May Birding Trip - Part Two

May 7:  We left after breakfast to Catamayo, taking the loooong way to Loja since the direct route had an ongoing landslide clean-up area and was now closed most of the time.  We stopped near the main N/S highway where we added White-browed Gnatcatcher and a heard only Tumbes Sparrow.  We went through Catamayo and up the hill toward the pass, stopping at a side road where we added an Ecuadorian Piculet.  We then had a planned stop in S Loja at the Parque Colinar where we saw the Brazilian Teal, Common Gallinule and Plumbeous Rails.   The teal are in the midst of a range expansion, and my long distance blurry photo reveals 6 babies, so this is the 2nd brood this year. Probably the rarest out of place type bird of the trip.

Plumbeous Rail

After some empanadas at the park we headed east over the pass and down the scenic highway toward Zamora.  We had researched a place where oilbirds were being reported and stopped there.  We looked and looked  but could not find them.  We did find a pair of White-capped Dippers, a little consolation.  Oh yes, we did see a Wing-banded Nightjar in the middle of the road in the middle of the day, an interesting surprise. 

Bran-colored FLycatcher

We drove the rest of the way to Zamora and over to the Copalinga Lodge.  As we were approaching the lodge, my car stalled.  I have to inject here that way back in August and September it was doing this, and I had a new fuel filter placed as well as dropping the gas tank for a cleaning, as well as other work, and it had been fine…… until now.  We got there in time for the Gray Tinamou feeding, but the guide Walter said the bird was not coming of late.  We tried anyway.  There were plenty of hummers coming to the feeders and flowers and we ended up tallying 9 species there.  Otherwise, both Russet Backed and Crested Oropendulas, Red-crested Finch, Silver-beaked and Green and Yellow Tanagers, Buff-throated Saltators, Speckled Chachalacas and others kept our interest alive. 

During dinner one of the local Band-bellied Owls piped up, and a little later Walter  asked us if we’d like to look for the Ocellated Poorwill which was calling, to which we did.  We walked along a “trail” of sorts, and after shining the flashlight a few places, he located it perched.  We could only see it from the back, but that is probably more than most would enjoy.  

We had our separate cabins and after an early breakfast were off with Walter to the nearby community of Timbara.   I had been here before in February with Aaron, Tim and Charlie and we had a satisfying morning of birding, adding >70 species to the accumulating list of birds.   So my hopes were up, and Walter did not let us down, hearing and pointing out numerous birds.  We had good looks at most of them, and some of the more interesting ones were:  Black Solitary Cacique, White Hawk, Short-tailed Swift, a male Spangled Coquette, Fasciated Tiger Heron, Anhinga, Lafresnaye’s Piculet, Stripe-chested Antwren, Masked and Black-crowned Tityra, Chestnut-crowned Becard, Long-tailed Tyrants, Violaceous Jays, Thrush-like Wren, Magpie Tanagers, Bluish-gray Saltator and a Chestnut-bellied Seedfinch.  We also tallied over 70 species.  By 11:00 the cloud cover had lifted and it was getting hot, and we were ready to call it a morning, so back to Copalinga we went.   When going to the morning location and returning, the car stalled 2-3 more times, but when I down shifted it restarted.  I was getting concerned. 

Ruddy-ground Dove

Smooth-billed Ani

Black Agoutis - Mother and young

Yellow-tufted Woodpecker

Chestnut-bellied Seedeater

Palm Tanager

We did not resume birding with Walter until 3:00 when we walked some trails.  We would then learn the hard way that May is not the best time of year for birding here, and while we did not see much, we at least heard a few more.  Probably the best bird was a White-crowned Tapaculo.  

