Monthly Archives: June 2016

Lilacine Amazon (Amazona lilacina)

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The Lilacine Amazon (Amazona lilacina), also known as the Ecuadorian Red-lored amazon, is an amazon parrot native to Ecuador in South America.

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I was lucky enough to see a small flock fly by but couldn’t get a decent close up so I have included Wikipedia’s photo.

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This species was recently split from the larger taxa Amazona autumnalis so it is now considered as an Ecuadorian endemic.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco just 20 minutes out of Guayaquil.  Other possibilities exist between Mindo and the Pacific Ocean but are harder logistcally to reach.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT LILACINE PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

BBC

VIDEO

I couldn’t find any videos of wild Lilacine Parrots or Red-lored Amazons filmed in Ecuador so I have to go with a captive bird clip to show the sounds of the bird.

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How To Use Promo Codes On Hotels & Eco-lodges – Hotels.com

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Every month or so Hotels.com comes out with promo codes that are sometimes targeted or sometimes open to anyone but can give you at least 10% off a booking.  Many eco-lodges now list their properties with Hotels.com and other online booking sites as it gets them a wider audience.  While they do pay a commission to the booking site, they get customers they would otherwise not get if it was too hard to find them and book them.  If you use a promo code issued by Hotels.com, it doesn’t come from their income, it comes from Hotels.com and you pay for it indirectly by not accruing Welcome Rewards.

There is currently a “Get $40 off when you spend $300 or more and use Paypal” coupon.  Use promo code “paypalus40” in the box shown below.  The full T&Cs are here.

Not every property can be used with these coupons but here’s how you can find the ones that work.  In most cases you can exclude chain hotels right off the bat. You can use these instructions for any promo code, not just the Paypal one.

1. USE THE SIDEBAR FILTER AND TICK “REDEEM FREE NIGHTS”

This will get a list of hotels that you can use coupons and vouchers on.  They will be properties that you can pay in advance for.  It doesn’t work if you pay once you check in.  If the word ‘redeem’ is crossed out, try again.

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2. SELECT “CHOOSE ROOM”, THEN THE “PAY NOW” BUTTON hotels3 hotels4

 

3. IF THERE IS A MINIMUM SPEND, THE SUBTOTAL MUST BE OVER THE MINIMUM BEFORE TAXES.

In the example, we need to spend at least $300 to get a $40 discount.hotels5

4. YOU WILL SEE THE DISCOUNT APPLIED BEFORE YOU GO TO THE FINAL PAYMENT SCREEN hotels6

Pacific Parrotlet (Forpus coelestis)

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The Pacific Parrotlet (Forpus coelestis), also known as Lesson’s Parrotlet or the Celestial Parrotlet, is a species of small parrot in the Psittacidae family, native to Ecuador and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and heavily degraded former forest.

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This loving couple was photographed at Bosque Cerro Blanco near Guayaqil, Ecuador.  Pacific Parrotlets have a fairly large range throughout Ecuador and northern Peru.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT PACIFIC PARROTLETS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Neotropical Birds

VIDEO

It was really hard to find a non-captive bird video.  Most of them are on IBN but I did find ONE clip on YouTube.

Yeah I know, these are captive birds but if you are over 18, scroll down!

American AAdvantage Announces Program 2016-2017

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If you are accruing miles from credit cards or “buy miles get bonus promos” then relax – nothing has changed!  American already devalued the award chart which came into effect in March 2016 so they are unlikely to mess with it for at least a couple years.

The new changes effect mileage accrual on paid tickets and the elite program so if this applies to you, check out the details.

Red-masked Parakeet (Psittacara erythrogenys)

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The Red-masked Parakeet (Psittacara erythrogenys) is a medium-sized parrot from Ecuador and Peru. It is popular as a pet and are known in aviculture as the Cherry-headed Conure or the Red-headed Conure.  Many people will be familiar with them from the movie “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill”.

This was the best I could get in Cerro Blanco, only this one little cutie came fairly close.

