Peru - Day 11; Mirador Pico de Hoz

   Our day at Mirador Pico de Hoz started with a very lively session around the feeders. A troop of around 20 – 30 Black-capped Squirrel-Monkeys came charging through disturbing everything around them, with the exception of a small group of Spix Guan. On the feeder just below were a group of three Undulated Tinamou gobbling down corn, and after them came a Brown Agouti, also ready to devour the corn. It was incredibly busy with animals coming and going all the time. After a while even the Dusky Titi monkey family came down to the feeders, although they had to fight for a space between the Squirrel-Monkeys and the Spix Guans.

  Our first foray away from the feeders came before breakfast, when we took a short walk to the Mirador with Jonathan, our guide and proprietor of Mirador Pico de Hoz. Although many of the birds we heard did not respond, the important Goeldis Antbird did, and a smashing male came and gave excellent views.

  After breakfast we did a loop of the property. Sadly many of the birds did not respond to playback at all, or were incredibly secretive if they did. The worst of these was the Rusty-belted Tapaculo which was extremely vocal and responsive but never showed despite our best efforts. It took some time but we did get views of Black-faced Antthrush, and the Rufous-sided Crakes were already present at the feeding station. We finished off with a Ringed Antpipit site, which was another new bird for me. Additionally, not on known territories, we had a Fine-barred Piculet and a handful of other commoner lowland species.

  During the mid-afternoon lull I spent some time around the hummingbird feeders where I added White-bearded Hermit and Many-spotted Hummingbird to my list of new birds whilst at the site. In the afternoon we walked on the road outside the grounds and had a few target species respond to tape but not show. Black-tailed Trogon came and showed very nicely, and a White-browed Hermit was feeding on roadside flowers. There was a bit of parrot movement throughout the time we were there, and two Scarlet Macaws that flew past were new for me.

  In the evening after dark, we had a bit of an explore of the reserve grounds. It started phenomenally well, with a Two-toed Sloth found distantly in the thermal, before being found closer again at the end of the night. A Tawny-bellied Screech-Owl also put in a performance near our dining area. Around the grounds we found a selection of small mammals and roosting birds, but the highlight was a very showy Amazon Bamboo Rat, over a foot long, and a roosting Rufous Motmot. We had brief views of another Night-Monkey and on the lake we had some views of a Caiman, but it submerged too quickly to be appreciated.