Wire-crestedThorntail

Green-and-gold Tanager

Thick-billed Euphonia 

Red-crested Finch

Thick-billed Euphonias

Golden-tailed Sapphire

Shortly after dinner Walter came into the dining room asking us if we’d like to try to see the Band-bellied Owl, to which we said yes.  On the way out, when I reached the gravel just beyond the threshold, I spied what I thought was a small snake.  Sure enough, it was.  So I made sure Barb and Eric did not walk over it.  It turned out to be a young Fer-de-Lance, a highly poisonous viper of the tropics.  Walter decided to put it in a pop bottle which he later released down by the river.  Hmmm, a little excitement for the trip.  After a few tries we did get a visual on the owl.  

The next day we’d head to Podocarpus NP with Christian, our guide for the next 3 days, who arrived at 6:30 and we were soon off.  We’d also learn again that May is just not the best birding time here, and the day was a bit of a let down with only 34 species recorded, which did not include the Cock-of-the-Rock or Umbrella Bird, the two we were really hoping for.  But we did see a Green-fronted Lancebill, White-necked Parakeets, Montane and Lineated Foliage Gleaners, Black-billed Treehunter, White-crowned Manakin, Orange-eared and Golden Tanagers, and Black-faced Dacnis.

Squirrel Cuckkoo

Violaceous Jay

After lunch at Copalinga we were off to Yantzaza, Christian’s home town where we planned to stay for one night, and maybe more depending on how things went.  But my car kept stalling now and then, and after a short birding jaunt near town, I dropped Eric and Barb off at the motel, and went with Christian to a mechanic he knew.  I asked him if he could replace the gas filter and put in a gas additive, which he did.  I really wanted to see the inside of the old filter, but the mechanic held up the old one and drained some fluid out, saying it was water.  I was not convinced.   The car stalled twice en route to the motel, and I was not feeling optimistic about the following day.

But the next day started out just fine and the car functioned properly…… for some 90 minutes.  We headed up into the Zarza Reserve, stopping here and there for birds. And then the car began stalling.  And little by little it kept stalling more and more.  After some great birding we turned around, fearing we’d not make it back.  We made it partially back, barely limping into the tiny village of Zarza where Christian had a friend.  He called a tow truck which arrived in about an hour.  While waiting Eric and Barb had a beer with some local store owners.

Improvising for an umbrella

A Snapshot of the Zarza Reserve

A Large Worm

You can see Christian in my car

Christian and Eric rode in the car on the back of the flatbed while Barb and I rode in the cab.   I swear that driver came off the mountain faster than I would have in my car.  Once back in town we went from one mechanic shop to another, all closed.  Finally we found one open.  It was late on Saturday, but the mechanic said he’d try to diagnose it in the morning, but he felt fairly confident it was the fuel pump.  

But before I relay how it all turned out, I must say that the Zarza Reserve did not let us down, and we tallied some 53 species.   Choosing the more interesting ones might be biased, but these were some:  Blackish Rail, Rufous-rumped Antwren, Olive-backed Woodcreeper, Equatorial Graymail, Spectacled Prickletail, Cliff Flycatcher, Lemon-browed Flycatcher, Bar-winged Woodwren, Chestnut-bellied Thrush, Blue-winged Mountain Tanager, Deep-blue Flowerpiercer, and 9 species of tanagers.  So while the car was not functioning well, and the rain started to come down, we had a good birding experience.

Blue-necked Tanager

Short-crested Flycatcher

Tropical Kingbird

Donocobius

Blue-black Grassquit

Yellow-rumped Cacique

Laughing Falcon - a long shot - fuzzy

Sunday morning Christian took Eric and Barb for a 3 hour birding jaunt nearby.  Not knowing how the car situation would turn out, they wanted to be back by noon so as to take a taxi home, but since the rains were heavy of late, the local river had overflowed its banks and traffic was not going through to Zamora.  Hmmm.  We were really doing some brainstorming, exploring the options.  Another idea that crossed our minds was to hire the flatbed truck driver, put the car on it again, and drive through the high water.  Plus, my wife had relayed something about a landslide between Zamora and Loja.   What else could go wrong?

