Click
logo to go to the TROPICAL BIRDING homepage.
WESTERN VENEZUELA
A Tropical Birding custom tour
1st - 13th August 2006
Leaders: Nick
Athanas & Sam Woods
Report
written by Sam Woods
The unforgettable
Bearded Helmetcrest, Paramo del Aguila (Sam Woods)
Western Venezuela has a lot to offer birders - the Andes for one. In western Venezuela the Andes have thrown up some endemics of their own, due to their isolation from the main chain of the Andes further south created by the Tachira depression. The result is some special birds only found in the Andes north of this depression. We saw a good many of these on this custom tour, including both the west Andean endemic Antpittas - the very rarely seen and little known Great Antpitta in Yacambu, and the much more frequently encountered Gray-naped Antpitta in the Andes bordering Merida; while hummingbirds were a surefire centerpiece of this tour with 33 species seen including the two endemic sunangels that were easily found - Merida (Longuemare's) Sunangel & Orange-throated Sunangel, along with Golden (tailed) Starfrontlet. However, the impressive 'hummer show' was stolen by the male Bearded Helmetcrest that thrilled us in the high Andes, perching on the Espeletias that give these northern paramos a really characteristic and atmospheric appearance. The dryer habitats further north around the Maracaibo lowlands allowed us to see some very different specialties like the strikingly attractive White-whiskered Spinetail and a number of bright red Vermillion Cardinals, and the highly localized endemic Maracaibo (Short-tailed) Tody-Flycatcher. A brief foray into the far south of Tachira as a special request to search for some birds more familiar to the badlands of Colombia further south, produced the hoped-for Bronze-tailed Thornbill with a surprise Rufous-browed Conebill in the same area of high Paramo, along with repeated sightings of the attractive Golden-fronted Redstart; and a pair of very cooperative Yellow-browed Shrike-Vireos in the more humid lowlands further downslope. All in all, a varied and interesting set of birds on a tour (well over 400 species were seen), where we took in some of the less visited and interesting corners of Venezuela.
This was a custom tour going after specific endemics, that did not include some of the more traditional sites that we would include on future tours (e.g. Henri Pittier National Park complete with its set of cool coastal cordiellaran endemics).
1st
August
For our first day we took a leisurely stroll upslope in the Andes close to
the Andean town of Merida. For this we walked the famous Pico Humboldt trail.
This is a good place to get the endemic haul off to a good start and this
day was no exception. Band-tailed Guans greeted us noisily at the base
of the trail while a busy feeding flock further up gave us our first endemic
with views of several White-fronted Redstarts (Whitestart). A Merida
Tapaculo that skulked calling in the undergrowth, (as with many in this
elusive family) required some persuasion to come out, before inevitably then
appearing right at our feet; while colorful Merida (Longuemare's) Sunangels
were encountered a number of times feeding in the trailside flowers. Other
interesting classically Andean birds seen included Emerald (Andean) Toucanet,
Masked Trogon, Green-and-Black Fruiteater, whilst the near endemic
Venezuelan Tyrannulets were also notable. With the weather bright and
sunny, with blue sky stretching into the distance, it seemed a good time to
take full advantage of this and head to the high paramos, (where weather can
be the biggest obstacle to getting those cool, high-altitude specialties).
As we climbed towards a high pass we made a roadside stop in a likely looking
area and soon heard another of our endemic targets for the day - Ochre-browed
Thistletail. After getting repeated good views of this attractive ovenbird,
we noticed a movement behind the thistetail and found our second of four target
birds of the afternoon - Merida Flowerpiercer (frankly one of the top
flowerpiercers out there). We then climbed higher to search for our two final
targets of the afternoon. Well above the treeline in the Andes, the trees
give way to high-altitude wet grasslands, or paramos, as they are known in
the northern Andes. These can be really unforgiving environments at around
4000m with little shelter and prone to regular inclement weather. In short
the kind of environments where one would never expect to find birds like hummingbirds.
However hummingbirds are hardy birds found in many such environments in the
Andes. Here was no different and not only are they found there but the species
there is simply one of the best ones there is - the fantastic Bearded Helmetcrest.
After seeing some drab, extremely unimpressive females we finally caught up
with the prize we were looking for - a pristine male perched right on top
of an Espeletia (a kind of weird looking high-altitude Andean daisy).
This is a simply incredible, princely-looking hummer, not for the faint-hearted.
