Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Birding Panama July 2022

 Birds of Central Panama and Darien Lowlands.  

Birding all three of the Canopy Family premier locations in one trip.

Crested Eagle


Harpy Eagle

View our trip.  Birds, Bugs, Rain, & Mud




Southeast Brazil; The Atlantic Rain Forests. 23 October - 10 November 2022

        Birding the Southeast Rainforests of Brazil October 2023.





View our trip.               View our Trip Report































Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Central Colombia and the Western Andes, February 2022

 In early February 2022 we headed out to visit Colombia and bird with a group of friends. This trip was set up by Tom and Carol Sykes, our regular trip leaders.  What an adventure it was.  This was a slightly altered Tropical Birding trip led by guide Nick Athanas.  We flew into Medellin and departed from Bogota, with an in-country flight from Pereira to Bogota.  We had 10 days of birding in the Central and Western Andes and it was amazing.  We had a total of 401 birds seen and heard, and some of the heard birds were heard over and over and over so often that I got some really good recordings with the Merlin app.

The great Andean mountain range splits into three chains as it traverses Colombia, resulting in a very high degree of endemism (70+ endemic bird species).  Colombia is blessed with an extensive system of reserves that protect many of these species, and we visited many of them on our tour.  Among the many spectacular birds we saw on this trip were Buffy Helmetcrest, Yellow-eared Parrot, Black-and-gold, White-capped, Grass-green, Hooded Mountain, Lacrimose Mountain, Scarlet-bellied, Gold-ringed, and many more beautiful Tanagers.  

Our trip went from 9 to 21 February with a travel day before and after the trip.  There was a total of 10 intrepid travelers in our group and one great guide that was often supplemented by additional local guides.  The birding was fantastic, and the people were warm, welcoming, and always willing to go the extra mile to help us in any way possible.  As always on these trips, the food was wonderful, and we had more than we could eat on many occasions, even with assistance from others in our group.

These photos are not in chronological order abut I hope to rearrange them in the future into a more coherent trip report.

You can view the photos here and they will have titles, or you can click on the picture and it will take you to the viewing mode.

More text to follow as time permits, but here are some photos to start with.



Our Itinerary


The outskirts of Medellin, Colombia 9 February

A local brew

Delicious Rib dinner

Happy campers at Jardin Botanical Garden restaurant, Medellin

Beer in the park after birding

Lunch at the botanical garden

The square right outside our hotel in Jardin, Colombia 11-12 February

Central church in Jardin, next to our hotel

Dinner, Bandeja Paisa, a traditional five-meat meal

Sandwich vendor right outside our hotel in Jardin

Our hotel in Jardin, right on the town square.

Hotel dining area with a view of our rooms on the left


Hotel entrance and ice cream store on the left

Central Andes

Our tour bus and driver

Umbrella birding, became a common thing

Many meals start with a hearty soup



A little pre-hike breakfast and coffee/hot chocolate at 11,000 feet

Mural on the building wall

Our first Andean Condor of the trip at Negro lagoon

Lunch at Negro Lagoon on the thermal route

Golden-breasted Puffleg

Rise" feeding the Glossy Flowerpiercer


Rise" handfeeding the Golden-breasted Puffleg

Steak and salad dinner

The Andes from 13,000 feet


Volcano selfie 

Nevado del Ruiz Volcano


Indigo-winged Parrot Preserve

Relaxed birding.  Carol, Marge, Connie, & Russell


Our Cabin for the night

Don Frijolies Restaurant


Traditional meal, Ajiaco, a hearty white chicken soup with sides.  Look at the avocado slice
, 7 inches long
I found a friend



Just another selfie in the Andes


Birding in the rain

Some of the birds in Tatama park

Tilapia dinner


Birding the mountain road

What would you expect in the cloud forest

Close in birding

Delightful lunch on the road

The western Andes Mountains


Hand feeding a Masked Flowerpiercer

Hand feeding a hummingbird

Now that you have a little taste of the country, the areas we were birding. and the hotels and food, I will throw a few bird pictures in the mix.  Enough of the phone photos it is time for some camera shots.


