more money.  As expected, we did not make it to the end because a certain vendor was low in his quotes.  We bought a papaya for a buck, 7 tomatoes for a buck and 7 bell peppers for a buck.

We have to admit that we sometimes feel sorry for certain vendors, such as an elderly woman with a small table with not much on it, teeth missing with her facial features showing wear and wrinkles, gray unkempt hair.   The reality is that we don’t mind paying more since we can afford it, and the farmers need it.  But the more the gringos cave in to paying higher prices, the result is that the locals end up paying more as well, so a delicate tightrope to walk.  

Here is a pic of all we bought - for $15:00.  There is parsley, grapes, broccoli, lettuce, chard, canteloupe, 2 lbs of carrots, 7 tomatoes, 7 peppers, a papaya, 2 mangos, peas, and corn and 5 huge squares of cane sugar, which should last us months.  Watermelon (which we did not buy) was $2.50, certainly less than the $5 we paid in Vilca.

The remainder are shots in and around the market, some with comments:

TWO KIDS HANGING OUT UNDER A TABLE

SMELLS A LITTLE FISHY IN THIS AREA

SECURITY

THIS GUY WAS SELLING OJ

IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, YOU CAN SEE THE
CHICKENS ARE TIED WITH STRINGS.  

THIS IS A GUANABANA, OR, SOUR SOP FRUIT FROM OUR PROPERTY.  IT IS NOT QUITE RIPE.  THE MEAT INSIDE IS WHITE AND MILDLY TART BUT SWEET IN TASTE.

WHEN  READY TO PICK THEY FETCH $5-6.  

                                

                            THE MARKET IN LOJA:

There is a large, daily market in the middle of Loja, and we’ve been there a few times.  It is a large building with 2 floors and a basement where parking is available.  On the south side of the first floor is where the produce is sold.  There are venues next to each other, and are about 12 feet square.  They are slanted upward, the low part by the large aisle is maybe 3 feet off the ground and the upper part against the wall is about 6 feet high.  There is a square hole in the middle where the vendor sits/stands and they deal with clients from there.   There are also venues that sell breakfasts and fruit juices/smoothies.

The north side of the first floor is a huge meat venue.  They sell all kinds of meat there: Chicken, Beef, Lamb, Goat, Donkey, Pig, Fish and etc.  It has a mildly offensive odor, with a few flies to boot.  We walked through the place once, and since we are not big meat eaters, have no reason to go there.  Some people actually buy 2nd or 3rd rate beef for their dogs there.  

The upper floor has various small stores for clothes, shoes, barber shops and beauty salons, a restaurant, juice and smoothie fronts and others.  

The outside areas surrounding the entrances are crowded with small time vendors, mostly selling produce of some sort.  But they also sell other items.  While eating at the restaurant a man came by selling Q-tips.  On one hand it is all annoying to me, hearing all the haggling and announcing of what is for sale, brushing shoulders in a crowded place (I never did like crowds).  On the other hand, this is just normal life here, and I greatly admire when poor people are motivated to make their living even if the results are minimal. 

THEY PLACE THEM RIPE END UP
TO MAKE THEM LOOK MORE APPEALING

THE VENDOR ALLOWED ROSIE TO
PICK THROUGH THE STRAWBERRIES FOR RIPER ONES

THIS IS ON THE STREET WHERE YOU 
CAN PROBABLY GET SOME GOOD DEALS

GRAINS AND BEANS

HERE YOU CAN SEE THE 12 X 12 VENDING STALLS, AND ON THE
RIGHT THERE IS A LADY WHO RUNS THAT PARTICULAR ONE

HERE IS THE CHICKEN AISLE.  

HERE IS A MAN SINGING ON THE SIDEWALK, PANNING FOR $.
HE NEVER OPENED HIS EYES ONCE.

HERE YOU CAN SEE A LADY AT HER BOOTH, IN THE MIDDLE OF IT.
THE OPENING BELOW THE BANANAS IS HOW SHE GETS IN THERE.

THE CARROTS HERE ARE QUITE LARGE