Today was our first full day on the Atacama plains between
the Andes and the coast. We had a morning planned birding the hills which had
some vegetation as opposed to the rest of the landscape which was a barren
landscape. The destination was the reserve Lomas de Lachay, a famous area home
to a limited variety of species, but a number of important targets.
Although we wanted to bird the back area today, visiting the
main reserve tomorrow, we still drove up the entrance road to the main gate, in
the hopes of picking up a couple of smart target species. And this we achieved
easily, with up to four Least Seedsnipe showing fantastically well just by the
car, as well as my main target here with Peruvian Thick-Knee. We had absolutely
brilliant views of a pair that stood right by the side of the road, allowing for
fantastic views and photos in the flat morning light.
We arrived at the back of the reserve at around 08:00 and
set off walking up the valley. The valley was extremely dry and void of life,
but as we walked up we started to encounter more and more cactus, followed by
green vegetation that smothered the floor, creating a unique environment quite
unlike anything I had seen prior. Birding was limited but we did manage both of
our main targets; Cactus Canastero and Greyish Miner, as well as an excellent
bonus with a brilliant Thick-billed Miner, which showed fantastically well, if
not a little distant, throwing its wings back and forth in display.
We wrapped up here around lunchtime, after having walked
some five miles up, down and around the valley. After a lunch-break we returned
to the hotel with the plan of birding the beach directly in front of the hotel
in the town of Huacho. When we had arrived the previous evening we had seen
that, even though it was a town beachfront, there were ample birds, and we
wanted to see what we could find.
And we had a truly fantastic afternoon, possibly the best of
the entire trip. The beach was covered in Grey Gulls, as well as multiple
Belchers and Kelp Gulls. Both American and Blackish Oystercatcher were common,
as well as Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron. We walked among the birds, while
for the most part they didn’t seem to care. At the south end of the beach there
was a large pier with a rocky cliff face. We walked to this area, and there found well over a hundred Peruvian Pelicans roosting on the rocks, as well
as good numbers of Red-legged Cormorant, which were both roosting and fishing.
Offshore were groups of Peruvian Booby, diving in at close range.
As we continue south, after walking under the cliffs, which
were littered with rubbish and sewage, we decided to try walking out on the
pier. This worked out absolutely fantastically, despite the large numbers of
tourists, as Inca Terns were perched on the railings just below us at
phenomenally close range, with Southern Sea Lion feeding just below us, and all
the aforementioned seabirds flying around us, perched on the pier or fishing in
the water below. It was absolutely superb birding.
And despite all the excellent seabirds mentioned above,
there was one that absolutely stole the show! On the beach I was scanning out
to sea when I noticed a black shape quite far out, that didn’t quite make
sense. A few photos later and it was revealed! Humbolt Penguin! The excitement
of this was quickly eclipsed when we found a few birds closer to shore.
Although they spent much time diving, I managed a few photos and brilliant
views.
But that was nothing compared to what was to follow. Once on
the pier we found that there were up to five birds feeding around the pier at
various times. Sometimes they would be directly below us, but often a little
further out. We often had to wait some time for them to reappear after diving,
but on one occasion we could see the bird under the water right below us, in
what was one of the absolute top moments of my entire time in Peru. So many
photos were taken, and it was also brilliant to see the excitement from other
Peruvian tourists as they came and went.
The other bird we really wanted to find here was the
Peruvian Seaside Cinclodes, or Surf Cinclodes. We found a pair on the rocks by
the sewage but they were flighty, and it wasn’t until the late afternoon, once
the excitement from the penguins had subsided, that we really spent some time
with them. Although a little scruffy, they were excellent to watch as they
jumped around the seaweed covered rocks, dodging the breaking waves in front of
them. They were everything I had hoped for.
Upon returning to our hotel we spent a bit of time on the
balcony watching the sunset. Birds continued to pass along the beach, including
a handful of Black Skimmers, and once the light had truly faded, at least three
Lesser Nighthawks passed overhead, rounding off an absolutely brilliant days
birding.
-Least Seedsnipe
-Peruvian Thick-Knee
-Cactus Canastero
-Greyish Miner
-Thick-billed Miner
-Humbolt Penguin
-Inca Tern
-Peruvian Seaside Cinclodes
-Red-legged Cormorant
-Peruvian Pelican
-Peruvian Pelican & Red-legged Cormorant
-Belchers Gull
-Blackish Oystercatcher
-Lesser Nighthawk
Species List:
Lomas de Lachay: Eared Dove, Peruvian Thick-Knee,
Least Seedsnipe, Variable Hawk, Burrowing Owl, American Kestrel, Thick-billed
Miner, Greyish Miner, Coastal Miner, Cactus Canastero, House Wren, Long-tailed
Mockingbird, Rufous-collared Sparrow,
Bahía de Huacho: Great Grebe, Feral Pigeon, West
Peruvian Dove, Eared Dove, Groove-billed Ani, Lesser Nighthawk, American
Oystercatcher, Blackish Oystercatcher, Grey-headed Gull, Grey Gull, Belcher's
Gull, Kelp Gull, Inca Tern, South American Tern, Black Skimmer, Humboldt
Penguin, Peruvian Booby, Red-legged Cormorant, Neotropic Cormorant, Guanay
Cormorant, Peruvian Pelican, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Western
Cattle Egret, Black-crowned Night Heron, Puna Ibis, Black Vulture, Turkey
Vulture, Peruvian Seaside Cinclodes, Blue-and-white Swallow,