The mechanic had relayed that the fuel pump was working, but he really needed a vacuum type of gauge to figure out if it was sufficient, which he could not do until Monday, the next day.   So the options we talked about were going to Cuenca via taxi/bus, staying there overnight.  Either flying from there back to Quito or taking a taxi/bus to Catamayo where they would need to be by departure time late Wednesday, or…..maybe the car would be fixed, and/or the river would subside enough.  

Monday morning arrived and by mid morning the mechanic had used the vacuum gauge and determined the fuel pump was not supplying enough gas to the motor, so he began putting in a new one.  So we at least thought we could take the car to Cuenca if need be.  By noon the mechanic had the new fuel pump in, and we were there while he was checking it out.   But the vacuum gauge still indicated the same problem - not enough gas.  So he was soon on the phone trouble shooting with someone who suggested that the next thing to check was the wiring to the pump.  Knowing that would take a while, we left.   By mid afternoon the mechanic said the car was ready, so Eric and I went to get it.  The mechanic said the bill was $100, but we gave him $20 extra.   He probably worked on it for 5 hours.  So we drove it around a bit and it did OK.

But now the same dilemma needed addressed.  We were assuming we’d have to head north to Cuenca, a 4+ hour drive NW, so began talking about looking for eBird hotspots to check out along the way.  But around 8 PM Christian texted me saying his wife just drove through the high water area with no problems.  With no rain in the forecast, things were looking OK for the next day to drive back home.

So after breakfast, about 08:00, we loaded up the car and I turned the key.  Usually it starts in one second, but after 5 seconds of cranking and no start, my heart sunk.  I was dreading more set backs.  But the 2nd time around it started right up.   Phew!  

So off we went.  The area of the flooding was completely dry.  Ka-ching!  We stopped at the Malecon in Zamora, but the birding was dead, so we kept going.  We passed the said landslide area where there was only a bit of mud.  But not long after that we came upon a line of vehicles which we parked in back of.  I asked someone about the problem to which he said it was a landslide, and he thought it would take an hour to clean up.  Five minutes later a large earth hauling machine passed us by and went right to work.  It took about 90 minutes for traffic to resume.  We ended up going back to the oilbird spot, but did not have success with that.  We did see a torrent duck in the raging river.

The rest of the trip to my house was uneventful, taking another 3 hours because we still had to drive over to Catamayo since the road to Malacatos was not open yet.  My car is 20 years old, a 2004 4WD Vitara.  We are fairly determined now to purchase another car, newer and more dependable. As there are a lot of Hyundai Tucsons on the road, we lean that way.

Both Eric and Barb were troopers, taking the last few days in stride.  There were lots of temporary unknowns to become worried about which made some things inconvenient.  But everything worked out in the end.  I opted to have them take a taxi to the airport.  I was tired and did not want to expend the energy for a 75 minute drive to the airport and back.  

We tallied over 300 species of birds, many lifers for Eric while most were for Barb.  By now I am getting much more familiar with the locations described as well as the birds, so if any of my readers want to come down for a birding jaunt, drop me a note.  

Also, in about a year from now we may be returning to Oregon for a “vacation” for which we’ll need a house/pet sitter.  So if that interests you, let me know.

May Birding Trip - Part One

Another birding trip is in the books. Another fun time for two Oregonians.  

Four years ago I had joined a few others for a birding trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, where I met Eric Clough from Coos Bay, and we stayed in touch ever since.  Eric is recently retired and has an interest in Latin America, so I suggested he consider coming to S Ecuador.  He was interested and just needed to figure out convenient dates.  He asked about bringing a friend Barb Taylor, also from Coos Bay, to which I was happy to oblige. 

They embarked upon a series of 4 flights, ending up in Catamayo at 4:30 pm on April 30.  Though tired from long flight times, they were up to birding near the airport where they ticked off Peruvian Meadowlarks, Chestnut-throated Seedeaters, Ecuadorian Ground Doves, a Peruvian Pygmy Owl and a few others.  