It was great to get this stunner under the belt on the first day and we then
moved onto our final target for the day-the endemic Merida (Paramo) Wren.
They made us wait for a while before finally calling back to our attempts
to lure them out of the grass, where we then treated to great views of these
subtely beautiful birds.
Tiny Hawk, Santo Domingo Valley (Sam Woods)
2nd
August
This next day
saw a complete shift in the kind of birds we were looking for, as we descended
into the humid lowlands (around 480m) of the Santo Domingo Valley for the
morning. A fine perched Tiny Hawk, a skulking Pectoral Sparrow,
a single Steely-vented Hummingbird, a lone Many-banded Aracari and
Crimson-crested Woodpeckers were all to prove the only sightings of
the trip; while we got our first looks at Bare-eyed Thrush, Yellow-backed
Oriole, Stripe-backed Wrens, Rufous-and-White & Rufous-breasted Wrens,
Green-rumped Parrotlets and Orange-chinned Parakeets. However after
some time we picked up what we were really after - a brilliant Pale-headed
Jacamar hawking insects from a dead snag above the river. We then ascended
higher once more (to around 2700m) to the temperate scrub and forest close
to Las Tapias, where we soon found the attractive endemic Orange-throated
Sunangel; along with the endemic Blackish Chat-tyrant that typically
gave itself away with its high-pitched call being uttered repeatedly from
the undergrowth beside a fast-flowing Andean stream. We then retired to our
hotel where we found our only Whiskered Wren of the trip skulking in
thick undergrowth on the lodge property.
Orange-throated
Sunangel,
Santo Domingo Valley (Sam Woods)
Blackish Chat-Tyrant,
Santo Domingo Valley (Sam Woods)
3rd
August
Again this was day of contrast - we began the day birding the Andean east
slope foothills in the Santo Domingo Valley, while we finished it with a dramatic
sunset over the vast low wetlands of the Llanos. In the morning we had a quiet
forest track to ourselves, where we found among others a fine male Golden-breasted
Fruiteater; several Stripe-breasted Spinetails; a nice male Lazuline
Sabrewing along with several Long-tailed Sylphs and Booted Racket-tails
to keep the hummingbird bandwagon rolling nicely; our only White-rumped
Hawk and Cliff Flycatchers of the trip; a male Golden-winged
Manakin; and great views of the northern 'race' of Rusty-breasted Antpitta,
that due to its very different vocalisations from the southern populations
is surely a 'species-in-waiting'. However one of the undoubted highlights
of the morning was bumping into a pair of the extremely rare Semi-collared
Hawk, that we saw a number of times hunting over the canopy and also perched
allowing us some good looks and good comparison with its similar congener
- Tiny Hawk that we had conveniently seen well only a few days before. This
was a real surprise as there are only a handle of Venezuelan records.
Semi-collared
Hawk, Santo Domingo Valley
We then headed south to the sprawling wetlands of the Llanos. Before we had even arrived in the Llanos 'proper' we were encountering waterbirds - several bright red patches in the sky proved to be the first Scarlet Ibises of the tour, while Bare-faced Ibis and the scarce Sharp-tailed Ibis were also seen, once in the heart of the Llanos itself; along with several Whistling Herons and a lone Capped Heron. Other interesting finds included a Double-striped Thick-knee that's statue-like inactivity almost led us to pass it over completely; gaudy Venezuelan Troupials glowed regularly from the roadside scrub; Aplomado Falcons were seen hunting over the marshes at dusk, while Pearl Kites were noted searching for prey from roadside wires; a feeding party contained our only Dwarf Cuckoo of the tour and we also had our first sightings of the handsome Orinocan Saltator in the same area; several good close views of perched Yellow-crowned Parrots were our only sightings of the trip; while several Northern White-fringed Antwrens and Trinidad Euphonias made their first appearance on the tour.
