Brazil; ESEC Murici - Day 8

  Today was a much more relaxed day, with just a few things on the agenda. This suited us fine, as the previous night had taken its toll, and although we planned to rise at 05:30 as usual, we did not wake until 07:00. Despite this, there were still a few birds in the vicinity of the campsite, including Opal-rumped Tanager, which was a lifer for me. Otherwise, it was much the same, although I finally managed to see one of the Rusty-winged Antwren that have been calling every morning, there were incredible views of Reddish Hermit to be had in the clearing behind the camp.

  Our only task was to put camera traps on the nests that we had located on the 02^nd. Due to the sensitive nature of the task, I did not travel to the nests with Herminio and Lia, but instead birded the nearby area. It was quite lively, with good views of Black-necked Aracari, but the absolute highlight was a large ant swarm and the birds that were with it. Most of them were East Amazonian Fire-Eye, like the previous day, however, there were also two Scaled Antbirds, which is a rare species here. They were far too interested in the ants to worry about me, so I was able to get fantastic views of both species.

  We were back in time for lunch at the campsite, meaning we had the full afternoon to ourselves. We decided to try again for the trogon that had so far eluded us, at the location we had heard it yesterday. Alas, we failed to hear or see the bird, and the whole forest was frustratingly quiet. On the way was another, smaller ant swarm and this also had a group of East Amazonian Fire-Eye following it, but that was probably the highlight of the afternoon.

-Reddish Hermit

-Mecistogaster sp.

-Scaled Antbird

-East Amazonian Fire-Eye

Species List:
ESEC Murici: Solitary Tinamou, Squirrel Cuckoo, Reddish Hermit, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Black-necked Aracari, Red-shouldered Macaw, Plain Antvireo, Silvery-flanked Antwren, Rusty-winged Antwren, Scaled Antbird, East Amazonian Fire-eye, Scalloped Antbird, Black-cheeked Gnateater, Plain-winged Woodcreeper, Blue-backed Manakin, Red-headed Manakin, Screaming Piha, White-winged Cotinga, Brown-winged Schiffornis, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, Euler's Flycatcher, Bright-rumped Attila, Greyish Mourner, Trilling Gnatwren, Purple-throated Euphonia, Violaceous Euphonia, Yellow-green Grosbeak, Flame-crested Tanager, Palm Tanager, Burnished-buff Tanager, Opal-rumped Tanager, Red-necked Tanager, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Bananaquit, Buff-throated Saltator,