Tropical Birding tour report - Brazil June 2006
Our
day at Maca?? de Cima was surely one of the most memorable of the trip. The
weather was not promising - a chilly, windy morning with periods of drizzle.
After a brief spurt of great birds like Shear-tailed Gray-Tyrant, Red-eyed
Thornbird, and Gray-capped Tyrannulet, it became really difficult, with few
birds singing, and the few that were simply not coming in. Frustration was
running high as a big flock came blasting through so fast that we hardly
identified anything in it, and a Hooded Berryeater called a few times and
vanished without a trace. Things were not looking good - a lot of these birds we
would have few if any chances to see again. But miraculously the weather
improved and the birds came out, with a fantastic series of some of the best
birds in the Atlantic Forest. A singing male Black-and-gold Cotinga started it
all followed by a nice Sharpbill, then the incomparable Spot-billed Toucanet.
After enjoying some hummers at the feeders, our string continued with a flock
full of (among other things) Rufous-backed Antvireos and Sharp-billed
Treehunters. Later a Giant Antshrike put in a brief appearance and a beautiful
Bertoni's Antbird finally came out into full view. A calling Barred
Forest-Falcon drew us farther down the mountain and led us straight to an
amazing Hooded Berryeater, feeding on berries low to the ground, not worried
about the 7 birders only 15 feet away, or even the bird-eating falcon calling
nearby. To cap off the day, the fierce forest-falcon finally came in (and
fortunately did not become a Barred Berryeater-eater).
Our
day in Sumidouro was productive as we saw more or less the same birds as on the
Introtour, though a flock of Curl-crested Jays spotted en-route were a nice
surprise. The Three-toed Jacamars were easy and the Blue-winged Macaws flew over
on schedule. A nice addition was Sooty Grassquit - not exactly a stunning bird,
but not recorded very often either. I can't blame Mike for lingering to look at
the Red-legged Seriemas before running down to get the grassquit just in time.
One of the most memorable birds of the day was a pair of Streamer-tailed Tyrants
(photo right) displaying together on a wire, throwing themselves up and lifting
their wings while calling.
We
finally left REGUA for Itatiaia, taking a detour to the coast to see Restinga
Antwren and various coastal birds first. We arrived at the famed Hotel do Yp??,
the highest and best hotel in the park, to find an absolute bonanza at the bird
feeders. Never have I seen such a brilliant group of birds concentrated in such
a small area. It was a swirl of colors with Blue-naped Chlorophonias (photo
left), Green-headed Tanagers, Yellow-fronted Woodpeckers, Chestnut-bellied
Euphonias all at the feeders. A short time later they were joined by a gang of
the outrageous Saffron Toucanet, and we even scoped a pair of Red-breasted
Toucans in a distant tree at the same time. The hummer feeders weren't bad
either with the typical highland species including our first Black Jacobin of
the trip. The show was so good we spent most of the afternoon there. |