Venezuelan
Troupial, Llanos (Sam Woods)
4th
August
The morning was spent enjoying the many pleasures of the Llanos - its not
all about waterbirds, there is plenty of passerines skulking in the bushes
to keep everyone happy! This was proved early on when a pair of prehistoric
Hoatzins were found loafing beside the road, while a male Black-crested
Antshrike was found close by (with a Northern Slaty-Antshrike added
later on). Fork-tailed Flycatchers were absolutely everywhere, while
Gray Kingbirds numbered only a couple. Out on the marshes Pied Water-Tyrants,
White-headed Marsh-Tyrants and Lesser Kiskadees were found; while
in the roadside bushes and trees Russet-throated Puffbirds were easy
to find perched on open branches at several places (here of the double-banded
form that many consider a separate species from the single-banded form found
further north); a pair of handsome Slate-headed Tody-Tyrants thwarted
our best efforts at photography (note the lack of photo here!); an unobtrusive
Scrub Greenlet looked better than it sounds (honest); while several
sightings of both Red-capped Cardinals and Orange-fronted Yellow-finches
were our only ones of the trip. There
were some waterbirds however, with perhaps the most pleasing being
double figures of the normally shy and difficult to see Azure Gallinule
that seem to abound at this time of year; a Sunbittern showed well;
a family party of Glossy Ibises and a pair of Buff-necked Ibis
brought the Ibis list up to 5 (White Ibis boosted the list later in
the tour); a number of nesting Wood Storks and Maguari Storks
were noted alongside the highway, while the hulking, brutish Jabiru
also made several appearances throughout the morning.
Hoatzin, Llanos (Sam Woods)
Russet-throated Puffbird, Llanos (Sam Woods)
The afternoon involved a drive into the Andes once more passing through some interesting arid scrub en-route where we simply had to stop for some of the goodies lurking within. Most notably this included the near-endemic Tocuyo Sparrow, and a couple of Scaled Piculets were a little late in joining us on the tour as we had expected them before then. However, the crowd-pleaser of the afternoon was undoubtedly the male Rosy Thrush-Tanager. A really skulking and elusive bird that is almost antpitta like in its reclusive nature. It required a little ingenuity to see it (i.e. we had to crawl into the bushes and sit patiently in a thicket), although this vivid pink bird is an absolutely cracker and no-one was disappointed when it gave superb, satisfying close views as it hopped along the ground in front of our incredulous crowd. For me this cannot be a tanager or a thrush surely, but who cares anyway, its just a fantastic bird period.
5th
August
The morning was spent in the pleasant Andean climate of Yacambu National
Park (altitude around 2200m), birding a quiet forest road there. Soon after
getting out of our car at first light we found an Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush
feeding in a roadside gully, with a pair of Ochre-breasted Brush-finches
close by. Crested Spinetail was found in a canopy feeding flock and
was a welcome new addition as we had only heard them previously; while Variegated
Bristle-Tyrants were also following the feeding flocks around there; as
were a pair of Barred Becards and several Saffron-crowned Tanagers
and an Orange-eared Tanager (a bird that has only relatively recently
been added to the Venezuelan list). Another bird found in the canopy, although
this time in a single species flock, was a small party of the near-endemic
Fulvous-headed Tanager, while a Golden-fronted Greenlet was
finding feeding alone nearby. After some forest birding it was decided to
relax beside a quiet deserted lake (more like a pond really), not least because
it is home to another key endemic. Not long after arriving and noting several
Caribbean Coots feeding on the lagoon we heard several Rusty-flanked
Crakes calling and soon came upon 3 birds on the edge of the reeds - this
endemic had proved much less of a challenge than we had expected. While another
endemic that had only given us fleeting flight views in the morning was much
more cooperative when we returned in the afternoon, when a small group of
noisy Red-eared Parakeets alighted in a tree nearby (they were formerly
given the much more interesting and thought-provoking name of Blood-eared
Parakeets). The day ended with the star bird we had been hoping to see in
the morning - a Great Antpitta that came in and checked us out as dusk
crept in, made it onto the list in the nick of time.
6th
August
After another brief look around Yacambu, adding the rarely recorded Yellow-throated
Spadebill, we headed north away from the Andes to the lowlands of the
Maracaibo basin and the very, very different set of birds that awaited us
there. We made our way to the coastal town of Tucacas, and into the mangrove
infested Morroccoy National Park and Cuare Wildlife Refuge. Waterbirds were
a feature here with many more Scarlet Ibis that no-one was complaining
about, along with White Ibis, Caribbean Flamingos, a whole bunch
of Black Skimmers loafing around on a muddy pool, Tricolored Herons
and Reddish Egrets. While our first real shorebird experience involved
some northern migrants like Willets, Least Sandpipers, Lesser
& Greater Yellowlegs in addition to Collared & Snowy Plovers
and tons of Black-necked Stilts. While lurking in the mangroves
themselves were a number of red-capped Golden (Yellow) Warblers and
small parties of Bicolored Conebills in addition to a bunch of very
loud Clapper Rails. The day ended by staying at the finest accommodation
on the tour - a little known and poorly signed place right by the birding
places that provides some of the best food in Venezuela.