It got dark about half way to my house, something I was not thrilled about because of the present road conditions.  We all had hoped the rainy season would peter out, but late this afternoon it was more like a grand finale!  My wife had texted me describing the worst torrent yet, and we saw the results as we neared Vilcabamba.  There were small trees and debris here and there.  We also came upon a boulder in the road, about half the size of my car.  A few hundred meters down the Cucanama Road (where I live) a portion of the road was strewn with rocks, many the size of a footballs.  It must have rained hard enough to result in a flood of sorts, a literal river on the road!.  Almost unbelievable!

They got settled in, introductions with my wife over, then a meal.  We were up and out on the back patio awakening with coffee and birds next morning.  It was only natural to get off to a slow start, and when ready we drove to Cerro Mandango, the small sentinel of a mountain that overlooks Vilcabamba.  We’d spent a couple hours here and tallied some 25 species.  It was a good introduction to the local birds:  Amazilea Hummer, Hook-billed Kites and Roadside Hawk, Chapman’s and Collared Antshrikes, Elegant Cresentchest, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Black-and-White and Hepatic Tanagers, Gray-and-Gold Warbler and others.  About halfway up the mountain Eric happened to look back  toward town and noticed some large white birds catching a thermal.  They turned out to be migrating Wood Storks!   Twenty two of them.  An amazing and out of place group, quite difficult to find anywhere in our area.  There is simply no habitat for them anywhere near here.

From there we went across town to a road that goes up for a mile into a ravine.  I have found this area excellent for birding in the past.  However, about 300 meters in and we found the road had been demolished and replaced by a creek.  The torrent the night before had rearranged it such that we would not be birding here.  We did however find 2 Scrub Blackbirds, a  small consolation.   

So we went to bird part of the trail that goes along the river through town, finally finding Whooping Motmots.  Other good finds were One-colored Becard, Yellow-tailed Oriole and Golden Grosbeak.  After that we drove near my place where we went up a road that I’ve had good success in finding White-tailed Jays, but they were not around today.  So we returned to my place by mid afternoon to rest and relax, getting ready for the next day.  (We never would find a Jay, but the day after they left there was a pair at my house.  Go figure!)

WHOOPING MOTMOT

The results of the recent rain limited where I intended to take them, so I decided to go up Cerro Toledo, even though we’d be going there the following day with our guide John.  We often see different birds each time we go there, and with John’s expertise the next day we would potentially see more anyway.  And at least we’d not have to worry about road damage from rain.  So we left my place at 6:30, picking up  local birder Charlie for the day.  The weather looked OK for lower down, but higher up looked quite iffy.  We stopped here and there as we ascended and had fairly good success lower down.  Some of the finds were Emerald Toucanette, Rufous-breasted Chat Tyrant, Three-banded  Warblers, Slate-throated Redstarts, Azara’s and Line-cheeked Spintails, Smoke-colored Pewee, Turquoise Jays, Purple-throated Sunangel, White-bellied Woodstar, Mountain Wren, Lacrimose Tanagers, Chusquea Tapaculo and others.

Here is Eric having gotten a glimpse of the CHUSQUEA TAPACULO

By the time we were about 2/3 of the way up, the clouds and rain began to set in, so we turned around and made our way back down the mountain.  The Yangana River flows through the town of that same name and has a primitive road which parallels it. We parked about a quarter mile in as we  opted to look for a White-capped Dipper, and had  immediate success as soon as we got out of the car.  We walked along the road for a ways, but all we saw was this green snake.  

It was then back to my place to rest up and plan for a repeat the next day.

