Blue-winged Mountain Tanager (Anisognathus somptuosus)

Posted on October 19, 2016 by Tara

The Blue-winged Mountain Tanager (Anisognathus somptuosus) is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae, the tanagers. These bright, beautiful little birds are often seen at banana tables at lodges in their range.

They can be found in the higher elevations (mostly above 2500 meters) in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. I’ve seen them at Angel Paz, Sachatamia & Rio Blanco and they always brighten up my day!

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Banana tables usually attract these little cuties in their range but some people have gotten lucky seeing them in the bush as well.

Orange-bellied Euphonia (Euphonia xanthogaster)

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Tara

The Orange-bellied Euphonia (Euphonia xanthogaster) is a species of bird in the Fringillidae (finch) family. They were formerly considered tanagers (Thraupidae).

IMG_3467a IMG_3465a DSCN1521 These bright little birds have a huge range in South America and are favourites at banana feeders at lodges within their range. I saw them just about everywhere in Mindo – Angel Paz, Sachatamia and Milpe.

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Not one to turn down free bananas!

Booted Racket-tail (Ocreatus underwoodii)

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Tara

The Booted Racket-tail (Ocreatus underwoodii) is a species of hummingbird and a firm favourite with birders in Ecuador. The fashion-forward little beauty not only sports the distinctive rackets on the end of his long tail but different coloured boots! On the western slopes of the Andes (Mindo area), the hummingbirds are sophisticated and elegant in fluffy white boots. On the eastern slopes (WildSumaco, Napo, etc) they dazzle in rusty orange boots. Either way, they are dressed for success and you won’t want to miss them!

These 2 photos showing white boots were taken at Angel Paz Refuge in Mindo area.

This little guy is proudly showing his orange boots at Wildsumaco. See the iridescence by night! DSCN2141

You can find them in in the Andean cordillera of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. They are easily seen at the hummingbird feeders in most lodges in the Mindo area and at Wildsumaco Lodge.

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Filmed at Wild Sumaco, this video shows how fast they really are.

Looking adorable with very puffy boots!

There’s a short clips here NOT at a hummingbird feeder.

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (Rupicola peruvianus)

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Tara

The Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (Rupicola peruvianus), also known as tunki (Quechua), is a large passerine bird of the cotinga family native to Andean cloud forests in South America. It is widely regarded as the national bird of Peru.

DSCN1081 DSCN1076 DSCN1083 DSCN1074 Watching their antics as they dance around hoping to attract the ladies is one of the highlights of a birding trip to South America. There are a few leks easily accessible to tourists- Paz de las Aves (Angel Paz) near Mindo in Ecuador; Jardin in Colombia & the Cock of the Rock Lodge in Manu, Peru.

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This is a case where you need to see and hear the birds to fully appreciate them. Here’s a few clips filmed (in order) in Mindo, Jardin & Manu.

Morning Birding At Paz De Las Aves (Angel Paz), Mindo

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Tara

The Refugio Paz de las Aves, also known as Angel Paz’s place is a highlight for all visitors to Mindo whether they are primarily birders or not. Angel and his sons make it easy for everyone to see some really amazing birds. Our guide was Venecio who speaks English well and knows all the birds. The location is off the main road and uphill quite a bit so it’s best to organize some transport through your lodge. We had Sachatamia organize a driver named Daniel who took us here (leaving at 5am), waited for us to see all the birds, then took us to the Oilbird cave and back to Mindo. I also emailed Angel Paz to book in advance so he knew to expect us. It’s $30 for the full morning tour (April 2016) which includes the Cock of the Rock lek, several antpittas, birding along the roadside and close-up viewing of hummingbirds and tanagers back at the lodge where breakfast is served. This is a prime example of how local people embrace eco-tourism and protect the wildlife on their property. Map & Description

COCK OF THE ROCK LEK

First stop at 5:45am was the Cock of the Rock lek. We spent about 45 minutes here just watching these amazing birds dance around trying to attract the ladies.

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Dark-backed Wood Quail near the lek. DSCN1093 DSCN1095 DSCN1097 DSCN1103

ANTPITTAS

Then we drove to a few places where Venecio coaxed normally shy antpittas out with worms which form part of their normal diet. We saw two species – Yellow-breasted Antpitta (2 different ones), Giant Antpitta (Maria). Shakira didn’t show up that day.

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Near the Antpitta place, we saw a beautiful Golden-headed Quetzal perched high in a tree.

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BIRDING THE AREA – ROADSIDE

Next we drove up and down the road looking for birds and stopping to observe them better. Here are a few highlights that I managed to get photos of. My full bird list is on eBird.

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Orange-breasted Fruit-eater DSCN1172 DSCN1179 DSCN1174

Golden-headed Quetzal

We also saw some Red-billed Parrots fly over but I missed the photo.

LODGE AREA

There are a couple areas to see here. One deck overlooks a banana feeder where tanagers and toucans can be seen.

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Blue-Winged Mountain Tanager DSCN1200

Crimson-rumped Toucanet DSCN1210 DSCN1208

More Blue-Winged Mountain Tanager

Toucan Barbet

Flame-faced Tanager & Golden-naped Tanager

Blue-grey Tanager

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HUMMINGBIRD FEEDERS

There are several hummingbird feeders at the deck where breakfast is served and I was so engrossed by the tiny beauties I almost forgot to eat breakfast! Highlights here were Booted Racket-tails, White-necked Jacobin, Velvet-purple Coronet, Violet-tailed Sylph, Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird and more! Full list as per Venecio is on eBird.

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Difficult as it was to tear ourselves away from the hummingbirds, our birding day was just beginning and we had a 2 hour drive to the Oilbird Cave so off we went!