The Deskbound Birder: Choco Trogon

Showing posts with label Choco Trogon. Show all posts

Wednesday, 1 May 2019

Playa de Oro then drive to Silanche (NW Ecuador) – 1st May (Day 7)

This morning was to be our last at Playa de Oro and we still had a fair bit to see. First, we were up pre-dawn and birded the forest in the dark trying for Choco Poorwill. We came to a small clearing where Gabo had previously seen the bird and played a recording- we listened but there was silence, just like our previous attempts at this bird. We played again and then a response but not in the clearing but by the lodge and so we retraced our steps and the bird was calling loudly from the clearing behind the lodge. A quick scan with the torches and some gleaming eyes, and there at last was a Choco Poorwill, rather a featureless dark Poorwill but a highly localised one.

After a quick breakfast we headed out onto the trail behind the lodge, at last it was dry and we were hopeful of seeing our last few target species for Playa de Oro. Walking the trail behind the lodge we very quickly came across one of our targets, a pair of Short-tailed Antbird which gave us prolonged views as they skulked in the undergrowth. Further along the trail we encountered Blue-tailed (Choco) Trogon and White-tailed Trogon, Spotted Antbird, Ocellated Antbird, a very confiding juvenile White-whiskered Puffbird and two Lemon-spectacled Tanager. A calling raptor was quickly identified by Gabo as a Plumbeous Hawk and after a quick blast of playback the bird appeared in the sub-canopy and showed well. This left just one bird, a bird that is perhaps easiest to see at Playa de Oro than anywhere else and one which we had trawled for almost from our first day at the reserve. Time was running short and Gabo suggested we walk another 10 minutes before we needed to turn back. A final blast on the tape and at last a response and before long we were watching our target, the rather drab Sapayoa. Dull in plumage, the Sapayoa is a taxonomic anomaly having been classified variously with Manakins and Tyrant Flycatchers of the New World, the Asity's of Madagascar and more recently Broadbills of Asia and Africa. The species is now considered to be in a monotypic family placed between the African and Asian Broadbills - a rather remarkable species. After watching this bird for ten minutes or so it was time to turn back, on the way back to the lodge we had good views of another Sapayoa, quite remarkable given that we had spent three days here without seeing one.

Blue-tailed Trogon - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

Red-capped Manakin - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

White-whiskered Puffbird - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

Spotted Antbird - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

Plumbeous Hawk - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

Sapayoa - Playa de Oro, Ecuador

The village of Playa de Oro, Ecuador

Back at the lodge we packed and loaded the boats before heading off at just gone 11:00 and were back to Selva Alegre at just gone 12:00. We headed to a nearby forest patch where we birded the busy road where the key bird was Slaty-tailed Trogon and after getting good views we commenced our four hour drive to Silanche - it was good to leave this rather noisy stop after the tranquility of Playa de Oro.

Capuchin Monkey - Near to Selva Alegre, Ecuador

Darter species - Near to Selva Alegre, Ecuador

Palm Oil being transported to factory, one of the biggest threats to the existence of rainforests in Ecuador - Near to Selva Alegre, Ecuador

Choco Trogon - Near to Selva Alegre, Ecuador

En-route to Silanche we stopped for a massive fish lunch on the beach at Playa las Penas and watched Magnificent Frigatebird and Royal Tern cruise by. After lunch we birded the marshes behind the town seeing a range of new trip birds including Yellow-crowned Night-heron, Ringed Kingfisher, Black-bellied Whistling-duck, Fulvous Whistling-duck, Striped Cuckoo, Purple Gallinule, Cocoi Heron, Hook-billed Kite, Pacific Parrotlet, Peruvian Meadowlark and the highlight, a stunning Pinnated Bittern. However, there was no sign of our main target, Masked Duck.

We then headed west following the Pacific coastline before heading inland on the E20 at Esmeraldas. We arrived at the Hotel Apollo in Pendro Bicente Maldonado at 19:00 and after dinner in a neighbouring restaurant we crashed at around 22:00 to a rather sleepless night awoken constantly by barking dogs - one of the blights of the modern world.

The town of Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Magnificent Frigatebird - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Yellow-crowned Night-heron - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Ringed Kingfisher - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Chestnut-throated Seedeater - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Striped Cuckoo - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Peruvian Meadowlark - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Pacific Hornero - Playa las Penas, Ecuador

Links to Other Days of the Trip (Click to View)

25th April (Day 1) - International flight and transfer to Urcuqui.

26th April (Day 2) - Cerro Mongus.

27th April (Day 3) - Chical Road and Awa Road.

28th April (Day 4) - Tundaloma area AM and Playa de Oro PM.

29th April (Day 5) - Playa de Oro.

30th April (Day 6) - Playa de Oro.

1st May (Day 7) - Playa de Oro AM then Playa las Penas.

2nd May (Day 8) – Silanche and Rancho Suamox.

3rd May (Day 9) - Mashpi Shungo AM and Santa Rosa Road PM.

4th May (Day 10) – Mashpi Amagusa AM then Oilbird Caves PM.

5th May (Day 11) - 23 de Junio AM then Milpe and Mindo area.

6th May (Day 12) – San Jorge de Milpe Lodge AM. Bellavista area PM.