Scarlet Ibis, Morroccoy National Park (Sam Woods)
7th
August
This was just one of those great days birding - many of the target birds fell
easily and there were simply many birds to look at on this day making it a
trip favorite for many. The day began with a short drive to an area of coastal
woodland around Cerro Chichiriviche, where a very short walk took most of
the morning due to the many good birds that distracted us along the way. These
included the coastal specialty Glaucous Tanager a near endemic that
was good to compare to its much more common cousin, the Blue-Gray Tanager.
A call in a tangle of vines had
us heading into the undergrowth, where after a short time a pair of handsome
Black-backed Antshrikes came into view. Another attractive antbird
- White-bellied Antbird - was seen shortly after when a pair were unusually
confiding, with the male posing for a prolonged period in the open, and a
Rufous-winged Antwren was found calling in the canopy a short distance
away. The near-endemic Venezuelan Flycatcher was heard calling a short
time later and was soon seen coming into to check out our Pygmy-Owl tape.
This bird has an unusual distribution, shared only between Venezuela and the
tiny island of Tobago. This tape also brought in a couple of splendid Ruby-topaz
Hummingbirds, while several male Lance-tailed Manakins were heard
and seen lekking nearby. Several Caribbean Horneros were seen closeby
found easily due to their loud calls that are frankly hard to miss. A pair
of Hook-billed Kites glided conspicuously overhead, while the Common
Black-Hawk that we had been searching for the day before finally gave
itself up perched on a roadside wire.
The great thing about birding in the dry arid desert scrub of this area is
the birds are fairly visible and give themselves up sometimes all too easily.
So it proved on this day when the call of a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl tape brought
in many of our target species all at once-with several gaudy red Vermillion
Cardinals, a pair of the endemic Maracaibo (Short-tailed) Tody-Flycatcher
and a single beautiful example of the White-whiskered Spinetail,
along with a number of Buffy Hummingbirds, while Slender-billed
Inezias (Tyrannulets) were readily seen in the same area. As dusk approached
we could hear a number of parrots going to roost-mainly the common Brown-throated
Parakeets, although several of the much rarer Yellow-shouldered Parrots
were seen flying overhead to their unknown roost site. Just before dark
the hoped-for Lesser Nighthawks were found hawking insects over the
road while a male White-tailed Nightjar emerged a little later and
was seen well perched in the Swarovski scope.
8th
August
Leaving the coast behind for the final time, we then headed back into the
foothills of the Andes once more, back in the state of Merida. Here we birded
some low forest - around 700m elevation. One of the key target birds was a
parrot that had eluded us earlier closer to Merida itself. Thankfully on this
day these endemic birds played the game, and we found a group of colorful
40 Rose-headed (crowned) Parakeets feeding in a fruiting tree right
beside the trail. Scarlet-fronted Parakeets and Bronze-winged Parrots
were also found a number of times in the same area. Citron-throated Toucan
put in a welcome appearance further down a mule track that we followed, as
did a pair of Black-chested Jays and a number of handsome Crimson-backed
Tanagers that here on the western side of the Andes replace their eastern
cousin, the Silver-beaked Tanager. A while later we found a lone female White-eared
Conebill feeding close to some gardens, while later on along the road
we found the hoped-for Pygmy Palm-Swifts that had us screeching to
a halt as they hawked over the road above us.
9th
August
The
focus for the morning was one difficult endemic bird, so the pressure was
on. The Gray-throated Warbler can be a tough bird to see although hearing
one is not usually a problem. So it was on this day when a very short time
after getting out of our vehicle we heard one singing close by. The only problem
is they inhabit dense vine tangles on near vertical slopes, making them a
little tricky to see at times! So we required a little ingenuity to see a
pair of them, although once we found a reasonably suitable spot and made our
way into the tangles we then were treated to repeated views of this hyperactive
endemic. This was way easier than we had expected and left us with time to
explore some forest higher up, that held several male Rufous-shafted Woodstars
(both conveniently fanning their tails to reveal the rufous shafts), and
better still a pair of the near-endemic Moustached Brush-finch put
on a good show. Other interesting species seen during the morning included
a pair of Yellow-billed (Groove-billed) Toucanets, our only Olivaceous
Piculet of the trip, Chestnut-bellied Thrush and Andean Solitaire.
