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| Plate billed Mountain Toucan, upper Tandayapa Valley, Ecuador, Nov 18, 2015 |
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| Beautiful Jay, Tandayapa Lodge, Ecuador, Nov 18, 2015 (life bird #1000) |
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| Red headed Barbet, Tandayapa Lodge, Ecuador, Nov 18, 2015 |
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| Fawn breasted Brilliant, Tandayapa Lodge, Ecuador, Nov 18, 2015 |
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| Purple throated Woodstar, Tandayapa Lodge, Ecuador, Nov 18, 2015 |
On Wednesday the 18th we spent the entire day in the Tandayapa Valley which started with
a predawn visit to the forest blind. A few lights are left on all night to
attract insects and in the morning various species come in to feed. We didn't
have anything too unusual but getting decent looks at any ant thrush is always
nice. When the activity slackened off at the blind we started the short walk
back were quickly stopped by a few Beautiful Jays moving past...I had put my
camera away and by the time I got it back out I could only get a few marginal
shots...oh well! The Beautiful Jays became species #1000 for me so I was happy to get any shot of it. We then had breakfast at the lodge and enjoyed the comings and
goings at the hummingbird feeders as well as the fruit feeders. Once breakfast
was done we made our way to the upper Tandayapa Valley and had a host of new
species to keep us busy including a number of tanagers and hummingbirds. We
spent a lot of time trying to attract and get looks at a Plate billed Mountain
Toucan and eventually we got a great look. Overall the morning was cloudy which
made viewing tough at times. The fog rolled in late morning and it started to
rain by midday. We worked our way back down to the lodge for lunch and then
spent an hour or so at the hummingbird feeders which attracted at least fifteen
species...amazing! By mid afternoon we headed back out around the lodge and
then back up the valley a bit. The light rain eventually turned to heavy rain
and we then sat in the truck waiting for the weather to clear and it to get to
be dusk so we could go try to find a Lyre tailed Nightjar. No luck for us with
finding that nightjar but we did have a couple flyby Rufous breasted
Nighthawks.
Full lists:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S25995359
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S25995435
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S25995682
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| Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant with nest material, Rio Silanche, Ecuador, Nov 19, 2015 |
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| Laughing Falcon, Rio Silanche, Ecuador, Nov 19, 2015 |
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Collared Aracari (pale mandibled), Rio Silanche, Ecuador, Nov 19, 2015
On Thursday we made the long drive down to the lowlands at Rio Silanche where we
spent the morning walking the road to Rio Silanche and the afternoon in the
reserve itself before working another part of the road before making our way
back to the lodge. The birds came fast and furious in the morning along the
road with lots of new species (plus a number I had seen before in Costa Rica).
The habitat is quite fragmented and the constant flow of trucks in the early
morning heading to the quarry made it less than ideal but the birds did not seem
to mind and most showed quite well. Once we got past the quarry the road
traffic died right down and it was even more enjoyable. The afternoon walk
through the reserves trails were a bit more quiet but what we lacked in quantity
we made up for in quality. Many highlights from the afternoon including a few
trogon with one being a Choco Trogon, a pair of Black crested Pgymy Tyrants
building a nest and many others. It was a very long, but rewarding day and we
did not arrive back at the lodge until just before dinner.
Full lists:
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