Today was a pretty steady day in the context of our trip so far. Once again we started our day with a visit to the Podocarpus National Park, hoping to clean up on the remaining targets that we missed from the previous day. We were fortunate that the weather was much improved than the torrential rain we experience yesterday morning, with instead a thin cloud and occasional patches of blue sky, and that meant we had a much more prolonged birding session in the park.
We found a few mixed species flocks, filled mostly with
common tanagers, but always good birds to see. Generally we did not find many
new species, or many species missing from our target list, but there were good
birds all round. We spotted at least two Andean Cock-of-the-Rock around the park,
as well as another Orange-crested Flycatcher. A new species we picked up was
Common Scale-backed Antbird, and we got brief but acceptable views of White-necked
Parakeet, one of only two targets that we managed to find today. The other
target we managed to find was a pair of Olive Finches, which showed brilliantly
well at times.
In the afternoon, we eventually decided to move on rather
than return to the park for one last stab. Our next destination was the small
town of Saraguro, next to the forested antenna road of Cerro Acacana. Here
there were a few birds to target, and with the bonus of an extra afternoon to
recce the site, we hoped to make good progress with these. Sadly the weather
was not ideal, with thick fog hampering our efforts, and a crash on the highway
causing us even more problems, although fortunately we were able to bypass it.
From our afternoons ventures, we did managed to find a couple
of Bearded Guans, and with some effort we got excellent views of Andean Pygmy
Owl, which showed well right next to the road. A few mixed flocks also passed
us by, and in one of these there were two Turquoise Jays. Although we had seen
this species in the north, our photos had been lost when our optics were
stolen, so it was good to see this species once again.
In the evening we went to a famous restaurant in the town, which
birders who visited the area all told us had a Michelin star. Although the food
quality was excellent, we could find no evidence of this Michelin star, and
subsequent google sleuthing has also proved inconclusive, which sadly suggests
that they might have lost it, robbing me of my chance to eat at a first
restaurant of this calibre.
Parque Nacional Podocarpus: Plumbeous Pigeon, Squirrel Cuckoo, Turkey Vulture, Red-headed Barbet, Lineated Woodpecker, White-breasted Parakeet, Plain Antvireo, Common Scale-backed Antbird, Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Olive-striped Flycatcher, Ornate Flycatcher, Orange-crested Flycatcher, Inca Jay, White-necked Thrush, Bronze-green Euphonia, Yellow-throated Bush Tanager, Orange-billed Sparrow, Olive Finch, Tropical Parula, Slate-throated Whitestart, Orange-eared Tanager, Blue-necked Tanager, Paradise Tanager, Bay-headed Tanager, Saffron-crowned Tanager, Green-and-gold Tanager, Golden Tanager, Green Honeycreeper, Bananaquit, Buff-throated Saltator,
Cerro Acacana: Bearded Guan, Shining Sunbeam, Andean Pygmy Owl, Ash-colored Tapaculo, Pearled Treerunner, Turquoise Jay, Citrine Warbler, Spectacled Whitestart, Superciliaried Hemispingus, Masked Flowerpiercer,
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