7th May (Day 13) – Paz de las Aves and Bellavista AM.

8th May (Day 14) - Yanacocha Reserve AM then international flight PM.

Saturday, 27 April 2019

Chical Road and Awa Road (NW Ecuador) – 27th April (Day 3)

We awoke at 05:30 and then headed the short distance from Casa de Eliza in Limonal, northwards, to the start of the Chical Road. After a wrong turn into a dead-end street we were on our way up the gravelled road, as the light increased we passed through small homesteads, banana and cassava plantations with associated barking dogs. As light increased Gabo picked up a distant raptor and we identified the bird as a displaying Black-and-chestnut Eagle. Our first birding stop proper was on a sharp bend in the road soon after we entered the cloud forest. We had a quick out of the back of the car breakfast while birds called around us and we quickly picked up Crimson-rumped Toucanet, Violet-tailed Sylph, Andean Solitaire, Russet-crowned Warbler, Western Hemispingus and Three-striped Warbler, the highlight of this first stop was a stunning pair of Plushcap which showed exceptionally well for a prolonged period. We headed up-hill stopping for occasional birds until we heard a flock at a point where Gabo was hoping for Beautiful Jay. This flock contained Yellow-vented Woodpecker, Metallic-green Tanager, Golden-naped Tanager, Toucan Barbet, Montane Woodcreeper with a massive katydid and a calling Uniform Antshrike which refused to show itself. Best bird for the area though was Fulvous-dotted Treerunner, a speciality of the Chical Road. We then drove onwards towards the summit onto the plateau where we hunted high and low for the scarce Hoary Puffleg but with no luck. Highlights in this area were a flock of 15 Choco Parakeet, Rufous Spinetail and a very obliging Slaty-backed Chat-tyrant. We drove as far as the bridge over the river where we scanned for White-capped Dipper which Gabo picked up distantly, eventually we had fairly good scope views of this bird before we turned and headed back. By 11:00 fog began to descend and so did we, we tried for Beautiful Jay at a few locations along the road but with no luck and actually saw little although we had good views of Yellow-bellied Chat-tyrant and a female Andean Cock-of-the-rock. Back at the Casa de Eliza we birded the grounds of the hotel from the balcony seeing a few common species such as Scrub Tanager, Flame-rumped Tanager, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird and Buff-throated Saltator, we packed our gear and began the 1.5 hour drive to the Awa Road.

Plushcap - Chical Road, Ecuador

Common Squirrel Cuckoo - Chical Road, Ecuador

Metallic-green Tanager - Chical Road, Ecuador

Yellow-vented Woodpecker - Chical Road, Ecuador

Golden-naped Tanager - Chical Road, Ecuador

Toucan Barbet - Chical Road, Ecuador

Green-and-black Fruiteater - Chical Road, Ecuador

Montane Woodcreeper - Chical Road, Ecuador

Fulvous-dotted Treerunner - Chical Road, Ecuador

Slay-backed Chat-tyrant - Chical Road, Ecuador

Slaty-backed Chat-tyrant - Chical Road, Ecuador

Yellow-bellied Chat-tyrant - Chical Road, Ecuador

Gabo birding the pass on the Chical Road

Chical Road, Ecuador

Dracula Orchid Reserve - Chical Road, Ecuador

Tropical Mockingbird - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

Buff-throated Saltator - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

Lemon-rumped Tanager - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

Social Flycatcher - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

Scrub Tanager - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

Blue-and-white Swallow - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

House Wren - Casa de Eliza, Limonal, Ecuador

We arrived at our next birding destination, the Awa Road, at 15:00. The Awa Road is situated at an altitude of around 200m and as such it was considerably warmer than the Chical Road, in fact it was hot and humid and not my ideal climatic conditions. Our first new bird was the appropriately named, and not very exciting, Dusky Pigeon. A shortway on a bird flew over which we were puzzled by until it landed and there was one of my wants of the trip, a stunning Golden-breasted Tanager. Although a little distant the black plumage with the bright golden chest were diagnostic and its habit of sitting stationary for long periods was typical of the Genus Bangsia. We continued birding along this road through rather cut-over lowland forest as the sky blackened. The road was meant to be almost impassable due to thick mud but we walked the first 2-3km and encountered very little mud. The birding was fantastic and we recorded Choco Toucan, Yellow-throated Toucan, White-bearded Manakin, Long-tailed Tyrant, Blue-chested Hummingbird, a pair of stunning Orange-fronted Barbet, Bronze-winged Parrot, Acadian Flycatcher, Stripe-billed Aracari, Pacific Cacique, a further three Golden-chested Tanager and, another highlight, two stunning snowy white Black-tipped Cotinga.

As darkness began to fall the rain began and we headed back to the car. We drove to the most unfriendly hotel of our stay the El Pedregal Hotel in San Lorenzo, we arrived at 19:30 but all the staff had gone home and so we had to head into town to find somewhere to eat, we drove around for almost an hour before we found an acceptable eatery and were served a massive chicken and rice dish. After gathering bread, milkshakes and cakes (lots of cakes for Gabo!!) for tomorrows field breakfast we headed to bed and crashed at around 22:00 in a rather steamy room with no working air con just a very noisy fan.