We picked up John about 6:30 and headed to Toledo again.  The birding was pretty much opposite as the day before - slow, down low, but picking up, notably higher up.  We did find a female Golden-rumped Euphonia down low, a nice addition to the list.  Higher up, a little past where we turned around the day prior, we found a nice mixed flock which included Golden-crowned Tanagers and 2 Masked Mountain Tanagers, Spectacled Redstarts, Citrine Warblers, a Mouse-colored Thistletail, Glossy Flowerpiercers, and a Barred Fruiteater.  

Up top it was cloudy and windy, but no rain.  The visibility was poor, but we persisted and found a Neblina Metaltail and 2 Chestnut-winged Cinclodes, and a heard only Many-striped Canastero.  It was miserable weather, and hardly worth pursuing birding, so we turned around and started back downhill.  We ran into a few  mixed flocks, and “finally” found some Orange-banded Flycatchers.  Along with them was a White-banded Tyrannulet, Streaked Tuftedcheek, and Pearled Treerunner.  

We pulled off at a wide spot, which in the past has had plenty of hummers.  We did not notice any, and John began to meander down the road.  I happened to look over the road and saw a raptor perched not far above John.  When I put my bins on it, I was almost sure it was a White-throated Hawk, so I almost yelled at John telling him what was above him.  But when our eyes met, he was putting his finger over his mouth, implying for me to pipe down as he had also laid eyes on it.   It was indeed the species in question, obliging us with great views at our leisure.  He stayed perched forever, so it seemed.  This is a rare raptor in Ecuador and certainly a highlight of the tour, and a lifer for myself.  For John and me, it was also camera time.  We’d obtain great photos from as many angles as possible.  

John and Bill taking photos

Eventually the hawk took off, and so did we.  

At one point John heard a Barred Fruiteater, so used playback, and this male obliged us in showing himself quite well.  I’ve been wanting to get a decent picture of one for a long time, so it finally worked out.  

MALE BARRED FRUITEATER

Lower down we really tried hard to find a Green-tailed Trainbearer, but were not able.  We also tried for a Gray-browed Brushfinch.  We had one respond continually to playback, but after 20 minutes, it would not reveal himself, so we took off.  But all in all it was a good day with 50+ species. 

Here are some bird shots from Toledo:

Spectacled Restarts

Citrine Warbler

Masked Mountain Tanager

Golden-Crowned Tanager

Orange-banded Flycatcher

White-throated Hawk

The next day we were off at 5:30 en route south to Tapichalaca, again picking up Charlie for the 2 days we’d be gone. I had arranged for the guide Diego, who has pointed out birds for us in the past.  When we met him at the lodge, he said we’d be going to feed the Jocotoco Antpitta.  It turned out that we’d be driving back up the road, parking the car, and hiking downhill some 200 meters to the new feeding station.  They had offered us rubber boots, but 3 of us declined as we don’t really like the support they provide.  After slogging down the trail I wish I would have worn them. Charlie ended up slipping and going down, so his pants got a little muddy. It only took about 5 minutes for an adult female and a juvenile to show up for the worms, certainly a nice treat and another highlight of the tour.  

Adult Jocotoco Antpitta

Immature Jocotoco Antpitta

Back at the lodge we embarked on the loop trail around the mountain.  It was misty and birds were few and far between, but we managed to crank out Rufous Spinetail, Yellow-breasted Chat Tyrant, Golden-plumed Parakeets, Smoky Bush-Tyrant, and a few others.

Near the end of the trail we came upon a mixed flock that included Glossy-black Thrush, Scarlet-bellied Mountain Tanagers, and Black-throated Tody Tyrants.   The trail ends at the highway where you need to walk back downhill at least a half mile to the lodge, and upon reaching this road were a few Gray-headed Bush Tanagers and a rare Red-hooded Tanager.  Along the road was a Buff-breasted Mountain Tanager, a nice find.

Red-hooded Tanager

Grass-green Tanager

Beared Guan

Smoky Bush-Tyrant

After lunch we took Diego downhill with us to the small village of Valladolid.  It might be of interest that many birders visit this area when near Tapichalaca, and of even more interest is that more birds have been recorded here vs Tapichalaca.  There is a nice trail along the river which we walked.  Birding was slow but before the rain we saw a pair each of Three-striped Warblers  and Short-billed Chlorospingus, and a male Torrent Duck.   