Having 'bagged' the warbler nice and early (and gratefully received the bonus
of the Brush-finch) we decided to push on to the shores of the vast Lake Maracaibo
where we arranged for a boatman to take us out on the lake to search for the
highly-localized Northern Screamer. This is the most reliable place
on earth for the species that is a very local bird only found in this corner
of Venezuela and into northeastern Colombia that seems for now anyway largely
out of bounds. Therefore if you want to get this species, this is where you
come. The bird is well known to locals (by virtue of the fact they have a
history of hunting and eating them!) Thus the boatman admirably went straight
to a known haunt for the screamer, which despite its massive size can hide
surprisingly well when it chooses to. So it was that we found ourselves peering
into the distance at a single, partially obscured example of this huge bird,
perched in the canopy of a distant tree - not really the views that we were
after! However we tried another spot where a much more showy bird was sat
on the top of a close tree calling attention to itself loudly all the while.
A great bird and now for the second screamer of the trip we carried on further
down the channel finding at least three Horned Screamers in the process
- its not everyday you get to see two species of these giant marsh-loving
birds. Other birds seen on this pleasant cruise included Least Bittern,
Rufescent Tiger-Heron, Large-billed Terns, a pair of King Vultures,
Black-collared Hawks, Great Black-Hawks, Bat Falcon, Black Caracaras, Mealy
& Orange-winged Parrots and American Pygmy-Kingfisher. While
the water hyacinth-choked channels were simply crawling with Yellow-hooded
Blackbirds that were calling everywhere and seemed to be leaping out in
front of the boat every few yards or so.
10th
August
This day was spent at fairly high elevations (around 2800m) in mist-enshrouded
temperate forests on the western slope of the Andes. The day was all about
feeding flocks, the forest would seem dead one minute and then the next a
flurry of activity would pass us by. These flocks contained among others,
Lacrimose Mountain-Tanagers; Blue-and-black Tanagers; endemic White-fronted
Redstarts, a range of Hemispinguses including the endemic Gray-capped
Hemispingus and Oleaginous & Superciliaried Hemispinguses;
bright,
active Black-crested Warblers; a single Agile Tit-Tyrant; Blue-backed
Conebills; exquisitely-marked Pearled Treerunners; a pair of beautiful
Plushcaps were found sitting unobtrusively in the bamboo understory;
and a number of White-banded Tyrannulets. Outside of these roving
flocks were some other treats, not least a number of the spectacular Golden-tailed
Starfrontlet, a gorgeous endemic hummer that was in company up there with
many Orange-throated Sunangels. These two stunning endemics were particularly
abundant up there and gave us some really, really good looks. Less expected
were a pair of the erratic Slaty Finch skulking in the undergrowth,
a bird that is always unpredictable in its appearances; and also a single
Yellow-billed Cacique was unusually obliging for this notorious skulker.
11th
August
This day was most certainly a trip off the beaten track, to search for some
difficult endemics that are more normally associated with the Colombian 'badlands'
further south and therefore remain out of reach for many birders with a general
concern for personal safety. So it was we found ourselves walking a quiet
deserted forest trail up through beautiful temperate forests, through atmospheric
elfin forests and finally emerging on to the scenic paramo (altitude around
3150m), a stone's throw from the Colombian border. The trail was much quieter
than we had hoped, although we still managed to find several parties of one
of our targets - the handsome Golden-fronted Redstart a bird that's
difficult to come by outside of the core of its range in hazzard-ridden Colombia
further south. The trail produced our first Andean Guans, playing of
a Pygmy-Owl tape to stir up some bird parties paid off one better when an
Andean Pygmy-Owl flew in close; while a noisy party of Black-collared
Jays were somewhat belated in joining the trip list here. Other notable
birds along the trail included an abundance of Sunangels - whose identity
is controversial, many people undecided whether they are the Longuemare's
Sunangel or the most northerly limit of the range of the extremely similar
Amethyst-throated Sunangels. Interesting tanagers came in the form
of Hooded Mountain-Tanager, a rare and localized species in Venezuela,
at the very northern extremity of its range here and its core population abounds
in the Andes further south. Similarly with the two new Hemispinguses encountered
on the trail - Black-capped Hemispingus and the always scarce Black-headed
Hemispingus. However the finest looking tanager for the day went to the
small party of Golden-crowned Tanagers found in the elfin forest as
