We awoke early to bird through the forest to see our number
one trip target, the beautiful Araripe
Manakin. After a walk of some three kilometres through the forest we
arrived at the site that our guide knew was best for the birds. After a wait we
were treated to quite a show with four different birds present, three males (2
adult, 1 immature) and a green bird. Their similarity to Helmeted Manakin was
obviously striking, as was their white plumage. Unfortunately they preferred to
stick to the deepest parts of the forest and were extremely wary, making
photography difficult and leaving our views restricted. That said, it was a
stunningly beautiful bird, and with the added factor of it being critically
endangered, this was an extremely special encounter.
-Araripe Manakin
The forest was generally fairly quiet, with flocks limited
and birding generally quiet. There were a number of quality birds though. The Ceara
race of Rufous-breasted Leaftosser, Rufous-thighed Hawk, Tawny Piculette
and Blue-crowned Trogon were all new
birds for me. They are showed well, but the highlight was certainly the
Leaftosser, which displayed a fantastic tail pumping action in response to the
playback we used to find the bird. We also had incredible views of Collared Forest-Falcon early in the
morning, which was incredible compared to the brief views I had got last time I
saw this bird
-Collared Forest Falcon
-Blue-crowned Trogon
Species List:
Oasis Araripe: Ruddy
Ground-Dove, Sick’s Swift, Fork-tailed Palm Swift, Paraque, Planalto Hermit,
American Black Vulture, Roadside Hawk, Rufous-thighed Hawk, Blue-crowned
Trogon, Tawny Piculette, Collared Forest Falcon, Planalto Slaty Antshrike,
Black-capped Antwren, Olivaceous Woodcreeper, Rufous-breasted Leaftosser, Yellow-breasted
Flycatcher, White-throated Spadebill, Masked Water-Tyrant, Araripe Manakin,
Chivi Vireo, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Pale-breasted
Thrush, Rufous-breasted Thrush, Golden-crowned Warbler, Flavescent Warbler,
Burnished-buff Tanager, Palm Tanager, Blue Dacnis, Rufous-collared Sparrow,
Brazil Day 11 14.06.2019
Brazil Day 11 14.06.2019
In order to make sure we were on site early enough to give
us a reasonable chance to see Caatinga birds we awoke super early and drove
forty minutes to an area of excellent Caatinga habitat. All of our Caatinga
targets could be seen here, but the one we really wanted was White-browed Antpitta, a super elusive
bird that even our guide had not seen in four years of trying. So, did we
succeed? As soon as we got out of the car we heard an individual calling, in
our attempts to see it the bird scuttled off into the bush and we next heard it
call distantly. We then continued birding and mopped up on our targets, before
trying again. On our way back the same individual was calling next to the road
but the same thing happened that as soon as the tapes went on the bird
vanished. As an alternative strategy we decided to position ourselves in some
thick scrub near the birds territory, put on the playback and wait. It took
half an hour but it worked. Initially only two of our party saw it, but it then
came back and gave an insane show for the species, occasionally out in the
open. I wasn’t quick enough to get any photos, but it was quite the experience.
We also cleared up on the Caatinga birds present on the
site; Great Xenops, Red-shouldered
Spinetail, Silvery-cheeked Antshrike, Caatinga Antwren, Striped-backed Antwren,
Red-billed Sycthebill, Orange-fronted Yellow-finch, Grey-eyed Greenlet. The
Great Xenops (Latin Megaxenops)
really put on quite the shoe, performing just a few feet from us.
-Great Xenops
-Caatinga Antwren
-Silvery-cheeked Antshrike
-Grey-eyed Greenlet
-Stripe-backed Antbird
Since we cleared up so quickly with our Caatinga targets we
decided to visit the Arajara Water Park to get second views of Araripe Manakin, the site being the
species easiest place to observe. Once we arrived we walk less than half a kilometre
along nice footpaths to an open area of forest where we got outstanding views
of both male and female Araripe Manakin. The views and photos were a vast
improvement on the previous day. There was also a lifer here, Moustached Wren, a species that has
avoided me for some time but we finally spotted two individuals feeding in the
vines.
-Araripe Manakin
Since we had another six hour drive headed off just after
lunch. We made a few short stops along the way for birds and picked up another
few bits. Caatinga Cachalote was a
fantastic bird, and the only Caatinga bird we had not seen during the morning.
We found a nice pair when we stopped at a large lake that we had noticed a
large heron perched as we drove past. We initially though the heron might be
some kind of stork, but our identification worsened when we spotted it swimming
on the far side of the lake, looking directly into the sun, and tried to turn
it into a great grebe! Still, once we finally sorted it out, the bird was a Cocoi Heron, which was another lifer
for me.