After the rain we walked the road which parallels the highway and tallied 4 species of hummers - Long-billed Starthroat, Andean Emerald, Little Woodstar and Crested Wiretail.  Other birds here were Rufous-crowned Thornbird, Yellow-bellied Seedeater, Blue-necked  and White-lined Tanagers, Speckled Chachalaca, Social Flycatchers, Maranon Thrushes, ……………..and lastly, the bird of the day, a lost and out of place Oriole Blackbird, a lifer even for  Diego.  These are a lowland, Amazonian bird, and what a single bird was doing so far away was puzzling. 

Oriole Blackbird

Female White-lined Tanager

Common Tody Flycatcher

From Valladolid we continued downhill to Palanda where, upon request, Diego recommended a small outdoor eatery where I had Cerveche, but I cannot remember what the others had.  We then checked into the hotel and later on made plans for the morrow.

We departed at 6:30 a.m. a little further to the south, and then took the road that goes uphill where I had been 3 times in the past, a very good area to find the Chestnut-headed Cotinga.  We only made it up about 1.5 miles due to low hanging clouds, but good fortune was with us.  While we did not see the Cotinga, we did encounter a flock of Swallow Tanagers which distracted us for many minutes.  Otherwise, Paradise Tanagers, Western Striolated Puffbird, White-winged Tanager, Western Fire-eye, Buff-breasted and Streaked Saltators, Yellow-tufted Woodpecker, Golden-faced Tyrannulet, Wing-barred Piprites, Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Ruddy Pigeon, Golden Tanager, Oliveaceous Greenlet, Green Jays, and a heard only Powerful Woodpecker were other nice finds.  

Yellow-olive Flatbill

Purple-throated Euphonia

Red-headed Barbet

Bronze-olive Euphonia

Western Fire-eye

Wing-barred Piprites

The next 4 photos are by Charlie Renideo

Black-faced Dacnis

Female Swallow Tanager

Male Swallow Tanager

Blue-winged Mountain Tanager

We probably could have stayed on that hill a while longer, but decided to return to the main “road” where we continued south for a little bit.  There was plenty of forest  here and there, so we stopped and tallied Tawny-breasted Flycatcher, Oliveaceous Woodcreeper, Red-headed Barbet, Tropical Parula, Southern Rough-winged Swallows, and Bronze-olive Euphonia.

After an hour along that road, we decided to turn back north toward Vilcabamba, with plans to brunch with coffee at a small eatery near the Santa Florida Ruins.  That eatery was closed, so we went to the ruins.  After signing in, we walked around for a bit adding Flame-faced Tanager, Yellow-olive Flatbill, Orange-bellied and Purple-throated Euphonia to the list.

Once back in Valladolid we again walked the road paralleling the highway, as well as another road out of town, but as we did not see anything new, so continued north toward my place.  It was cloudy for a few miles, but we eventually got above them and enjoyed the scenery while recrossing the continental divide, finally making it back home.  

The next day was more or less a planned free day.   Eric had been in touch with the local bike shop owner Chino about doing some volunteer work.  Chino must have felt it best to ride bikes around a bit, and then take him for a jaunt on his motorcycle.  They ended up taking lunch at the same time as Rosie, Barb and I,  so the timing was good.  Rosie had taken Barb to town to shop and show her around, but she misstepped on one of the many uneven sidewalks and sprained her ankle, cutting their day short.  She called me to come pick her up, but……. it was not so bad that lunch at a restaurant was skipped.  We all then came home and later on continued our game of dominoes - the 12 digit kind.  We were now half way through the tour, getting ready to cross over to the east side of the Andes tomorrow, ready for whatever “adventures” awaited us.