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IMG_1958a. Although feral populations are easily seen in parts of California, they are actually natives of southern Ecuador and northern Peru.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco Reserve just 20 minutes out of Guayaquil.  You could also possibly see them on a day trip from Mindo headed towards the Pacific coast.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT RED-MASKED PARAKEETS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

ABC Birds

California Parrot Project

VIDEOS

Although I was extremely grateful I got to see ONE bird fairly close and a flock flying by in the distance, others were lucky enough to get whole flocks close up!

Meanwhile back in California…………….please note that this is an older video and it is no longer allowed to feed the birds.

Guayaquil – Gateway To Southern Ecuador & The Galapagos

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Guayaquil is one of two main gateway/airport cities in Ecuador and is the best option if your trip includes the spectacular reserves in southern Ecuador and/or the Galapagos as all the Quito flights stop in Guayaquil so you might as well save the time.

GETTING TO GUAYAQUIL WITH AIRLINE MILES

Guayaquil has service with members of all three major alliances so it is pretty easy to get there with miles.

STAR ALLIANCE – Avianca & Copa

ONEWORLD – American & the LATAM Group, Iberia

SKYTEAM – Aerolineas Argentinas

NON-ALLIANCE – TAME (good for smaller airports and Galapagos)

WHERE TO STAY USING HOTEL POINTS

IHG REWARDS – Holiday Inn Guayaquil Airport is normally 20,000 points but often goes on Pointbreaks.  We stayed there our first night in Guayaquil, you can see my review.

STARWOOD – Sheraton Guayaquil Airport is a Cat 3 for 7000 points.

HILTON – Hilton Colon Guayaquil is 30,000 points & the Hampton Inn is 20,000 points.

WYNDHAM – Wyndham Guayaquil is 15,000 points.

If these options don’t suit you, you could try earning airline miles by booking with Rocketmiles or Pointshound.

WHAT TO DO IN GUAYAQUIL

We only spent a night here on arrival and an evening here upon returning from our southern Ecuador loop before flying to the Galapagos so I can’t really get into city sight-seeing.  Just don’t miss out on Bosque Cerro Blanco, it’s amazing!

Guayaquil was the jumping off point for a loop through southern Ecuador to visit 2 major birding hotspots (reviews to come) – Podocarpus and Buenaventura.  I had been checking the TAME website daily for specials and finally got one in January for around $35 per person plus tax to Loja airport which is actually about an hour out of Loja proper.  From there we took a taxi to Zamora for a visit to Podocarpus, then went by bus back to Loja, then to Pinas for Buenaventura and back to Guayaquil.  Finally we flew to San Cristobal in the Galapagos.

Guayaquil trip

 

Velocity Adds Whopping Surcharges To Etihad Redemptions

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On top of the most recent devaluation in which Virgin Velocity moved Etihad to the more expensive chart and jacked the prices up as of 1 June…………..now we have this shock-horror “enhancement”.

All Reward Seat bookings on Etihad Airways operated flights made from 18 June 2016 will incur an Etihad Airways Reward Seat Carrier Charge.

A charge of US$50 in Economy, US$205 in Business and US$300 in First Class will be applicable per flight sector for both adults and children. A reduced charge of US$5 in Economy, US$20.50 in Business and US$30 in First Class will be applicable per flight sector for infants not occupying a seat.

This charge will be payable when completing your Reward Seat booking.

I already spent my last Velocity points on an award from Australia to Abu Dhabi for next year.  We will be stopping over a couple days before the big “Godmother of all African Adventures” and I got business class since I knew the devaluations were coming anyway.  Looks like I dodged another bullet with these surcharges!  Yikes!

Lesson learned – don’t hoard miles, spend them as soon as you can because they will never be worth more than they are today.

White-tailed Jay (Cyanocorax mystacalis)

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The White-tailed Jay (Cyanocorax mystacalis) is a very attractive species of bird in the family Corvidae.

