We started the day birding on the beach just south of where we were staying, a beach called Playa El Paraiso, which also has a large freshwater body protected from the ocean by a long sandbar. This site only had potential for a few new species, but there was certainly a lot of potential for more excellent seabird action, with a few waterbirds also thrown in for good measure.
We arrived early in order to make the most of the day, and
set off to the beaches away from the lagoon, planning to return to the lagoon
after. The beach was full of Grey Gulls, with other gulls species also abundant
plus a few Black Skimmers feeding offshore. There was a nice Hudsonian Whimbrel
on the beach as well, although we would later see more of these around the
lagoon.
Offshore we were able to pick up something small flicking
around but distant. Although I wrote it off as a possible wader, Bill quickly
picked it out as a storm petrel. My previous experience with these birds is
limited to two in the hand, so this was a very exciting development.
Fortunately over the next half an hour the bird gradually approached the shore,
allowing us some excellent views, especially when considering that we were
watching from shore. Although barely visible in the field, the photos revealed
that the bird had a white belly, making it an Elliots Storm Petrel. A rather
unexpected addition to our trip list.
After a successful hour on the beaches, we moved round to
the lagoon. Here we found many more species of wader, including Semipalmated
Sandpiper, Sanderling, Greater Yellowlegs and Snowy Plover, the latter being
new one for me. The lagoon itself held many common species of waterbird,
including our first White-cheeked Pintails of the trip. Fortunately the sandy
beach between the lagoon and ocean also had an adult and juvenile of our key
target for the morning, the diminutive Peruvian Tern. A moulting Franklins Gull
was also a nice surprise on the beach, and Peruvian Pipit was calling
constantly from the saltmarsh, rounding off a brilliant morning.
In the afternoon we drove south to a site south of Lima,
which meant we had to endure passing through the capital city of Peru, not a
particularly fun experience. Our destination was the reserve Lomas da Asia,
which was a site that might hold a few different species from this coastal
plain. An hour at the end of the day did not produce much, although more
Short-tailed Field Tyrants can never be complained about.
After dark we headed to a nearby area of Acacia scrub, and quickly we were able to find the range-restricted Tschudis Nightjar. Although they would fly around us, and we were regularly able to find them in the torchlight, we could not find one that would sit on the deck for us, so the potential for photos was very limited. Still, it was nice to find this species nice and early in the evening, meaning we had plenty of time to head back and relax.
Playa El Paraíso: Cinnamon Teal, White-cheeked Pintail, Chilean Flamingo, Pied-billed Grebe, Great Grebe, Common Gallinule, Andean Coot, Black-necked Stilt, American Oystercatcher, Blackish Oystercatcher, Grey Plover, Snowy Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Hudsonian Whimbrel, Sanderling, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Greater Yellowlegs, Grey-headed Gull, Grey Gull, Franklin's Gull, Belcher's Gull, Kelp Gull, Peruvian Tern, Black Skimmer, Humboldt Penguin, Elliot's Storm Petrel, Peruvian Booby, Red-legged Cormorant, Neotropic Cormorant, Peruvian Pelican, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Puna Ibis, Turkey Vulture, Wren-like Rushbird, Blue-and-white Swallow, Peruvian Pipit,
Lomas de Lachay: Peruivan Thick-Knee, Least Seedsnipe, Burrowing Owl, Coastal Miner, Blue-and-white Swallow,
Lomas de Asia: West Peruvian Dove, Tschudi’s Nightjar, Peruvian Thick-Knee, Thick-billed Miner, Vermillion Flycatcher, Short-tailed Field Tyrant, Blue-and-white Swallow, House Wren,
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