we began to emerge out of the forest onto the espeletia-laden paramo. An exquisite
purplish-blue bird with a black head, topped off nicely with a bright golden
cap. We had barely had a chance to take these in when one of the surprise
birds of the trip appeared right next to the tanagers - a beautiful Rufous-browed
Conebill, once again a bird that is seldom seen across from the Colombian
border. We then continued up to a rocky outcrop where we lunched and kept
one eye on the paramo around us for the top target bird for the day - another
hummer and one again that is rarely encountered away from Colombia. Lunch
passed without any event so we carried on closer to the cliff face where several
hummers whizzed passed us at high speeds - including a Mountain Velvetbreast
and finally a brilliant Bronze-tailed Thornbill perched appropriately
on the top of a nearby Espeletia for us to admire it and relieve ourselves
that the walk had not been in vein. Surprisingly though that may not have
been the rarest record for the day as we had some good views of a Great
Sapphirewing that is only known from one previous sight record in Venezuela,
26 years ago! Although notably this was also the area for the previous record-just
one of the joys of visiting some poorly known areas. Another more expected,
although undoubtedly stunning hummingbird recorded on the day was a number
of aptly named Glowing Pufflegs around the edge of the treeline vegetation
on the very edge of the paramo. The paramo itself also provided our only White-chinned
Thistletail. This species replaces the endemic Ochre-browed Thistletail
(seen further north earlier on the trip), south of the Tachira depression;
while the local Pale-footed Swallow cruised overhead giving its distinctive
call all the while. On the return journey Green-bellied Hummingbird
feeding in a garden and a Yellow-legged Thrush perched by the roadside
were both new additions.
Yellow-browed Shrike-Vireo, Tama National Park
12th
August
Still within the Tama National Park, we spent this day however in the more
humid lower forests at the much reduced, stickier elevation of 450m. Before
we could even park the car we had to make a stop for a couple of Fasciated
Tiger-Herons loafing conspicuously on some rocks just off from the riverbank,
that typically departed just before the cameras were out! A Black Hawk-Eagle
taunted us similarly later on, sitting brazenly out in the open for us
all to get great views of this dark brute, only to get jumpy when the lenses
homed in! We added quite a few birds in our short time here including more
hummingbirds like Stripe-throated Hermits, a Band-tailed Barbthroat
and a male White-chinned Sapphire. The normally elusive and tricky
Chestnut-crowned Foliage-gleaner - that has a reputation for being
devious and difficult to see even when it does come into playback - was all
too easy to see on this morning even giving us the opportunity to think about
getting a photo of it as it sat there for so long (unfortunately we were just
not quick enough off the mark to capture it on film as we had never expected
to have the chance with this 'low down and dirty' species). Other new additions
for the trip included Dusky Antbird, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, Chestnut-crowned
Becard, Yellow-bellied Siskin, Black-faced Dacnis, Purple Honeycreeper,
and an immaculate male Golden-headed Manakin. The main bird we had
come to see was heard easily on arrival - when at least one Yellow-browed
Shrike-Vireo, could be heard singing from their treetop haunts, a distinctive
song that easily stands out from the crowd of other calls. However seeing
the bird is not quite as easy and we had to go through several uneasy periods
as they seemingly mocked us from up there. As with many birds though they
fall in the end and then appear embarrassingly easy to see after the initial
run around! A really fearsome, stern looking bird (a feature of this attractive
group of birds), that Hilty unforgettably describes in the following way:
'Fierce countenance belies a rather modest life high amidst the canopy foliage'.
Surely one of the best lines in any field guide! (However spot on in terms
of a description of the shrike-vireos). We then proceeded to have great views
of a pair feeding in a roadside fruiting tree.
Golden-headed
Manakin, Tama National Park (Sam Woods)
13th
August
Well it is not often that you see four different species of Antpitta in a
day, and even less often on a bird tour that the last day involves adding
four new species of Antpitta to the list, although remarkably on this day
that is precisely what we did. The main reason for revisiting the Pico Humboldt
trail was to give us another crack at the endemic Gray-naped Antpitta,
that had been strangely silent at the start of the tour. As it was one of
the key target birds for many (and because having missed it at the start of
the tour and only heard it elsewhere later on it had become a personal battle
between us and the Antpitta!), we had decided to have one final try for it.