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They have a fair-sized range in Ecuador and northern Peru.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco since it is only a 20 minute drive from Guayaquil.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT WHITE-TAILED JAYS

Wikipedia

Birdlife

Neotropical Birds

VIDEO

A quick smooch and they’re off!

There’s a few clips at IBC but they don’t embed here.

 

 

 

Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera)

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The delightful little Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera) is almost endemic to Ecuador but can also be found in far northern Peru.  They vocalize quite loudly despite their size. The sound could be described as a quick, sharp screech, and vocalizations may involve many monotone screeches in succession.

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We were lucky enough to see them fairly close-up in Cerro Blanco which is just a short drive from Guayaquil (red dot).  This would be the easiest place to find them.  Most airlines will put Ecuador in northern South America (same as Peru) for their award charts and bargain can often be found from the USA to Ecuador on LATAM & Avianca.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT GREY-CHEEKED PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

HBW

VIDEOS

Some one was brave enough to walk along the Malecon of Guayaquil with camera gear!  You can see them in the city but check with your hotel to see if it’s safe.

You can also see them further south in the Jorupe Reserve.

 

Birding In Bosque Cerro Blanco

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Bosque Cerro Blanco is only about 20 minutes outside of Guayaquil and it is very easy to organize a visit there.  You need to contact them in advance so they can arrange a guide and permission to enter the reserve by emailing bosqueprotector@yahoo.com.  Use Google translate to communicate in Spanish as they don’t speak English.

In our case, they also organized a taxi to pick us up at the Holiday Inn and take us out there, then to return later to take us back to the hotel.  This is the safest option as Guayaquil is not a city you want to take risks with potentially dodgy taxis.  Even though it is slightly more expensive, the difference isn’t great in terms of actual dollars.

There is some great information about the reserve and a map HERE.

Our guide, Paul Abad was waiting for us when we arrived around 6am and we were off to explore and hopefully get some good birds!

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Although the Guayaquil Macaw (Great Green Macaw) is the flagship species, they are rarely seen in the area of the reserve most birders can access.  DSCN0366

We walked along the trails with Paul pointing out all the species.  My complete eBird list is HERE.  Photography wasn’t the best as it was overcast and many species were far away though I did the best I could with my long lenses.

 

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Yellow-rumped CaciqueIMG_1836 IMG_1824 IMG_1821 IMG_1813 IMG_1800 IMG_1788

Since I was targeting parrot species, I was thrilled to see a small flock of Lilicine Amazon Parrots flying in the distance.IMG_1791 IMG_1793 IMG_1791a IMG_1794a IMG_1808a

Southern Yellow Grosbeak IMG_1813a

The White-tailed Jay was a stunning bird!IMG_1829a IMG_1834a IMG_1840a

This lookout proved to be a real hotspot especially for parrots!DSCN0395 DSCN0401

First a flock of Red-masked Parakeets flew by.IMG_1791 IMG_1793 IMG_1798 IMG_1800 IMG_1813

Smooth-billed AniIMG_1821 IMG_1824 IMG_1836 IMG_1839 IMG_1852 IMG_1856 IMG_1862

Pale-vented Pigeon

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Parrotlets are usually my downfall.  I have a good success rate on finding most parrots but these little guys are usually elusive.  So it was especially thrilling to have a small flock of Pacific Parrotlets land in the trees near the lookout……………….closely followed by some gorgeous and acrobatic Grey-cheeked Parakeets!IMG_1857 IMG_1883

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To top it off, a Red-masked Parakeet decided to come in closer for a better look!IMG_1958a IMG_1961a IMG_1948a

Yellow-tailed OrioleIMG_1901a IMG_1890a IMG_1952 IMG_1954

The reserve has some educational signs but in Spanish only.DSCN0405 DSCN0406 DSCN0407 DSCN0404 DSCN0408 DSCN0411

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Paul and Ina walking back to the office.DSCN0412

The office had been closed when we arrived so I paid the entry fee $5.00 each and the guide fee $60, then had a look at the hummingbird feeders where Amazilia Hummingbirds can be seen.DSCN0413 DSCN0416