Bolivia Day 13; Death Road

  Today was the day we would be birding on the famous ‘Death Road’ of Bolivia, apparently the most dangerous road in the world due to it being extremely narrow in several places, and having sheer drops at various points. Still, the forest around the road is packed with birds, and many birders have been along to come and see the species here.

  We start the morning just off the Death Road, on a parallel trail called the Railway Track trail. Here we had hoped to find our last Yungas Bolivian endemic species, the Orange-browed Hemispingus, and it was indeed not long into our walk when we encountered an impressive mixed flock with three of these stunning Tanagers in tandem. Not only that, but the birds showed phenomenally well and we got amazing photos. In addition, the flock was full of other birds, most typical of this habitat and altitude, but some other goodies such as two Plushcap and a smart Rufous-capped Thornbill that was all too brief.

  We continued to walk here until around 10:30, at which point we walked back to the car for breakfast. Besides the flock we also had excellent views of Light-crowned Spinetail, and nice views of Red-crested Cotinga. Glossy Black Thrush was another nice one we had been able to pick up, as were both Banded and Band-tailed Fruiteater, both of which showed well. Once we had come back for breakfast, we also found a pair of extremely showy Black-chinned Thistletails right next to the car, and we were able to get some fantastic photos as they came so close we would have been able to touch them!

  After breakfast we drove down the Death Road itself about halfway, and then started to bird again. We had hoped to find a couple of other species here, but the weather that had stalked us all morning finally came, with thick fog and substantially reduced visibility. We did our best and had a few nice birds, such as brief views of Rufous-faced Antpitta, close views of Trilling Tapaculo, a pair of Golden-headed Quetzal and a nice mixture of common flock species, but we were left very frustrated with how the day had finished, after such an excellent morning.

Species List:
Railway Track: Band-tailed Pigeon, Amethyst-throated Sunangel, Rufous-capped Thornbill, Tyrian Metaltail, Violet-throated Starfrontlet, Yungas Pygmy Owl, Masked Trogon, Bolivian Antpitta, Streaked Tuftedcheek, Pearled Treerunner, Black-throated Thistletail, Light-crowned Spinetail, Azara's Spinetail, Band-tailed Fruiteater, Barred Fruiteater, Red-crested Cotinga, Cinnamon Flycatcher, White-banded Tyrannulet, White-throated Tyrannulet, Sierran Elaenia, Rufous-breasted Chat-Tyrant, House Wren, Fulvous Wren, Chiguanco Thrush, Glossy-black Thrush, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Bolivian Brushfinch, Citrine Warbler, Spectacled Whitestart, Orange-browed Hemispingus, Rust-and-yellow Tanager, Three-striped Hemispingus, Blue-capped Tanager, Scarlet-bellied Mountain Tanager, Chestnut-bellied Mountain Tanager, Blue-and-black Tanager, Blue-backed Conebill, Masked Flowerpiercer, Plushcap, Drab Hemispingus,
Death Road: Andean Guan, Band-tailed Pigeon, Sparkling Violetear, Long-tailed Sylph, Buff-thighed Puffleg, Golden-headed Quetzal, Versicolored Barbet, Blue-banded Toucanet, Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, Plum-crowned Parrot, Rufous-faced Antpitta, Trilling Tapaculo, Montane Woodcreeper, Streaked Tuftedcheek, Azara's Spinetail, Streak-necked Flycatcher, Ochre-faced Tody-Flycatcher, Cinnamon Flycatcher, White-throated Tyrannulet, Bolivian Tyrannulet, Smoke-colored Pewee, Streak-throated Bush Tyrant, Mountain Wren, Andean Solitaire, White-eared Solitaire, Glossy-black Thrush, Common Chlorospingus, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Bolivian Brushfinch, Citrine Warbler, Spectacled Whitestart, Black-backed Grosbeak, Rust-and-yellow Tanager, Blue-capped Tanager, Fawn-breasted Tanager, Blue-and-black Tanager, Saffron-crowned Tanager, Masked Flowerpiercer,