-Cocoi Heron
We arrived at our next stop, Canudos, after dark but did
find a few nightjars on our way. We had a very distant Scissor-tailed Nightjar male and a very close encounter with a Spot-tailed Nightjar. This later record
is interesting as it is an extremely rare species in the region, but the photos
clearly show that it is this species.
-Spot-tailed Nightjar
Species List:
Pau d’arco, Ceara: American
Black Vulture, Blue-winged Parrotlet, Silvery-cheeked Antshrike, Planalto Slaty
Antshrike, Stripe-backed Antwren, Caatinga Antwren, Black-bellied Antwren, White-browed
Antpitta, Red-billed Scythebill, Great Xenops, Red-shouldered Spinetail, Common
Tody-flycatcher, Yellow-breasted Flycatcher, Cattle Tyrant, Tropical Kingbird,
Grey-eyed Greenlet, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Chalk-browed Mockingbird, Campo
Troupial, Pale Baywing, Flavescent Warbler, Orange-fronted Yellow-Finch,
White-throated Seedeater,
Arajara Water Park: Squirrel
Cuckoo, American Black Vulture, Olivaceous Woodcreeper, Yellow-breasted
Flycatcher, Euler’s Flycatcher, Masked Water-Tyrant, Social Flycatcher, Araripe
Manakin, Southern House Wren, Moustached Wren, Tropical Gnatcatcher,
Pale-breasted Thrush, Pectoral Sparrow, Golden-crowned Warbler, Palm Tanager,
Blue Dacnis, Bananaquit,
Travelling: Black-bellied
Whistling-Duck, Brazilian Teal, Picui Ground Dove, Smooth-billed Ani, Common
Gallinule, American Purple Gallinule, Southern Lapwing, Cocoi Heron, Great
White Egret, Cattle Egret, Snail Kite, American Black Vulture, Lesser
Yellow-headed Vulture, Cactus Parakeet, Caatinga Cacholote, Yellow-chinned
Spinetail, Campo Troupial, White-winged Swallow, Masked Water Tyrant,
White-headed Marsh Tyrant, Chestnut-capped Blackbird,
Brazil Day 12 15.06.2019
Brazil Day 12 15.06.2019
We had to awake extremely early in order to make sure we saw
our number one target, Lear’s Macaw,
leave their canyon roost site. We waited in the dark until sunrise when maybe
100 of these stunning Macaws noisily took off and flew over us. Individuals
lingered throughout the morning, even after the sun came through the clouds
which helped a lot with photos. They were well worth the early start, and the
stunning scenery just added to the experience.
-Lear's Macaw
There were other birds on site was well. Lesser Wagtail-Tyrant
was a really nice even if we only saw it briefly, and in the gorge below there
were small groups of Blue-crowned
Parakeet. These species was a lifer for me. There was also an excellent
show from Cliff Flycatcher with a
number of individuals on the cliffs. We also had nice views of Laughing Falcon and King Vulture, the former roosting on the Cliffside and the latter
soaring overhead.
-Cliff Flycatcher
-Red-cowled Cardinal
-King Vulture
Our afternoon travelling was longer than the six hours we
thought, and would actually take us nine hours before we got to the next park.
Consequently we left mid-morning at around 10.00, and thus ended the days
birding. We called off at a few water bodies along the way and so we had a few
new birds. White-collared Swift was
a lifer for me, with a single individual flying over the road, and then a pair
of Pied-billed Grebe was a Brazilian
tick. All in all we made the best of our nine hours, making sure we were on
site ready for the mornings birding.
-White-collared Swift
Species List:
Estação Biológica
Canudos: Picazuro Pigeon, Plain-breasted Ground Dove, Picui Ground Dove, Glittering-bellied
Emerald, King Vulture, American Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Lesser Yellow-headed
Vulture, Caatinga Puffbird, Little Woodpecker, Laughing Falcon, Aplomado
Falcon, Turquoise-fronted Amazon Parrot, Lear’s Macaw, Blue-crowned Parakeet,
Lesser Wagtail-Tyrant, Cliff Flycatcher, Tropical Kingbird, Rufous-browed
Peppershrike, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Chalk-browed Mockingbird, Rufous-collared
Sparrow, Campo Troupial, Red-cowled Cardinal, Sayaca Tanager,
Travelling: Ruddy
Ground Dove, Scaled Dove, Picui Ground Dove, Smooth-billed Ani, White-collared
Swift, Pied-billed Grebe, Southern Lapwing, Great White Egret, Cattle Egret,
American Black Vulture, Amazon Kingfisher, Caatinga Cacholote, Masked Water
Tyrant, Great Kiskadee, Tropical Kingbird, Chalk-browed Mockingbird, Grassland
Sparrow, Screaming Cowbird, House Sparrow,
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