Hand feeding a Buff-tailed Coronet

Montane Woodcreeper

Scaly-throated Foliage-gleaner

Collared Trogon (female)

Roadside mishap

Andean Condor

Andean Guan

Andean Lapwing

Bar-crested Antshrike

Barred Fruiteater (female)

Barred Fruiteater (male)

Bay-headed Tanager

Bicolored Wrens

Bicolored Wrens

Black and white Warbler

Black-and-White Becard

Black-billed Trush

Black-capped Tanager

Black-capped Tanager

Black-crested Warbler

Black-crowned Antshrike (female)

Black-crowned Antshrike (male)

Black-winged Saltator

Blue-and-black Tanager

Blue-capped Tanager

Blue gray Tanager

Blue-necked Tanager

Blue-winged Mountain Tanager

Bronzy Inca

Buff-tailed Coronet

Buffy Helmetcrest at Los Nevados National Park

Buffy Helmetcrest

Chami Antpitta (chick)

Chami Antpitta (mom)

Chestnut-bellied Flowerpiercer

Chestnut-crowned Antpitta

Chestnut-crowned Antpitta

Chestnut-headed Oropendola

Cinnamon Flycatcher

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

Cocoi Heron

Local farmer

Collared Inca (female)

Common Tody-Flycatcher

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

Crescent-faced Antpitta

Crescent-faced Antpitta

Crimson-manted Woodpecker

Crimson-backed Tanager

Crimson-mantled Woodpecker

Eared Dove

Equitorial (Rufous) Antpitta

Equitorial (Rufous) Antpitta

Collared Inca & Fawn-breasted Brilliant

Our hotel, the Hacienda Etramadura, in Sabanetta, outside Medellin

Part of the hotel

Our rooms on the right

Flame-rumped Tanager (juvenile)

Flame-rumped Tanager

Glossy Flowerpiercer

Southern Lapwing

Golden-crowned Warbler

Hummingbirds

Red Squirrel

Stout-billed Cinclodes

Spot-breasted Woodpecker

Plain Seedeater

Streak-throated Bush-Tyrant

Silver-throated Tanager

Scrub Tanager

Scrub Tanager

Scarlet-bellied Mountain Tanager

Safron Finches

Great Thrush

Indigo-winged Parrot

Indigo-winged Parrot. One of 230-300 remaining on earth
Lacrimose Mountain Tanager

Lacrimose Mountain Tanager

Juan Valdez

Lesser Violetear

Local Bus

Purple-throated Woodstar

Red-headed Barbet (female)

Red-bellied Grackle

Torrent Ducks actual view.

Purplish-mantled Tanager, #2000 life bird

Red-headed Barbet (male)

Red-ruffed Fruitcrow, Otun Quimbaya Sanctuary

Purplish-mantled Tanager #2000 life bird

Plushcap

Plumbeous Sierra Finch

Plain-colored Seedeater

Palm Tanager

Gray-browed Brushfinch

Great Kiskadee

Green Honeycreeper

Hepatic Tanager

Hooded Mountain Tanager

Indigo-winged Parrot, preserve outside Santa Clara, Colombia

Indigo-winged Parrots

Long-tailed Sylph

Masked Flowerpiercer

Collared Trogon (female)

Masked Flowerpiercer

View of Medellin from our hotel

Yellow-rumped Cacique

Collared trogon (male)

Yellow-rumped Cacique

Munchique Wood-Wren

Munchique Wood-Wren

Ornate Flycatcher

Ornate Flycatcher

Orange-chinned Parakeet

Pale-naped Brushfinch

Pale-naped Brushfinch

Red-ruffed Fruitcrow

Orange-breasted Fruiteater (male)

Spectacled Parrotlet

Streaked Flycatcher

Golden Tanager

Golden-crowned Flycatcher

Golden-faced Tyrannulet

Golden-fronted Redstart

Golden-plumed Parakeets

Grass-green Tanager

Grass-green Tanager

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

The trails could be quite steep

Coca Tea

Some folks had the Coca Tea, with no affect

Swordbill

Tanager Finch

Tawny-bellied Hermit

Tawny-bellied Hermit

Three-striped Warbler

Torrent Duck (male)

Torrent Duck (female)

Torrent Ducks

Torrent Tyrannulet

Tourmaline Sunangel

Tricolored Brushfinch

Tropical Kingbird


Velvet-purple Coronet

Velvet-purple Coronet

Long-tailed Sylph

White-collared Swift

White-whiskered Hermit, Bananaquit, White-necked Jacobin


White bellied Woodstar

White-browed Gnatcatcher

White-capped Dipper

White-capped Dipper

White-capped Tanager

White-capped Tanager

White-capped Tanager

White-sided Flowerpiercer

White-throated Tyrannulet

Yellow-bellied Chat-Tyrant

Yellow-bellied Elaenia

Yellow-eared Parrot

Yellow-eared Parrots

Yellow-headed Carcara

Yellow-headed Caracara

Yellow-headed Manakin

Yellow-tailed Oriole

Green Jay

Green Jay

Andean Lapwing

Gold-ringed Tanager

Gold-ringed Tanager

Orange-breasted Fruiteater (female)

Ochre-breasted Antpitta

Ochre-breasted Antpitta

Agouti