Antpittas are fickle beasts and prone to silence in periods of prolonged dry
weather. So as you can imagine we did not greet the bright sunny day with
glee! However as this was our last stand for the bird we ventured on anyhow.
Despite the disappointment of not hearing any at the 'antpitta prime time'
of dawn we still had some good birds not long after, including a fine showy
Slate-crowned Antpitta, along with a surprise Undulated Antpitta
that was found feeding in a damp area right in the middle of the wide trail.
The bird flushed off the trail a short time later although was seen a further
two times in the same area - it is not often that an Undulated Antpitta simply
will not leave you alone. Similarly a Chestnut-crowned Antpitta crept
onto the trail later while we were standing silently nearby. 3 new Antpittas
for the trip, only the endemic and most important one of them all missing
then! Other notable birds that morning were 4 separate sightings of the normally
shy Lined Quail-Dove; an exquisite male Golden-headed Quetzal
in shocking red and emerald green dress; several Emerald (Andean) Toucanets
were found feeding in the fruit-laden tree tops as were Green-and-Black
Fruiteaters; a small flock of the endemic Rose-headed Parakeet
flew by, while the flocks of White-capped (Speckle-faced) Parrots were
new for the trip; several rowdy groups of Black-collared Jays were
encountered; more White-fronted Whitestarts; a few Yellow-bellied
Chat-Tyrants were new for us and similarly Smoky Bush-Tyrants were
our first sightings; many more of the endemic Gray-capped Hemispingus
and a few more of the rediculously-named Oleaginous Hemispingus; a
single Plushcap; a few Collared Incas were found traplining
along the trail; more Band-tailed Guans in addition to a few Andean
Guans that take over from the lower Band-taileds higher up. Just as our
final opportunity seemed have passed up by without a whimper, as the heat
of the day kicked in and birds seemed to be gradually falling silent once
again, a Gray-naped Antpitta unbelievably piped-up and started calling
continuously seemingly only a short way off the trail. To say we were filled
with nervous, tense energy at this point was an understatement having put
so much effort into seeing this bird. We all crept towards the sound not daring
to rush for the bird seemed extremely close to us, and so it proved when we
picked it up only a few meters from us, calling agitatedly all the while.
After the long wait to see this bird, it has the audacity to stand there and
call back so clearly visible to us all standing there such a short distance
away - it is fair to say we all loved this moment! Somewhat belatedly later
on, in Merida itself, we added the normally more common Copper-rumped Hummingbird,
as we found one feeding in our hotel garden.
It had been a great day and we retired at the end of the tour more than happy having seen good close views of all 6 Antpitta species realistically possible on the tour; along with a bunch of other unforgettable birds not least among these being the spectacular hummingbirds like the outrageous Bearded Helmetcrest, beautiful Orange-throated Sunangel and flashy Golden-tailed Starfrontlet. There were a few surprises along the way to make things interesting and keep the guides on their toes - not least the pair of Semi-collared Hawks in the Santo Domingo Valley, although the equally rare, much more distinctive Great Sapphirewing in the Tama national park was a little easier for us. Throw in some of those cool birds of the dry, arid Maracaibo basin - like the shocking red Vermillion Cardinal and just plain dandy looking White-whiskered Spinetail and not forgetting a couple of Screamers, including the rare and local Northern Screamer, all in all it had been a really satisfying tour with well over 400 birds seen and many of these special target birds falling a lot quicker and with less effort than had been expected.
BIRD LIST
Taxonomy
and nomenclature follow: Hilty, Steven, L. 2003. Birds of Venezuela. Second
Edition. Princeton Universoty Press, New Jersey.
The list includes all the bird species that were recorded by at least one
of us. Species marked with an 'H' were only heard on the tour.
|
TINAMOUS
Tinamidae PELICANS
Pelecanidae SCREAMERS
Anhimidae DUCKS,
GEESE AND SWANS Anatidae FLAMINGOS
Phoenicopteridae IBIS
AND SPOONBILLS Threskiornithidae LIMPKIN
Aramidae THICK-KNEES
Burhinidae AVOCETS
AND STILTS Recurvirostridae JACANAS
Jacanidae HOATZIN
Opisthocomidae COTINGAS
Cotingidae VIREOS
and GREENLETS Vireonidae JAYS
Corvidae GNATWRENS
and GNATCATCHERS Polioptilidae CARDINALS,
GROSBEAKS and SALTATORS Cardinalidae |